Republic up for sale

Republic, the fast-growing fashion chain that sells brands including Diesel, Superdry and G-Star, has been put up for sale through Rothschild, the investment bank.

The retailer is controlled by Change Capital, the private equity group, which is run by Luc Vandevelde and Roger Holmes. The former Marks & Spencer directors bought a majority stake five years ago. A sale could generate a huge paper profit for Republic’s founders, Tim Whitworth and Carl Brewins, who still own more than 40% of the shares and lead the management.