Nicole Fahri changes hands

Nicole Fahri is yet again going under new ownership. The label will undergo significant

expansion after private equity group Kelso Place Asset Management acquired a majority stake in the company.

Kelso Place, which sold British luxury leather goods company Smythson in 2009, bought the stake from OpenGate Capital, which only acquired Farhi in 2010 for £5 million.

Kelso Place will retain Nicole Farhi as creative director and Niki Scordi as chief executive for the next phase of the expansion – in particular Asian growth.

Sion Kearsey, managing partner of Kelso Place, says, "Nicole Farhi is well represented in the UK, and currently sells in 40 countries worldwide, but the opportunity is to deepen the penetration of the brand. We get on well with the management team, and we're all agreed on where the business should go."