The guardian has refused any bid for bankrupted fashion company McGregor so far because the company’s shareholders are also the largest creditors.
Unanimity required
This enables the shareholders to refuse any bid, because unanimity is required when it involves several things the four shareholders (founders Jeroen Schothorst and Ben Kolfff, investor Marcel Boekhoorn and business bank NIBC) discussed and agreed to in the past. All four have equal say within the company as a result.
The guardian had already received several bids last week, from investment funds Apollo and Alteri and the Chinese Lo family, which already has a joint venture with McGregor in the shape of sailing fashion brand Gaastra Pro.
It remains to be seen what the four shareholders will decide. Some sources indicate they want to hold out for a higher bid, while others think they want to sell off supplies and other assets to get more money. If the latter turns out to be true, that would spell the end of the company and that would mean about 1,200 people would need to find a new job.