Superdry founder Julian Dunkerton ends his pursuit of the British fashion retailer

Julian Dunkerton, the CEO and founder of Superdry, has ended his two-month search for the British retailer.

Dunkerton, who founded the company in 1985, approached the board in February about a possible offer for shares he did not yet own.

But Superdry said Dunkerton, which has a 26 percent stake, had walked away from takeover talks.

Both he and the board concluded that it was unlikely that an offer would be sufficient to help the company achieve its turnaround plans and cost savings. Shares fell 5.1 percent, or 1.55p, to 28.8p.

Superdry sounded the alarm over its finances in January when first-half results showed a sharp drop in sales as customers cut back on online spending.

Earlier this month, Superdry said it was in talks with restructuring company Hilco about increasing its credit facilities by around £10 million as it aims to save £40 this year.