Shoe chain Brantano bought out of administration by previous owners Alteri
Alteri Investors has bought back most of shoe giant Brantano's stores less than a month after calling in administrators and three months after acquiring the brand.
PwC, the administrators, said 140 of Brantano's stores and concession have been sold back to a company controlled by the Mayfair investment firm, preserving 1,372 jobs, after interest from a number of buyers.
The remaining 58 stores will continue to trade whilst it holds talks with other interested parties, PwC said.
Alteri, which was set up in 2014 to invest in challenged retailers, bought Brantano along with Jones Bootmaker in October for an undisclosed sum from Dutch retail conglomerate Macintosh.
However the firm's chief executive Gavin George said that it became clear that Brantano needed "fundamental restructuring" and was forced to call in administrators at PwC last month after failing to reach an agreement with landlords over its rents.
"Every action possible was taken to restructure the business on a solvent basis including extensive renegotiations with landlords. Unfortunately the landlords were unable to revise their terms to a viable level, and with the additional complexity brought on by the insolvency of previous parent company Macintosh Retail group, administration was the only route available."
George said the restructured business was "well placed for future development as an out of town, family footwear specialist and both Jones and Brantano are now able to move forward on a solid financial and strategic footing".