New Look's value is written down

The private equity owners of the retail chain New Look slashed the value of their stake in the business after tough high street conditions caused its sales to fall.

SVG Capital – which invests in New Look through the buyout specialist Permira, which owns a 27.7 per cent stake in the retailer – said it had almost halved the value of its holding in the fashion group.

Full-year results published by SVG showed that it cut the value of its investment in New Look by 47 per cent, to £13.5m at the end of last year from £25.7m a year earlier.

New Look's sales fell over Christmas and the new year, with a 9.1 per cent like-for-like drop over the 15 weeks to January, Like other retailers, it was hard hit by December's snowfall.