Ineos kept Belstaff alive for eight years — then paid Castore to take it

Belstaff, the outerwear label founded in Stoke-upon-Trent, was bought from the German group JAB in 2017 by Ineos — the chemicals giant of Sir Jim Ratcliffe, then assembling a portfolio of consumer and lifestyle assets. It never paid for itself: Belstaff reported losses in every year of Ineos ownership, most recently a pre-tax loss of £18.3 million in the year to December 2023 on sales of £57.6 million, which fell 3.6% that year. Ratcliffe's cash injections kept it alive; auditors warned that continued owner support was necessary.

The last accounts filed before the exit showed the shape of the problem. For 2024, turnover fell a further 5.2% to £54.6 million and the net loss was £15.9 million, with operating profit a mere £593,246. Below that, the balance sheet swung from net liabilities of £270.3 million at the end of 2023 to net assets of £36.3 million — the debts were cleared before the handover.

On 28 August 2025 Castore, the sportswear brand founded by the Beahon brothers, acquired 100% of Belstaff on a debt-free, cash-free basis — no cash price was disclosed, and instead Ineos made a strategic investment in Castore's holding company, taking a minority stake. Ineos framed the sale as part of a retreat from lifestyle ventures to refocus on chemicals and sport.

The handover has not settled the brand. Kerry Byrne, appointed Belstaff CEO in April 2025, left in May 2026 after one year, with no successor announced. The buyer is also spending: Castore's parent, J Carter Sporting Club, reported losses of £40.3 million on revenue of £334.6 million for the 18 months to August 2025.

Ineos paid Castore to take Belstaff by taking a minority stake in Castore, clearing £270.3M liabilities, after eight years of losses including £18.3M in 2023.

Buying a fashion house was a lifestyle bet, not an industrial one — a chemicals group had no channels, customers or expertise to turn the brand, so ownership became writing cheques

Eight consecutive loss-making years and £270.3 million of net liabilities by 2023 mean the brand survived on owner support rather than margins — the auditors said so in writing

The exit was structured as a handover, not a sale: debt-free, cash-free, with the seller paying for entry via a stake in the buyer — a measure of what the asset was worth to Ineos

Belstaff moved to a buyer that is itself loss-making — the brand's survival still depends on subsidy; only the name of the subsidiser changed

A heritage brand is not an asset because it has a history — it is one because it has margins. Eight years of owner cheques build neither; they only postpone the handover.

Castore is folding Belstaff into its direct-to-consumer machine, with Ineos invested in the buyer rather than the brand. Byrne's departure in May 2026 left the chairmanship of Ashley Reed and no announced successor, and Castore's own £40.3 million loss shows the group taking Belstaff in is spending as freely as the one that let it go.