Metis Partners puts up Barratts IP assets for sale

London - The trademark portfolio of one of the oldest British footwear retailers, Barratts, have been put up for sale one more. Property consulting firm Metis Partners has announced the sale of the intellectual property (IP) assets of Barratts, which were acquired by W Barratt & Co, a new company backed by footwear veteran Harvey Jacobson and Michael Ziff, together with Simon Robson in spring 2014.

The IP assets for sale include the Barratts registered trademark portfolio, goodwill rights behind the Barratts brand, customer database of approximately 1 million, organisational knowledge, branded website, as well as domain names. “This sale is certain to attract a high degree of interest from those seeking opportunities from a respected heritage brand, which is quintessentially British. Barratts presents a unique opportunity for brand extension into new product categories, or further commercialisation via a licensing strategy,” said Ruby Chan, of Metis Partners, who is coordinating the sale.

“This sale will be particularly relevant to parties who are looking to diversify their product offering by revitalising one of Britain’s oldest and most recognised footwear and retail brands,” she added. Barratts, which has been a part of the British high street since 1903, operated 400 retail stores and 300 franchises within Arcadia Group stores at the height of its popularity. However, over the years the brand found it difficult to adapt to changing retail landscape, entering administration for the third time in five years in November 2013. Duff & Phelps, the appointed administrators, sold the company's IP rights and domain to W Barratt & Co.

All offers for Barratts IP assets should be submitted to Chan at Metis Partners by 12 on October 19, 2017. Metis Partners has a long withstanding reputation for overseeing fashion and retail sales, previously overseeing the sale of fashion label Internacionale and footwear retail chain Brantano.

Photos: Courtesy of Metis Partners