Selfridges’ Thai Co-Owner Takes Control as Signa Struggles
- Central Group converts loan to equity, acquires majority stake
- Austria’s Signa Holding plans restructuring amid cash squeeze
Selfridges department store in London.
Photographer: Jose Sarmento Matos/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Thai conglomerate Central Group said it’s taken control of the company that runs London’s landmark Selfridges department store after the financial woes of its Austrian partner Signa deepened.
The retail group owned by the Chirathivat family in Thailand converted a loan into equity and will gain a majority stake in the joint-venture operating company, it said in a statement Tuesday. The transaction also gives Central Group control over other department stores in the Selfridges group, including Brown Thomas & Arnotts in Ireland and De Bijenkorf in the Netherlands.