KKR moves closer to selling SMCP to Shandong Ruyi

London - SMCP, the fashion group consisting of French fashion labels Sandro, Maje and Claudie Pierlot is inching closer to a potential sale to Chinese textile manufacturer Shandong Ruyi, in a deal which is said to value the group at 1.3 billion euros (1.45 billions US dollars), including debt. News of the possible sale comes as US private equity owner KKR was exploring options for the future of the fashion conglomerate, which included listing SMCP on the Paris stock exchange sometime this year.