Naked and Bendon near merger

Naked Brand Group, Bendon Limited and Bendon Group Holdings Limited ("Holdco") have submitted a confidential draft registration statement for their merger with the SEC.

The brands initially announced their intent to merge in January 2017. They officially began combining their businesses in May. Goals of the merger were to improve operations and distribution as well as expand channels of marketing, particularly e-commerce.

Under the terms of the merger agreement, Naked was to acquire Bendon's global wholesale and retail distribution channels. Bendon would get immediate exposure to the US market and access Naked's NYC headquarters.

Naked product is currently sold at department stores and online in North America including Bloomingdale's, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Amazon. The company plans to expand into additional categories including swim, sportswear and activewear.

Naked has a strong e-commerce business which was attractive to Bendon. FashionNetwork.com reported here in June that despite an operations loss, Naked finished Q1 with $4.0 million in cash. This was over a million dollars growth from Q1 of the previous year.

Bendon manufactures and markets private label intimates and swim. It also holds licenses for Heidi Klum Intimates and Swimwear, Stella McCartney Lingerie and Swimwear and Frederick’s of Hollywood Intimates and Swimwear. Klum is the brand's Creative Director and face of Bendon's flagship Intimates collection.

The official combination of business is subject to approval by Naked's stockholders. The SEC must also declare the registration statement that was just filed effective. Finally, Holdco must list its ordinary shares on Nasdaq for a complete merger.

Naked and Bendon near merger

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