Former Matalan and Marks & Spencer executive, Angus Monro, is enlisting the support of Permira, one of Europe’s biggest private equity firms,  to target some of Britain’s struggling high street retailers.

Monro is assembling will target a struggling chain with a turnover of at least £1bn. He is believed to have secured backing from Permira, the New Look co-owner, and is in talks with other private equity houses. Monro is busy identifying potential targets. One group that he is known to be interested in is Mosaic, the Oasis-to-Karen Millen fashion conglomerate owned by Baugur, the Icelandic investor.

A lot of privately-owned retailers are breaking some of their soft covenants at the moment. By the end of the year they will break harder covenants and the banks will be in the driving seat,” said Monro. “I am looking at retail companies with scale or a reasonable brand – public or private,” he told the Sunday Telegraph.