Weird Fish owner ups stake and ‘prepares war chest’ to target other retailers
Total Capital Partners (TCP) has upped its stake in British lifestyle brand Weird Fish to 80%, up from the 69% it acquired in 2017, in a deal believed to value the brand at £35 million.
TCP is now rolling Weird Fish into a new group called Auralis, while it is also ‘preparing a £50 million war chest’ to target other retailers to sit alongside Weird Fish in a new portfolio, according to The Times.
Auralis is being headed up by Weird Fish CEO, David Butler, who has been in the role since December 2023 and has been Non-Executive Director at Jigsaw as well as CEO at Crew Clothing Company for six and a half years – up to May 2023.
Weird Fish, which was founded in Cornwall in 1993, operates 37 stores across the UK, including in many market and seaside towns such as Newquay, St Ives, Portsmouth, Southwold, Weymouth, Whitstable, Henley, Lyme Regis and Scarborough.
Butler has previously said that Weird Fish could reach as many as 80-90 stores in the next few years.
Revenues at Weird Fish rose by £4.4 million to £42.6 million in 2024 and its latest accounts show a pre-tax profit rise from £1.3 million to £2.9 million.
