International law firm Bird & Bird has advised Mothercare Global Brand Limited (“MGB”), a subsidiary of Mothercare plc, in relation to the sale of 51% of the shares in a new joint venture JVCO 2024 Limited, a subsidiary, to Reliance Brands UK Limited (RBL UK), a subsidiary of Reliance Brands Limited.
As a result of the transaction the new joint venture entity owns the Mothercare brand and related intellectual property assets for the regions of India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Bangladesh, and will be the franchisor of the Mothercare brand in the aforesaid regions. RBL UK will hold a 51% stake in the joint venture company and MGB will hold the remaining 49% stake.
The transaction strengthens Mothercare’s operations in South Asia and underlines the intrinsic value of the Mothercare brand’s strength. The transaction also supported a material reduction in Mothercare’s bank facilities and leverage, being linked to a refinancing of debt facilities with GB Europe Management Services Ltd.
The team from Bird & Bird was led by franchise & supply chain partner Graeme Payne, global head of International Retail & Consumer and corporate partners Simon Allport and Fiona McFarlane. They were assisted by IP associate James Pearson, commercial associates James Fowler and Emma Ikpe and corporate trainee Eloise Barry.
Graeme Payne, Simon Allport and Fiona McFarlane, lead partners on the transaction, commented, “We are delighted to have assisted our long-standing client Mothercare on this transaction and we look forward to seeing the results of the collaboration with RBL UK. This business critical deal is another great example of the excellent multi-practice work carried out by our firm’s specialists for international clients in the retail and consumer sector”.
