L Brands Inc has cancelled a deal that would have given private equity firm Sycamore Partners control of beleaguered lingerie chain Victoria’s Secret. Now, L Brands will operate its Bath & Body Works as a standalone public company, while attempting to turn around the lingerie brand as a separate entity. Sycamore Partners and L Brands also agreed to settle all pending litigation.

The agreement brings an abrupt end to one of the highest profile deals this year in the retail world and charts an uncertain path for a storied American brand. Victoria’s Secret had been a pioneer in mass-market lingerie, but the business has declined in recent years amid controversy and changing consumer tastes.

The February deal, in which Sycamore was poised to take a 55 per cent stake in Victoria’s Secret for about $525 million, was thrown into jeopardy in late April when Sycamore sued to terminate the transaction, arguing that Columbus, Ohio-based L Brands violated the terms of the agreement by failing to pay rent and furloughing thousands of workers amid the coronavirus pandemic. L Brands counter-sued to enforce the terms of the agreement.