By ELLEN READ
Directors of lingerie manufacturer Bendon have rejected suggestions that Farmers would abandon Bendon products if Pacific Retail Group (PRG) won control of the company.
Bendon is subject to two takeover offers, one from PRG, which is majority-owned by Eric Watson's Cullen Investments, and a management buyout bid from Bendon's
Hugo Venter and AMP Henderson.
PRG and Farmers are rivals in the appliance market and there has been talk that Farmers would not look kindly on the products of a competitor - which is what Bendon brands would be if the PRG bid succeeded - when stocking its shelves.
Responding to an article in the Independent Business Weekly, Bendon chairman Ian Parton said Farmers chief executive Nick Lowe had told him Farmers expected to continue to buy Bendon products, "although the purchases might not follow traditional buying patterns".
Parton said talks were continuing with the management buyout consortium over its offer.
