185-year-old Bridgerton costumier Angels screens investors

Sky News

2 days ago

One of the world's leading supplier of costumes to stars of stage and screen is in talks to secure external investment for the first time in its 185-year-old history.
Sky News has learnt that Angels, which is based in London, is working with advisers to raise millions of pounds from the sale of a minority stake in the business.
Kroll, the professional services firm, has been engaged to oversee the talks with prospective investors, which has been dubbed Project Carousel.
This weekend, City sources said that Angels - which was founded in 1840 - had initiated talks with a number of parties who had a track record of investing in the media and showbusiness industries.
Initial offers are understood to have been submitted in the last six weeks, with discussions ongoing.
The company's principal clients include the BBC, Netflix, Amazon's Prime Video, Paramount Pictures and The Walt Disney Company.
It saw its financial performance hit hard by the pandemic and then the Hollywood writers' and actors' strikes in 2023, which brought much of the film and television industries to a standstill.
Angels has been through seven generations of family ownership, and is currently chaired by Tim Angel, a former chairman of BAFTA.
The company was founded by Daniel Angel, who had arrived in London from Frankfurt in 1813 and set up a barrow selling secondhand clothing.
Years later, when an actor asked if he could rent a suit rather than buy it from Mr Angel, his hire business took off, according to an history of the business published online.
Notable moments in Angels' history included being called in during the 1920s to re-dress Madame Tussauds' collection of waxworks after the premises had been destroyed by fire.
The company has supplied costumes for 47 Best Costume Oscar-winners, including Hamlet, Doctor Zhivago, Star Wars, Chariots of Fire, Braveheart, The English Patient, Shakespeare in Love, The Great Gatsby, and The Grand Budapest Hotel.
It has also played a role supplying 37 Best Costume BAFTA-winners, according to information circulated by Kroll to potential investors.
In 2016, Angels was itself awarded a BAFTA for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema.
Angels' collection of costumes numbers more than 1 million items, which would stretch for more than ten miles if hung next to each other.
Its former head office on London's Shaftesbury Avenue is now a fancy dress shop with costumes available for hire.
"Our industry has been through some of its toughest years, from COVID and strikes to the LA fires, at one point leaving over 80% of our sector unemployed," said Jeremy Angel, a director of Angels.
"We stood by our staff, protected the business, and made it through.
"We are optimistic now with many new productions starting and government incentives coming in [and are] seeking a small investment to help us grow and continue supporting designers, directors, and actors, just as we've done since my family founded the business in 1840."
Angels is understood to have recorded a loss in its last financial year but is forecasting a return to profitability in 2026, according to figures supplied by Kroll to interested parties.