Why China loves buying British retail

For L.K.Bennett, experts believe there could be a chance of success as the new owners have experience of the brand. But Chinese businesses have been warned that while the value of the pound may make purchasing more attractive, they must also remain cautious when dipping their toe into the British retail market.

"Chinese owners should be careful what they wish for," Reynolds said. "Sanpower's ill-fated 480 million pound acquisition of House of Fraser's department store business was predicated on the development of 50 stores in China and reinvestment in the UK operation. Neither came to pass: the operational and brand positioning challenges facing House of Fraser in the UK were just too great to resolve and the Chinese development opportunities simply didn't materialize and were over-ambitious."

Maureen Hinton, a member of the KPMG/Ipsos Retail Think Tank, said the retail market is tough and difficultat the moment, because of over-capacity and consumer confidence being at a low, which is attributed to Brexit.

"One of the problems with L.K.Bennett is that it was neither luxury nor premium, it's pitching prices just too high, so it has to be careful in that respect," she said. "It is not luxury like Burberry, so it has to ensure its pitch at the right level in the market."

Some British brands such as Pizza Express, which is owned by a Beijing-based private equity firm, have continued to thrive, and Visual Thinking's director McKeever believes it is because the brand was "allowed to operate essentially as before, but with new parent and fresh investment funds to introduce the brand into new markets".

"My advice to the Chinese owners for L.K.Bennett and also any other Chinese companies looking to acquire international brand assets, is to be a supportive parent but don't interfere," McKeever said. "Their role should be to nurture, not to stifle or to change the brand soul."