Mishcon de Reya advises Limited Brands on La Senza deal

Mishcon de Reya has advised Limited Brands Inc, the US retail group, which owns the rights to the La Senza and Victoria’s Secret lingerie brands, in connection with the recent acquisition of 60 La Senza UK stores from private equity fund, Lion Capital.

In a significant transaction for the beleaguered UK high street, the deal saw 1,100 UK jobs saved in the acquired business. Leading Kuwait-based retail franchise operator, Alshaya Group, purchased the business out of administration and will now operate in the UK under licence from, and with the support of, Limited Brands.

Mishcon de Reya's team was led by corporate partners Kevin McCarthy and Andrew Rimmington with support from Jeremy Hertzog (IP), Danny Davis (Reconstruction & Insolvency), Lewis Cohen and Mary Guinness (Commercial).

KPMG headed up the pre-pack administration, with Linklaters advising Alshaya and SJ Berwin advising La Senza/Lion.

The deal completed successfully on 9 January after two weeks of intensive negotiations over the Christmas and New Year period.