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| Could Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley rescue BHS? | Could Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley rescue BHS? |
| (about 11 hours later) | |
| Mike Ashley, owner of Sports Direct, is reported to be putting together a bid for BHS, promising not to sack staff or close stores. But is he the ideal candidate to rescue the stricken store group? | Mike Ashley, owner of Sports Direct, is reported to be putting together a bid for BHS, promising not to sack staff or close stores. But is he the ideal candidate to rescue the stricken store group? |
| He undoubtedly knows a thing or two about retail - having built a single sports shop into an international chain. And, as the owner of Newcastle United, he knows about running an institution under pressure. | |
| But he has received severe criticism for his treatment of workers as well as widespread protests from fans, angry at his club's lack of success. | |
| Mr Ashley cuts an eccentric figure in the business world. Born in Walsall in the West Midlands, his family moved to Berkshire where his father, a warehouse manager, loaned his 17-year-old son the money to buy his first sportswear shop. | Mr Ashley cuts an eccentric figure in the business world. Born in Walsall in the West Midlands, his family moved to Berkshire where his father, a warehouse manager, loaned his 17-year-old son the money to buy his first sportswear shop. |
| It is now the UK's largest sportswear retailer with over 400 stores in the UK, including the famous Lillywhites shop in London's Piccadilly. | It is now the UK's largest sportswear retailer with over 400 stores in the UK, including the famous Lillywhites shop in London's Piccadilly. |
| It owns a raft of venerable sportswear brands, from Dunlop and Slazenger to Lonsdale and Karrimor, and has 270 more shops in 19 European countries. | It owns a raft of venerable sportswear brands, from Dunlop and Slazenger to Lonsdale and Karrimor, and has 270 more shops in 19 European countries. |
| This success has made Mike Ashley a fantastically rich man, with a fortune recently estimated at £2.4bn. | This success has made Mike Ashley a fantastically rich man, with a fortune recently estimated at £2.4bn. |
| He reportedly commutes by helicopter from his north London home, complete with tennis court and swimming pool. He bought it for £12m in 2005 and it would be worth considerably more today. | He reportedly commutes by helicopter from his north London home, complete with tennis court and swimming pool. He bought it for £12m in 2005 and it would be worth considerably more today. |
| He divorced his wife in 2003 paying out a £50m divorce settlement and has not remarried. Marriage, he once joked, was the one of the few things he couldn't afford. Together the couple have three children. | |
| But he has never rubbed along easily with the City suits. If Mr Ashley is hoping to raise finance publicly for his BHS bid that may not prove easy. | But he has never rubbed along easily with the City suits. If Mr Ashley is hoping to raise finance publicly for his BHS bid that may not prove easy. |
| Mike Ashley's relationship with the City started badly. He raised £929m in 2007 when he sold a 45% stake in Sports Direct on the stock market. In the following months the shares lost half their value, with many investors unhappy at the way the company was run. | Mike Ashley's relationship with the City started badly. He raised £929m in 2007 when he sold a 45% stake in Sports Direct on the stock market. In the following months the shares lost half their value, with many investors unhappy at the way the company was run. |
| Mr Ashley called them "cry babies" in a Sunday Times interview, telling the paper "Sports Direct should come with a government health warning - this stock is not for the fainthearted". | |
| Complaints about the governance of the company haven't gone away. But the next six years saw its share price soar, with the business promoted to the FTSE 100 index of London's top listed companies. | Complaints about the governance of the company haven't gone away. But the next six years saw its share price soar, with the business promoted to the FTSE 100 index of London's top listed companies. |
| This January, however, things got more difficult. After a warning of lower profits, blamed on tough trading conditions and bad weather, the share price plunged again and the firm dropped out of the FTSE 100 in March. | This January, however, things got more difficult. After a warning of lower profits, blamed on tough trading conditions and bad weather, the share price plunged again and the firm dropped out of the FTSE 100 in March. |
| But what is likely to worry BHS employees more are the accusations that Sports Direct has built its success by exploiting workers. It has been in the frontline of the controversy over zero-hours contracts and has been on the receiving end of a number of media exposes. | |
| Last year a documentary film crew went undercover in its Shirebrook distribution centre, alleging onerous security searches, strict discipline and harsh penalties for lateness and absenteeism. | |
| Sports Direct contested the film's claims. It has issued statements denying the use of zero-hours contracts in its warehouse, though it does use them in shops, where it claims "all parties appreciate the flexibility provided". | Sports Direct contested the film's claims. It has issued statements denying the use of zero-hours contracts in its warehouse, though it does use them in shops, where it claims "all parties appreciate the flexibility provided". |
| Its zero-hours contract shop workers are paid sick pay, holiday pay and bonuses and are not prohibited from working elsewhere, the company says. | |
| At the end of 2015, Mike Ashley hit back in an interview with the Daily Mirror, where he promised a pay rise to all staff, worth a total of £10m, pledging to become "the best high street retail employer, after John Lewis". | At the end of 2015, Mike Ashley hit back in an interview with the Daily Mirror, where he promised a pay rise to all staff, worth a total of £10m, pledging to become "the best high street retail employer, after John Lewis". |
| But, when MPs called Mr Ashley in to appear before them to discuss working practices at Sports Direct, he refused, accusing them in a letter of attempting to "create a media circus in Westminster", and invited them, along with TV cameras, to see his Derbyshire headquarters for themselves. | |
| The committee declined the invitation and still expect Mr Ashley to appear on 7 June. In the meantime, he may perhaps be relieved to have the limelight stolen by the former BHS owner Sir Phillip Green who is also being hauled in front of MPs. | |
| It's not clear yet what his strategy would be if indeed he did bid for BHS. The Telegraph has quoted him as saying, "We would anticipate that there would not be any job losses, including jobs at head office, and that all stores would remain open," which would tie his hands significantly. | It's not clear yet what his strategy would be if indeed he did bid for BHS. The Telegraph has quoted him as saying, "We would anticipate that there would not be any job losses, including jobs at head office, and that all stores would remain open," which would tie his hands significantly. |
| BHS would be joining an assortment of business interests, from luxury property to minority stakes in some direct rivals - Debenhams, JD Sports, House of Fraser, Tesco and even the Scottish football club Rangers. | BHS would be joining an assortment of business interests, from luxury property to minority stakes in some direct rivals - Debenhams, JD Sports, House of Fraser, Tesco and even the Scottish football club Rangers. |
| But it is Mike Ashley's tenure as a football club boss which has guaranteed his high public profile. Since his purchase in 2007, Newcastle has not been a club for the fainthearted. | But it is Mike Ashley's tenure as a football club boss which has guaranteed his high public profile. Since his purchase in 2007, Newcastle has not been a club for the fainthearted. |
| They have been relegated, promoted, qualified for the Europa cup and now face serious danger of relegation once again. | |
| It was never entirely clear why he bought the club, as he had no previous connection with the team or the area. | It was never entirely clear why he bought the club, as he had no previous connection with the team or the area. |
| But, in the early days, he would sit and cheer among the ordinary travelling Newcastle fans in his black and white Newcastle shirt. | |
| He told the News of the World that he bought the club "to have fun", attracted by the gung-ho, take-no-prisoners attacking style that the team adopted under manager Kevin Keegan in the mid-90s. | He told the News of the World that he bought the club "to have fun", attracted by the gung-ho, take-no-prisoners attacking style that the team adopted under manager Kevin Keegan in the mid-90s. |
| It's not a bad analogy for the way he runs his business. | It's not a bad analogy for the way he runs his business. |
| He has been accused by some of using the club as a way to advertise his sports gear. If so, it is an expensive ploy as he has poured considerable sums into the club which he may never recoup. | |
| To date, these include the club's £140m purchase price and £129m in interest-free loans. | To date, these include the club's £140m purchase price and £129m in interest-free loans. |
| Last May he said the club was not for sale. "I'm not going anywhere until we win something," he declared. | Last May he said the club was not for sale. "I'm not going anywhere until we win something," he declared. |
| He may be in for a long wait. And, if turning Newcastle round is tough, BHS will be an even bigger challenge. |