UK: Courtaulds Puts Lyle & Scott Back On The Market

Courtaulds, a major supplier to Marks & Spencer, announced last week that it is to sell off Lyle & Scott, the knitwear and leisurewear company.Mr Robert Kimpton, managing director of Lyle & Scott, said he was confident that no jobs would be lost. "We are selling both manufacturing and brand assets. One would be optimistic that anyone buying the company would take Lyle & Scott as it stands."The Scottish-based manufacturer, which has been part of the Courtaulds Textiles Group since 1967, was first put up for sale in November 1999 when it became clear that US monolith Sara Lee was making a hostile move on Courtaulds. In March however, the company was taken off the market and Courtaulds was bought two months later by Sara Lee Corp for around £150m ($226.9m).Mr Kimpton said that a number of companies had shown interest in buying Lyle & Scott when it had first been put on the market, but the company's fate remains unclear at the moment.The Lyle & Scott sale comes just one month after Courtaulds Knitwear slashed 612 jobs in factories in central England. The company blamed severe price pressures, which were adversely affecting profitability.