Fashion brand Ben Sherman, whose shirts became a style trademark of the mod movement of the Sixties, was sold yesterday in an £80 million deal.

The London-based group was bought by US clothing manufacturer Oxford Industries after being put up for sale by private equity group 3i.

Ben Sherman will join a clothing stable that includes Tommy Hilfiger, Dockers and Nautica, which Oxford Industries produces under licence.

The deal, due to be completed next month, offers a platform for the brand to grow across the Atlantic.

Ben Sherman has its flagship store in London's Carnaby Street and opened branches in Berlin and Sydney earlier this year.

The group produced its first garments produced from a small factory in Brighton in 1963.

A move to Carnaby Street in 1968 boosted production of its button-down collared shirts, which became a design classic of the Swinging Sixties.

Demand grew so quickly it had to transfer part of its production to Northern Ireland where it converted ballrooms into clothing factories.

Ben Sherman was bought by 3i in 1993 when the private equity firm invested £4 million in a management buyout. 3i backed a second takeover by chief executive Miles Gray in 2000.

Ben Sherman also makes sportswear, accessories and shoes.

J Hicks Lanier, chairman and chief executive of Oxford Industries, said: "We believe there are significant opportun-ities for growth both overseas and here in the United States."

Oxford Industries has bases in more than 40 countries. Ben Sherman employs about 200 people in the UK, about half in London and the remainder in County Armagh, Northern Ireland.

Mr Gray said two new large stores were being considered in Glasgow and Manchester.

Ben Sherman has an annual turnover of about £90 million after growing by more than ten per cent in each of the past couple of years.

Tuesday June 22, 2004