Hotter Shoes

Hotter Shoes
Transforming a five-store retail business into a nation-wide chain with
increasing US sales
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PRIVATE EQUITY IN ACTION
Country UK
Region North West
Investor Gresham Private Equity
For more info
www.hotter.com
www.greshampe.com
When Gresham Private Equity invested in Hotter Shoes in 2007, the
company’s founder had ambitious plans to expand rapidly from its five
stores to become an international brand offering footwear for the 50+
age group. After investing, Gresham strengthened the board,
supported investment in the website, improved IT systems and helped
develop the brand by launching new products.
With Gresham’s support, the company has opened 51 new standalone
branches across the UK, created over 500 new jobs, developed a
strong presence in the US, started exploring opportunities in the
Middle East, Russia and Germany and grew online sales by more than
300%. With a track record of more than doubling sales over the
previous four years, Gresham sold Hotter to Electra Partners in 2014.
We would like to thank
Gresham for a very
successful partnership.
Hotter has gone from
strength to strength
over the last six years,
growing in the UK and
internationally, despite
challenging times for
retail globally.
WHAT DID THE BUSINESS NEED?
Capital to expand through new store openings
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Strategic support for an entrepreneurial founder owner
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Investment in marketing and product development
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HOW DID PRIVATE EQUITY BACKING CREATE LASTING VALUE?
Developed a conventional board structure, adding seven seasoned executives
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Improved IT systems with a particular focus on generating more online sales
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Improved operations to support rapid store opening plans
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Combined in-house and outsourced manufacturing with state of the art manufacturing facilities
Peter Taylor
CEO, Hotter Shoes
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Expanded into the US market
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WHAT OUTCOMES DID PRIVATE EQUITY INVESTMENT ACHIEVE?
Created 560 new jobs
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Expanded from five to 56 retail sites across the UK, with 20+ new sites planned per year
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Attracted active customer base of over 800,000 in the UK
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Grew US active customer base from zero to over 80,000
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Increased web sales by 30% a year
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51
new stores
opened across
the UK
Bastion Tower
Place du Champs de Mars 5
B-1050 Brussels
Belgium
Tel+3227150020
www.investeurope.eu
560
new jobs created
over five years