WCF home shopping firm takes over Bella di Notte

Expanding UK mail-order clothing firm WCF has acquired North Yorkshire-based lingerie and clothing business Bella di Notte. Terms were not given.

Bella di Notte, which specialises in Italian lingerie and better-fit fashion for the mature women provider, joins WCF’s existing national mail-order clothing brands that include Country Collection, James Meade and The Classic Boutique.

It will continue to operate from its Malton base as part of WCF’s strategy of “allowing its diverse brands to run as independent businesses”.

Jo Ritzema, Managing Director of WCF, said: “Bella di Notte’s focus on product excellence and superior customer service meant it was an ideal fit to complement our existing home shopping clothing brands, with all brands sharing a similar customer demographic.

“Both companies share a great ethos of investing and supporting their teams to drive innovation and productivity, and we’re working closely with [its] team to ensure a smooth transition.”

WCF’s home shopping division is part of its family of businesses, which operate across the UK in the retail, leisure and logistics sectors. The part-employee-owned firm now has employs over 400 people working across more than 30 locations, with its existing home shopping mail-order business based at headquartered in Brampton, Cumbria.

Bella di Notte founder Susan Johnson said: “The decision to sell… was taken as part of our succession planning strategy which will allow our positive sales growth to continue.

“Being part of a larger company will provide access to additional expertise, resource capacity and financial investment, while protecting the team’s job security, allowing them to share in its continued success and giving them more opportunity to make decisions as part of a larger team.”

Ritzema added: “We plan to build on the success of Bella di Notte by continuing to deliver the fantastic range of clothing and lingerie which have made it so popular with existing customers, implementing new marketing strategies to find more customers, while also working towards enhancing the range with designs which appeal to an ever younger-minded customer.”