Moss Bros to hold sale vote after buyer reneges

Moss Bros said it was pressing forward with a shareholder vote on its £22.6m sale after the buyers reneged on the deal amid the Covid-19 crisis.

The retailer and formalwear hire group said the sale process would go ahead as planned under its agreement with Brigadier, a bid vehicle led by Menoshi Shina, the US-based owner of Crew Clothing.

Brigadier agreed to buy Moss Bros for cash on 12 March but on 22 April Moss Bros said Brigadier had applied to the Takeover Panel to withdraw its offer. Moss Bros said it would do all it could to make sure the deal went through as agreed.

Under the scheme of arrangement process Moss Bros will hold a general meeting to get shareholder approval for the deal on 29 April at its office in London. The company said the Takeover Panel would probably make its decision after the vote.

The scheme in relation to the offer will proceed in accordance with the timetable," Moss Bros said. The Takeover Panel has informed Moss Bros that it will consider Bidco's request for a ruling and Moss Bros's rebuttal of the basis for any invocation of a condition."

Brigadier agreed to buy the 169-year-old company the day after Covid-19 was declared a pandemic. Two weeks later the UK government ordered the closure of non-essential shops. Moss Bros shut all its stores and published a profit warning on 23 March.

Nick Burchett, a fund manager at Cavendish Asset Management, which owns 6% of Moss Bros, has said it would be disgraceful if Brigadier was allowed to back out of the deal. He said it was a test for the City's authorities and that Brigadier should be made to stick to its pledges.

Moss Bros urged shareholders to vote before the morning of 27 April and to do so online.