Shopping channel sold by private equity owners

Shopping channel, Ideal Shopping Direct, has been sold by its private equity owners, Inflexion.

Inflexion, a UK-based group, has sold to a private equity operator based in the US, Blackstone, who are thought to have agreed to a price around the £200 million mark, which will essentially have doubled the price paid by Inflexion four years ago.

Mike Hancox, chief executive of Ideal Shopping Direct, will continue to lead the team. He commented on the change of ownership: “We see our future collaboration with Blackstone as a new development opportunity for Ideal Shopping Direct, from both a geographical and operational standpoint.”

The channel employs around 800 people and is streamed to some 26 million homes in the UK. It operates a variety of different sales channel through which it sells home and garden goods, as well as a growing craft offering. The firm was pushed into the US homes by Inflexion in a move designed to capitalise on the multi-billion dollar craft market.

Blackstone is aiming on continuing this work, with Gerry Murphy, the firm's senior managing director, noting that the team are planning to “capitalise on growth opportunities in omni-channel retailing in the UK and the US”.

At the moment Ideal Shopping Direct operates from offices in Peterborough where it has its own studios.

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