Michael Kors to buy shoemaker Jimmy Choo for $1.6 bil

(July 25): Michael Kors Holdings agreed to buy Jimmy Choo Plc for about 896 million pounds ($1.6 billion), clinching the London-based maker of strappy stilettos, handbags and perfume.

The handbag maker will pay 230 pence a share for the luxury shoemaker, a premium of 18% over Monday’s close. The price is equal to about 17.5 times Jimmy Choo’s adjusted Ebitda for 2016. The boards of both companies have approved the deal, they said in a statement Tuesday.

The Jimmy Choo brand rose to prominence in the late 1990s, boosted by high-profile devotees including the late Princess Diana and the fictional Carrie Bradshaw in television series “Sex and the City.” The deal comes amid consolidation in the luxury industry, with Michael Kors rival Coach Inc. agreeing to buy Kate Spade & Co. earlier this year.

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