Chinese footwear seller C.Banner worldwide agreed to a price of £100m to purchase the store from Ludendo, the French toy store operator that has owned Hamleys since 2012.
Advertisement
The Nanjing-based Chinese enterprise, which has a market capitalisation of around US$752.2 million (S$1 billion), said it is pursuing a new global branding initiative and business diversification plan. Throughout the years, Hamleys has successfully expanded to Europe, Middle East and Asia by leveraging its franchising model.
Xi said that China and Britain would collaborate in financial services, rail and energy infrastructure, as well as emerging sectors such as bioenergy, smart cities, information technology and e-commerce. The store is the world’s largest toy store, with a business area of over 50,000 sqm. on seven storeys and 450,000 multifarious toys pigeon-holed into approximately 10,000 categories.
Advertisement
Founded by William Hamley in High Holborn, London, in 1760, the iconic toy store was originally named Noah’s Ark and sold assorted offerings he collected himself, ranging from rag dolls to tin soldiers, from iron hoops to hobby-horses. Currently, Company is exploring different options for a strategic business partnership with House of Fraser, a leading premium department store in the United Kingdom and Ireland. CEO Gudjon Reynisson noted that its global prospects remained strong, with the possibility of having over 100 worldwide stores in the near future.
