Matalan offer deadline extended

Mr Hargreaves founded the firm more than 20 years ago

Matalan's founder and chairman has been given more time to put together a takeover bid for the discount retailer.

The UK's takeover watchdog has extended its "put up or shut up" deadline for John Hargreaves to make an offer for the firm by a month to 11 October.

Matalan asked the Takeover Panel for the extension, a move it said was in the interests of shareholders.

The firm said Mr Hargreaves was working on a 200p-a-share bid, which would value the firm at about £820m.

However, the board added that he also had the right to table a lower bid, and said there was still no certainty that an offer would be made.

Sales struggle

Mr Hargreaves, who founded the company in 1985, already controls about 53% of the firm.

He has made no secret of his ambition to get the Lancashire-based business back into private ownership.

In recent years the group has suffered from increased competition in the cut-price clothing sector from supermarkets and its share price has more than halved since 2002.

In July it revealed like-for-like sales had dipped once again, while in February it said annual profits had fallen to £56.7m from £80.5m a year earlier.