Men's Wearhouse Slights Jos. A. Bank, Again

By Sam Lewis

Men’s specialty retailer denies competitor access to privately held information

Jos. A. Bank was snubbed again Monday, Nov. 4 by Men’s Wearhouse when it refused Jos. A. Bank execs confidential access to its non-public financial records. Jos. A. Bank execs say that access to the books could raise the company’s $2.3 billion bid to acquire Men’s Wearhouse. The original bid was denied back in October. This play could dissolve the effort from Jos. A. Bank to combine the two men’s specialty retailers.

The refusal to share non-public information comes four days after Jos. A. Bank sent a letter to Men’s Wearhouse saying it might raise its asking price if it were allowed due diligence. Despite dangling the bait of a bigger acquisition price, Men’s Wearhouse still isn’t biting. “We are enthusiastic about Men’s Wearhouse’s prospects and are confident that our strategic plan will deliver more value to our shareholders than Jos. A. Bank’s inadequate, highly conditional proposal,” says Men’s Wearhouse CEO Douglas Ewert.

Robert Wildrick, Jos. A. Bank’s chairman, says if Men’s Wearhouse continues to be unwilling to negotiate, the company would have no choice but abandon the proposal and focus on its own strategies and initiatives. However, Wildrick reiterates that the offer will remain on the table, “We are disappointed that the board of Men’s Wearhouse has rejected our request for information and thereby chosen not to explore the potential of Jos. A. Bank’s proposal for the benefit of their shareholders. Their board’s position is a matter for consideration by the shareholders of Men’s Wearhouse. For our part, we stand by our previous statement and will keep our proposal open until Nov. 14, 2013.”

An ultimatum probably isn’t the best strategy to sway your competitor to concede, and that is essentially what Jos. A. Bank has given Men’s Wearhouse. The demand will likely end any potential negotiations between the two companies, giving Men’s Wearhouse an easy out.