NEWS
Jones Bootmaker
18/02/2011
Heatons advises on the sale of one of the UK's oldest high street brands
Heatons has advised Jones Bootmaker, one of the oldest brands on the British High Street, on the sale of the business to Ruby Jones Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Maastricht-based Macintosh Retail Group NV.
The corporate team at Heatons was led by senior partner and head of corporate, Matt Fleetwood. It also comprised senior associates Catherine Hendy and Anoushka Nanji.
Commenting on the deal, Matt Fleetwood said:
“When this transaction completes around the beginning of April 2011, it will create a shoe retailer with a UK market share of four per cent. Jones Bootmaker fits in perfectly with Macintosh’s growth strategy in fashion.”
Jones Bootmaker now covers an estate of 93 stores selling leading brands including Timberland, Gabor, Barkers, Merrell, Ecco and Hush Puppies alongside its own branded shoes.
The business began as A Jones & Sons which was founded in 1857 by Alfred Jones and his wife Emma. By 1955, they could no longer manufacture shoes fast enough to meet demand, so the decision was taken to join another family run business, Church & Co, which was acquired by fashion group Prada in 2000.
Footwear veterans Peter Phillips and Ken Bartle bought the business in 2001. Since then it has grown rapidly under their leadership – expanding through organic growth as well as adding brands Gordon Scott and Beghins Shoes to its stable.
Jones Bootmaker aims to increase its presence in major cities, expecting to open some 15 new stores in the UK over the next two to three years. In addition, a new website will be set up this year to increase online sales and a separate distribution centre for online sales will be opening shortly.
Jones Bootmaker was also advised by BDO. Macintosh Retail Group NV was advised by Clearwater Corporate Finance.