(Reuters) – Shareholders in Australian clothing retailers Myer and Premier Investments on Thursday approved the merger of the latter's clothing brands with Myer, in a deal worth A$864 million (US$541.99 million).
More than 96% of votes cast by Myer shareholders favored the merger, while more than 99% of votes approved the merger at the premier meeting.
The merger will see the 125-year-old Myer acquire Premier's denim, womenswear and casual wear brands such as Just Jeans, Dotti, Jay Jays, Portmans and Jacqui E, expanding its footprint to more than 780 stores across Australia and New Zealand. New Zealand.
Retail billionaire Solomon Liu, Premier's largest shareholder, will exit with the largest stake in Myer after the deal, controlling a stake of about 27%.
The merger culminates a long-running battle between Lew and Myer that began when Premier began buying shares of the department store in 2017.
Liu has been a vocal critic of Myer and its former board and management team, blaming them for the retail chain's poor performance.
Premier already owns about 31% of Myer shares.
Myer shares jumped 2.8% to A$0.930 on Thursday, while Premier shares fell 1.7% to a one-week low of A$26.60.
($1 = 1.5941 Australian dollars)
