The owner of lifestyle brand Weird Fish has made an offer to acquire British handbag brand Radley, Retail Week understands.
Auralis, the buy-and-build holding company created by Total Capital Partners (TCP) and owner of fashion brand Weird Fish, has thrown its lot in with the likes of Gordon Brothers and Next to acquire Radley.
In December, Auralis put in what sources close to the business described as a “very serious offer” for footwear brand Russell & Bromley, but ultimately ended up missing out in the auction to high street fashion giant Next.
Back in October, TCP took control of Weird Fish in a deal understood to value the clothing brand at £35m, having first invested in the company in 2017.
It rolled the company into the new group Auralis, and is understood to be preparing a £50m war chest to buy more high street brands to sit alongside it, of which Radley may well be one.
The handbag and leather accessories brand is currently going through what it has described as a “reset mode” following several challenging years of trading. The family owners of the brand have appointed FTI Consulting to oversee a review of strategic options for the business.
It has been reported that a deal for Radley could either take the form of a pre-pack administration, although the outcome of any sale is still being determined.
Radley most recently posted a £2.2m loss for the year to April 2025, while its sales in the US fell to £65.8m from £72m in the same period.
Despite a downturn in fortunes for many mid-market lifestyle brands, Weird Fish has been going from strength to strength. For its last reported period, Weird Fish celebrated its strongest-ever Christmas trading period, which capped off what it called a “record-breaking” year in 2025.
The fashion retailer saw total sales surge 18.4% during November and December, pushing full-year revenue to reach its highest point to date.
Retail like-for-likes increased 6.6% in the 12 weeks to December 28, while online sales jumped 12%. Weird Fish reported outlet performance was “particularly strong”.
For the full year, EBITDA increased by 48%, and margins rose two percentage points to 30%.
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