Fast Retailing Out of Barneys Bidding

by MR Magazine Staff

TOKYO — Fast Retailing, the Japanese parent company that owns the Uniqlo chain, has dropped out of the bidding battle for Barneys New York, leaving the Dubai investment group Istithmar in the clear to acquire the luxury department store chain for $942.3 million from the Jones Apparel Group.

Fast Retaling had raised its bid to $950 million on Sunday — a price that would have had to have added a termination fee of $22.7 million to end the previous contract Jones Apparel had with Istithmar.

Istithmar’s latest bid of $942.3 million had a $34.7 million termination clause.