Laura Tenison, who started the business in 1993 from her flatshare kitchen table and turned it into one of the UK’s leading mother and baby retailers, said the new owners had “exciting plans to expand and grow the brand”. “much faster than we could, giving us the opportunity to open up to new markets.” However, as part of the deal he will leave the business. Next has acquired a 44% stake in the company, with the remaining 56% acquired by investment companies that manage or consult the hedge fund Davidson Kempner Capital Management. The shares were acquired by existing JoJo shareholders including Tenison. In addition to its websites, JoJo Maman Bébé has 87 retail stores and employs more than 950 people in the UK. The Duchess of Cambridge is wearing maternity clothes by JoJo Maman Bébé. Photo: Rex / Shutterstock The company told staff that the new owners “are willing to keep our stores where they trade profitable transactions”, adding that from now on “there may be opportunities for more stores [and] new international websites “. The value of the deal has not been disclosed and it is not known how much Tenison received for its controlling stake in the company. Tenison started the business after a serious car accident, while living in France, he had left her lying in the hospital. In interviews she said her partner was a young mother with two young children who entertained herself by ordering from mailing lists. “[Living in rural France] I could not help but notice how well-dressed the children were in France. “You would see them walking along the beach with their grandparents, regardless of the weather, in their lovely raincoats and fishing jackets, picking things up from the sand,” he said in a 2020 interview. Inspired by this, in 1993 she started the JoJo business from her London apartment, with her parents’ “warehouse” in South Wales. The Duchess of Cambridge has been photographed several times wearing a white maternity coat from the brand and is also said to have bought many items for her daughter, Princess Charlotte. Commenting on the deal, Tenison said: “Growing JoJo from a kitchen table startup to a leading UK brand for babies and toddlers has been my priority for the last 30 years. I am extremely proud of our achievements and excited about the opportunities that this new partnership will offer in the future of the brand. ” He told staff that it was important for Next and other companies “to maintain brand identity, values and talent, while allowing JoJo to take advantage of the economies of scale of their largest umbrella… Next and DK [Davidson Kempner] we believe, like us, that our stores are of great value to the overall business. ” She added that she will maintain her own exclusive website. Subscribe to the daily Business Today email or follow the Guardian Business on Twitter at @BusinessDesk Gwynn Milligan, who joined JoJo Maman Bébé in 2017 as Commercial Director, has taken over as CEO and the other directors will remain in their posts. He went on to say that the company would retain its administrative autonomy and creative independence. It will then also invest 16 16.3 million in the brand, financed from its own cash resources. Simon Wolfson, CEO of Next, said: “We are excited to see what can be achieved by combining JoJo’s excellent product with Next’s infrastructure and Davidson Kempner as our investment partner.”
