£50m buyout at Mk One

PHILIP Green has sold his MkOne discount clothing chain to a management buyout team for an estimated £50 million.

The deal for the 130-store chain comes six months after Green, the Arcadia-to-Bhs retail entrepreneur, tried and failed to interest a number of venture capital firms in the business, which then had a £100 million price tag.

Green brought Mk One, then known as Mark One, out of administration in February 1996 following a fierce bid battle with another rag trade millionaire, Shami Ahmed. Since then Green is believed to have made a number of attempts to sell the business.

MK One, which targets young, fashion-conscious shoppers, has always struggled to compete with rivals such as New Look and Peacock, though it is thought to have moved into profit recently.

Though Green has turned Bhs into a £1 billion company, having bought it in May 2000 for £250 million, he has always maintained a limited role in the day-to-day running of Mk One.

The deal by buying director Elaine McPherson and finance director David Thompson was backed by Bank of Scotland.