Online bathroom retail giant Victoria Plum may be up for sale as reports emerge that the investment company that owns it is in talks with a number of potential buyers.
Endless LLP, which also owns companies such as Hovis, The Works, Bathstore and Crown Paints, acquired Victoria Plum in 2019 from US-based private equity company TPG.
At the time, Matthew Jubb, partner at Endless LLP in Leeds, said: “Victoria Plum is a hugely exciting acquisition for us, and as a Yorkshire-based private equity house, we are thrilled with the opportunity to back a great local business and help it continue to achieve its full potential.”
A reports on the Sky News website suggested talks may be at an advanced stage and that a deal was expected “in the coming weeks”.
Kbbreview contacted Victoria Plum and Endless LLP but both declined to comment.
In its latest financial results to the end of February 2022, Victoria Plum increased turnover by 46% to £113 million, but pre-tax profits fell to £736,000 from £1.5m the year before. That followed record sales in the 2020 financial year.
The Victoria Plum website was ranked as the best performing online bathroom retail site according to the UK 2022 Digital Retail Index and was ranked the eighth best performing retail website out of the top 500.
Victoria Plum says it has more than 30 million users a year, generating more than 62m sessions. Headquartered in Doncaster, the company employs around 400 people.