Former JD Sports exec buys Thomas Pink brand

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
Mar 1, 2021

Failed upscale menswear retailer Pink Shirtmaker is to make a return. The LVMH-owned brand, which went on the block before Christmas, has been bought by Nick Preston, the former JD Sports Fashion trading director, according to a report.

Preston, who has also worked in menswear buying posts for Harvey Nichols and House of Fraser, has reportedly brokered a deal to buy the Thomas Pink brand and intellectual property rights, according to the Mail on Sunday. However, the deal doesn’t include its shuttered stores.

It is understood the new business has been registered in the US in Delaware and there are unconfirmed reports backers could include a South American investor or Mexican department store El Palacio de Hierro. Parties concerned have yet to confirm the report that broke over the weekend. 

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The business, formerly called Thomas Pink before the French luxury goods group bought the shirtmaker and retailer in 1999, hasn’t traded physically since last year.

However, a new online platform was launched in January with the message: “Don’t fret – we’ll be back soon. We’re excited to announce that we’re returning to our roots with the same team that has helped build Thomas Pink Shirtmakers over the years”.

The website is being prepared to relaunch the label, according to the report.

The loss-making business was hit hard last year by the pandemic as working from home increasingly became almost the norm for many office workers, especially in the financial sector, who were its core consumers. That forced the retailer to close its flagship stores in London’s Jermyn Street and City of London, plus two Heathrow Airport retail units and a Maddison Avenue, New York store last summer.