Ellestone Apparel picks strategic stake in Monitane

Ellestone Apparel LLP is headed by Bob Wigley, James Gallon and Dominic McVey, all of whom will join the Monitane Holdings Ltd board.

Monitane Holdings Ltd is the holding company of The Fielding Group Ltd, which sells branded and own-label clothing to the UK retail sector. Fielding clients include some of the largest high street brands, including Tesco, Nike, John Lewis, Burtons, BHS, Asda, Moss Bros and Marks & Spencer. The Group additionally holds licences for key sporting brands including Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal, as well as entertainment brands including Disney, Sesame Street and Warner Brothers.

The Group has also developed a number of high-profile celebrity brands including Farrell menswear for Robbie Williams, Kardashian Kollection ladies wear at Dorothy Perkins, and Raging Bull children’s wear with Phil Vickery MBE at Marks & Spencer.

The Group has turnover of around £85m and employs some 6,500 people in the UK, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, China and Turkey. It owns manufacturing facilities in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka through its wholly owned subsidiary Hela Clothing, a Sri Lanka based leading quality clothing manufacturer. The Bangladesh Hela factory is the first LEED certified gold rated “green” factory in the country. The Group produces 25 million garments a year.

The investment is the first for Ellestone Apparel, an investment vehicle created by a group of entrepreneurs focussed on actively creating value in their investments. The new equity Ellestone is providing will function as expansion capital, allowing Fielding to continue building its UK business and manufacturing capacity.

Michael Wolff, Managing Director of the Fielding Group, said, “Fielding will benefit immensely from Ellestone’s knowledge and expertise and we are looking forward to working with them over the coming years. We share a vision for the group which includes bolstering our current businesses as well as examining opportunities to move into new areas. These are exciting times for Fielding.”

James Gallon of Ellestone Apparel LLP said, “Fielding is one of the leading clothing manufacturers in the UK, and Hela consistently produces market leading products in world-class facilities. We see significant growth opportunities in new markets, and potential to further build the strong brands that are already part of the Fielding stable.”

Dominic McVey of Ellestone Apparel LLP said, “We are looking forward to working with the management team to capitalise on Fielding’sstrong position in the clothing industry. Ellestone will support Fielding’s continued growth with new equity and significant financial and manufacturing expertise.”

Fielding Group