A couple who built up a multimillion-pound textiles business from a market stall are locked in a legal dispute with their son-in-law, who claims he was promised control of the company. Natalie Berg, 73, and her husband Jeremy, 75, are defending a lawsuit brought by Darren Hill, the widower of their late daughter Marnie, over Fabric Land, a chain valued at £10m.
The business began in 1971 when Natalie Berg started trading on a market stall in Maidenhead, eventually expanding into a successful chain with a headquarters near Bournemouth. The couple's daughter Marnie joined the family firm at the age of 16 and worked there for 30 years until her death in May 2022 at the age of 49. Her husband Darren also worked for the company from 2007 to 2022 as an executive manager.
Mr Hill claims that during a family holiday in Vietnam in December 2003, the couple made binding promises that he and Marnie would eventually take over the business when Natalie and Jeremy retired. He says he agreed to join the firm on that basis, working long and unsociable hours and enduring a verbally abusive working environment from 2018/19. He is also seeking ownership of two warehouses in Ringwood, Hampshire, which the couple own and lease to the company.
The Bergs deny making any such promises, and their lawyers have branded the claim an attempt to orchestrate a spectacular 'smash and grab' of their assets. They argue that Mr Hill joined the company because Marnie asked them to offer him a job. The case is being heard at Central London County Court, where Mr Hill's barrister, James Saunders, outlined the alleged promises and the couple's denial.
Fabric Land supplies fabric to theatrical departments of cruise companies including Carnival Cruise Liners and Cunard. The court was told that Marnie's health declined during the Covid lockdown and she died by suicide, prompting the bitter legal battle over the family's fortune.
