Memo ‘reveals Green asked bankers to help sell Topshop’
Leaked email casts doubt on denials by tycoon and HSBC boss
TOPSHOP tycoon Sir Philip Green discussed the sale of his retail empire at a dinner with two top bankers, a leaked memo suggests.
He reportedly told senior staff at HSBC that he wanted a Chinese buyer for Topshop, which has around 500 stores worldwide, and also hoped to sell other weaker companies within his Arcadia Group.
The revelation in a leaked email appears to contradict previous denials by the billionaire and HSBC’s UK boss Ian Stuart, who had insisted no conversation about a possible sale ever took place.
Written by banker David Barraclough, the memo allegedly refers to a dinner he and Mr Stuart had with Sir Philip in February 2016.
This was just months before the collapse of BHS, the department store chain the tycoon sold to three-times bankrupt ex-racing driver Dominic Chappell for £1.
Mr Barraclough said they met because neither of Sir Philip’s children, Brandon, 25, and Chloe, 26, seemed likely to take over when the entrepreneur, 65, retires. He added that Sir Philip – who oversees 2,600 stores worldwide employing 22,000 people, with brands including Dorothy Perkins and Wallis – seemed distracted by the BHS crisis, according to The Sunday Times. ‘As emotions were running high, PG’s thinking was the need to sell,’ the email reportedly said. ‘He sought our assistance and offered to meet any Chinese prospective partner we consider appropriate.
‘The strategy should be to sell Topshop/Topman separate to the rest of the Arcadia portfolio of lesser brands.’
Mr Barraclough said Sir Philip would use proceeds from the sale of Topshop to plug Arcadia’s pension deficit.
No deal ever happened, although it has been claimed that Sir Philip has recently been in talks with Chinese company Shandong Ruyi and US firm Oxford Industries about selling up.
A week ago the billionaire said reports in The Sunday Times that he was considering a sale were ‘totally false’ and it was untrue to suggest he had been seeking a buyer for some time. Shandong Ruyi also denied talks had ever taken place. This was backed up