Latham & Watkins and French firm Bredin Prat have scored leading roles in China's Shandong Ruyi’s acquisition of a controlling stake in the French affordable luxury brand SMCP, from American private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Company.
Shandong Ruyi Group is being advised by Latham & Watkins with a cross-office team led by partners Pierre-Louis Cléro and David Blumental in Paris and Hong Kong respectively. French firm Bredin Prat serves as legal advisor to KKR, where as SMCP is represented by Mayer Brown.
SMCP, which owns the contemporary fashion brands Sandro, Maje and Claudie Pierlot and operates 1,118 stores in 34 countries, is considered a major contender in the so-called accessible luxury sector. Its core brands are aimed at professional women in their 20s and 30s.
Shandong Ruyi, one of China’s largest textile producer said the deal would combine the French firm's fashion know-how with its own business network in China, the world's second largest economy where consumers are increasingly looking for "accessible luxury" products.
It did not give a value for the purchase.
Two sources close to the deal said the textile group would take control of SMCP for around 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion) including debt.
"By taking on board the expertise of SMCP, a group well-rooted with strong Parisian heritage, we would combine their merits with our existing strength in Asia, in particular China," Qiu Yafu, Shandong Ruyi's chairman, said in the statement.
