We Won’t Become a ‘Corporate Blob’, Says Next

Next Plc said it has no intention of going on an investment binge and becoming a “corporate blob” even though it has snapped up Jojo Maman Bebe, Joules and Cath Kidston in the last 18 months.

“The biggest risk is that, in making multiple investments, we build an unwieldy retail conglomerate that lacks the focus and agility we have worked so hard to maintain over the last thirty years,” Chief Executive Officer Simon Wolfson wrote in the retailer’s latest earnings statement.