Elliott Advisors reportedly joins race for The Very Group

US investment firm Elliott Advisors is believed to have emerged as a potential bidder for The Very Group as it reportedly mulls a deal that could value the UK retailer at two billion pounds.

This is according to Sky News, which had also reported in May that Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com was another interested party, eyeing the group as part of UK expansion plans.

The Very Group and Carlyle declined the media outlet’s request to comment.

The interest comes after private equity firm Carlyle took over The Very Group last year, ending the retailer’s long-standing relationship with the Barclay family.

Reports in January suggested Carlyle was preparing an auction process that valued the platform between two billion and 2.5 billion pounds.

Next to owning the Very and Littlewoods brands, the group also operates a financial services division, offering revolving credit facility options like buy now, pay later to shoppers.

For the 2025 financial year, The Very Group reported an 8.4 percent uptick to its EBITDA, driven largely by the home goods category, which expanded by 9.9 percent. Fashion and sportswear, meanwhile, declined by 3.7 percent, impacted by aggressive market-wide discounting.

In February 2026, Carlyle secured a long-term funding deal to extend and renew debt facilities, injecting 150 million pounds in financial support to position the retail group for its next stage of growth.