Apax Partners

Funds advised by Cinven and by Apax Partners will jointly acquire the fashion retailer

CBR owns the clothing brands Street One, Cecil and One Touch, and is one of the leading and fastest-growing ladies’ fashion businesses in Germany. It has more than 700 employees in over 15 countries. CBR is expecting a turnover of more than 500 million euro for 2004.

Commenting on the completion, Peter Gangsted, Partner and head of Cinven’s Frankfurt office, said, "We will ensure that CBR is provided with the support it needs to fulfil its growth potential and expand its already successful brands nationally and internationally."

Dr. Mirko Meyer-Schönherr, Director at Apax Partners said, "We are looking forward to being able to include another successful fashion company in our portfolio following the investments in New Look, Calvin Klein/PVH and Morgan. CBR is one of the leading clothing retailers in Europe, and its three brands are well-positioned in the market, giving it enormous potential for growth".

Deutsche Bank and UBS investment bank advised on the deal. Debt financing was provided by The Royal Bank of Scotland and HypoVereinsbank.

NOTES TO EDITORS

Apax Partners (http://www.apax.com/) is one of the world’s leading private equity investment groups, operating across Europe, Israel, and the United States. With over 30 years of direct investing experience, Apax Partners’ Funds provide long-term equity financing to entrepreneurs to build and strengthen world-class companies. It pursues a balanced equity portfolio strategy, investing in venture capital and buy-outs.

Apax Partners’ Funds invest in companies across 6 chosen global sectors: media, information technology, telecommunications, healthcare, financial services and retail/consumer. Some of our Apax Partners’ Funds recent investments include Inmarsat, PCM Uitgevers, New Look, Kabel Deutschland, Sulo, IFCO Systems and LR International.

For further information, please contact:

Clare Sillars

Press Officer

Tel. +44 (20) 7872 6476

Clare.Sillars@apax.com