Shandong Ruyi, one of China's largest textile producers, said on Thursday they are to buy a controlling stake in the French fashion company SMCP Group, the French firm behind affordable luxury fashion brands Sandro, Maje and Claudie Pierlot.

A statement released by Shandong Ruyi, Kohlberg Kravis, and SMCP said that Kohlberg Kravis, the American private equity firm, would retain a minority interest in the group and that SMCP's founders and management would reinvest alongside Shandong Ruyi. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

"By taking on board the expertise of SMCP, a group well-rooted with strong Parisian heritage, we would combine their merits with our existing strength in Asia, in particular China," Qiu Yafu, Shandong Ruyi's chairman, said in the statement.

SMCP operates 1,118 stores in 34 countries and is considered a major contender in the so-called accessible luxury sector.