MPH.L Regulatory News (MPH)

1 Feb 2008 15:07

Marchpole Holdings PLC01 February 2008 MARCHPOLE HOLDINGS PLC ("Marchpole", "the Company" or "the Group") Interim Management Statement Marchpole Holdings plc (LSE: MPH), the fashion brand management group, has todaypublished its Interim Management Statement as required by the revised Listing Authority disclosure rules. The statement relates to the first 18 weeks of the second half of the 2007 financial year, representing the period 1 October 2007 to 31 January 2008 Our relationship with the House of Ungaro continues to develop and we have madefurther progress in establishing the Emanuel Ungaro and Ungaro Homme diffusionlabels as a worldwide menswear brand. We have restructured Moda America, oursubsidiary in the USA, which will result in significant cost savings and areduction in the losses and stabilised current trading. The Jean Charles de Castelbajac ("JCC") brand has made further progress duringthe period, and in particular, the royalty income is increasing as a result ofthe new licensing agreements that have been initiated during the last twelvemonths. In addition, we have signed the leasehold on the first UK flagship storefor the brand, which will be at 50-51 Conduit Street in the fashion heart ofLondon. We anticipate that this store will be opened by the end of spring 2008. With regard to the Ozwald Boateng range, we have settled our dispute withBespoke Couture and under the terms of the settlement we have extended ourmanufacturing and distribution license with Ozwald Boateng. As a result of thesettlement, we shall not incur any royalty payments to Bespoke Couture over thenext three years, which will result in savings of over £1 million. Sales andorders for the brand continue to grow. Greenmark Ltd, our footwear subsidiary, trades profitably and in line withexpectations. Homebody Ltd continued its development and the brand is developing its websitesales and in overseas markets. Despite the progress we have made in all areas of our business, the difficulttrading conditions in the UK and the USA have had an adverse impact on our salesand profit performance during this period. Therefore, the outturn for the yearto 31 March 2008 will result in a loss. The measures taken during the currentperiod will put the Company in a good position to increase its customer base andto take advantage of future profitable trading opportunities. We continue tofocus on seeking licensing agreements for the further expansion of our business. For further information please contact: Marchpole Holdings plcMichael Morris, Executive Deputy Chairman 020 7908 7777 Bell Pottinger Corporate & FinancialDavid Rydell / Emma Kent / Amy Rajendran 020 7861 3232 Note to Editors: - Marchpole Holdings plc ("Marchpole") is an international brand management group that designs, produces and sells clothing and accessories for ten globally recognised fashion labels. It operates in all of the world's main markets - UK, mainland Europe, Middle East, Asia and the USA - Its respected brands include Boateng, Emmanuel Ungaro, Ungaro Homme, Jean Charles de Castelbajac ("JCC"), Jean Charles de Castelbajac / Rossignol, Jean Charles de Castelbajac/Okaidi, Jean Charles de Castelbajac / New Era, JCDC/Lee Cooper and Homebody and Homemummy - Marchpole is renowned for its integrated approach to brand management, taking a brand from concept to design studio to the customer interface. - The Group has grown considerably in the past four years, from a licensee with one core licence (YSL menswear) - to today's international business that manages its brands across a multitude of clothing lines and accessories - Marchpole's acquisition (March 2006) of Moda America - the US licensee for leading designer Emanuel Ungaro - provided further growth opportunities in the UK and America and strengthened the Company's relationship with Ungaro - The acquisition also enabled the Company to launch the Ungaro brand, already established by Marchpole in Europe and Asia, into the US, Canada and South America. The acquisition has also enabled the Company to re-launch JCC into America. - In March 2007 Marchpole acquired 100% of Greenmark Limited, an importer and wholesaler of ladies shoes who currently supply in excess of 2.5 million pairs of shoes per annum. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange