Next plc Purchases Made.com for £3.4 Million
Following Made.com’s collapse into administration, Next plc moved in to acquire control of the online furniture shop for £3.4 million.
London-based Made.com was a British internet retailer that created and offered home furnishings and accessories. Ning Li, a seasoned businessperson, along with Brent Hoberman, Julien Callède, and Chloe Macintosh launched the company in 2010.
Made.com’s valuation at the time of its IPO in the summer of 2021 was £775 million.
Made.com CEO Nicola Thompson expressed her regrets to the company’s patrons, employees, and stockholders. That world disappeared, the company could not function in its current form, and we were unable to quickly change course.
After Made.com founder Ning Li disclosed that his bid to purchase the company had been rejected, news of the deal became public.
Mr. Li expressed his willingness to put up his own money for the offer in a letter to Made.com staff earlier this week after failing to secure funding from outside investors.
In 2010, Mr. Li, Chloe Mackintosh, and serial entrepreneur Brent Hoberman created Made.com.
It comes after the furniture company had a severe cash crisis as a result of rising costs and concerns about the cost of living that reduced demand for expensive items.
Made.com announced last month that it was looking for fresh funding or a sale and that it needed a cash infusion of between £45 million and £70 million to survive. After failing to locate anyone ready to invest new money in the company, it eventually put an end to the process and ceased taking furniture orders in an effort to protect value for creditors.