Mothercare

Mothercare plc (LSE: MTC) is a British retailer which specialises in products for expectant mothers and in general merchandise for children up to 8 years old. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE SmallCap Index.

History

The Company was founded by Selim Zilkha and Sir James Goldsmith in 1961. It was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1972.

In 1982, it merged with Habitat to form Habitat Mothercare plc. In 1986, Habitat Mothercare plc merged with British Home Stores, to form Storehouse plc. In January 1996, it bought Children's World from Boots, and rebranded all of their superstores Mothercare World stores. In 2000, the Bhs stores were sold to Philip Green, and Storehouse reverted to the Mothercare brand.

In June 2007, Mothercare bought the Early Learning Centre (ELC) for £85 million.

In October 2007, Mothercare launched Gurgle, a pregnancy and parenting social networking website. In November 2009, Mothercare acquired the 50% of Gurgle that it did not already own.