Sass & Bide, Marcs, David Lawrence fashion labels on the market

Fashion sold under the Marcs brand.

Detailed sales documents are now in the market for Myer’s fashion brands Sass & Bide, Marcs and David Lawrence.

A flyer document for the sale seen by DataRoom for “Project Athena”, run by KPMG, describes the labels as three iconic Australian fashion brands, each with a large addressable market and well-established omni-channel platform.

Marcs generates $52m of annual revenue, David Lawrence $37m and Sass and Bide $28m.

The flyer talks up the growth prospects for the brands through new stores, online sales or offshore growth, and highlights the opportunities for an existing retailer to extract synergies by adding the brands to their business.

Marcs was founded in 1979 by Mark Keighery, producing modern casualwear fashion for men and women.

It has three retail stores and 72 concession stores in Myer and David Jones.

David Lawrence was established in 1978 by David Bardas and has 63 concession stores. It describes itself as a designer label that creates feminine workwear and elevated casual wear.

Sass & Bide was created in 2001. Its creations have been worn by Sex and the City actor Sarah Jessica Parker and celebrities Madonna, Rihanna, Kate Moss, Beyonce and Nicole Richie.

It has 9 concession stores and 19 retail stores.

In Myer, the three operate as one division, and while Marcs and David Lawrence operate as one company, Sass and Bide operates as two companies – one in Australia and one in New Zealand, with designs created in house.

The information memorandum is believed to show that the performance of Marcs fashion brand is robust, but its gains are offset by Sass & Bide’s weakness.

A 65 per cent share in the Sass & Bide brand was purchased by Myer for $42m over a decade ago, and Sarah-Jane Clarke and Heidi Middleton later sold Myer the remaining stake for about $30m.

Marcs and David Lawrence were rescued from collapse.

Companies such as Sportscraft and Saba owner Apparel Group, and Larry Kestelman’s Pas Group, which owns labels like Review Clothing, were previously thought to be potential buyers, but not this time.

Myer moved into acquiring brands some years ago as a way to gain distribution.

The Australian department store chain, backed by billionaire retailer Solomon Lew’s Premier Investments, has considered a sale before, as reported by this column, but when former Myer boss John King was hired he opted to keep the brands.

Myer’s strategy to sell the labels is part of a decision to focus on running the department store, with apparel groups able to focus more intently on such designer brands.

The challenge for Sass & Bide has been that the founding designers are no longer involved, which some say has led to the loss of its essence.

The Australian fashion industry over time has faced growing competition from international competitors and the rise of internet shopping.