British fashion retailer Next plans to jointly bid with American investment firm Davidson Kampner to acquire the recently collapsed Arcadia Group. As per reports, owner of Topman and Topshop brands, the Arcadia Group collapsed last month thereby putting 13,000 jobs at risk. The acquisition will be funded primarily by Davidson Kempner who will also own majority stake. Meanwhile, several retail groups have shown interest in the Arcadia Group, which also include the likes of Boohoo and Frasers Group.

The Arcadia group was established in 1910 by Lithuanian émigré Montague Burton as an eponymous menswear business. Business moved to women’s wear in 1946, with the acquisition of the Peter Robinson chain. It launched the brand Topshop in the mid-1960s while Topman was launched in 1970. The Burton Group demerged in 1997, giving rise to Arcadia, which then acquired Wallis, Miss Selfridge and Outfit.

In 2002 Arcadia Group became part of Taveta Investments, owned by Sir Philip Green and his family. Since then we’ve expanded our digital business rapidly and seen huge international growth, opening branches in New York, Chicago, Las Vegas and Los Angeles as well as a large number of franchises.