Jimmy Choo For Sale

Jimmy Choo, a favourite for shoe-loving fashionistas around the world, has appointed investment bank NM Rothschild to look at selling the business. The bank is to review the options for the company, including a sale or float on the stock market that could raise as much as £100m.

The brand frequently appears on A-list red carpets - as with Naomi Watts at this year's Oscars, and features in the television series Sex and the City. It competes with Manolo Blahnik as the most desirable of luxury shoe brands.

The company is majority owned by private equity firm Phoenix Equity Partners. Other shareholders include former Christian Lacroix boss Roger Bensoussan and founder and former fashion journalist Tamara Mellon, who run the firm. A number of interested buyers made offers in the summer, prompting the shareholders to appoint Rothschild. Burberry was said to be interested but a spokesperson declined to comment yesterday.

Phoenix bought its stake in 2001 when Jimmy Choo, the designer, sold out. At the time the deal valued the firm at £21m. It has since expanded into other accessories and opened more stores around the world.