Two offers for Kohl's department store chain

The American department store chain Kohl’s is on the radar of two potential buyers. A consortium supported by the activist hedge fund Starboard Value LP and investor Sycamore Partners are reportedly both interested.

9 billion dollars

Sycamore, an investor that already bought several retailers, including Staples, has approached Kohl’s for a takeover deal, Bloomberg reports. This bid came just a few days after the department store chain had already received a bid of 9 billion dollars (8 billion euros) from a group of investors backed by Starboard Value.

The amount Sycamore is willing to pay for the retailer is unknown. The talks are said to still be in the exploratory stage, and there is no guarantee a deal will be reached, insiders told the press agency.

Recently, British Selfridges and Dutch De Bijenkorf were also taken over by a consortium of department store owners, which means the fate of those department stores is now tied to fellow competitors such as La Rinascente, KaDeWe and Galeria Kaufhof. It indicates a wave of consolidation in the department store sector, which wants to reinvent itself in this way.