SFH is all about clothing for middle aged women generally...

SFH is all about clothing for middle aged women generally towards the cost sensitive customer. I think ZARA is aimed at a totally different market and won't have any impact on SFH now that SFH have sold Queens Park.

The high ROE is a legacy of the losses incurred when they sold Crazy Clarks ie the owner's equity was written down so much that a small residual equity supported a massive business (the clothes shops). They are making good money but as to what the real ROE is only time will tell.

I've had a look into La Senza and it seems like a good business to go into. The layout of their stores seems quite different to the layout of lingerie stores in Aus. If you look at shops like Bras N Things they seem to be making a lot of money out of lingerie so the margins are definitely there. However, not knowing the details of the buying arrangement, pricing and franchise fees it's difficult to value.