James Holder: Superdry co-founder convicted of raping woman in her own home

The co-founder of clothing company Superdry has been found guilty of raping a woman in her own home after a night out drinking.

James Holder, 54, went to the woman’s house uninvited, went to the toilet and immediately fell asleep in her bed, snoring.

The multimillionaire fashion mogul then woke up and called the woman, who was trying to sleep in the living room, into his bedroom and raped her.

Holder denied the accusations of assault and rape by penetration and said the sexual activity between them was consensual.

A jury at Gloucester Crown Court in Cirencester acquitted Holder of assault by penetration but found him guilty of rape.

The court heard the woman was attacked following a night out at a bar in Cheltenham in the early hours of May 7, 2022.

The woman who testified said that she was crying and asked the married father of two to stop, but he continued.

The ordeal ended with him managing to escape from the bedroom, and Holder left his home a short time later.

The woman denied Holder’s lawyer’s claims that she initiated the encounter.

The businessman and philanthropist was “old-fashioned and chivalrous” towards women and “admired sex”, the court heard.

He told the jury the victim kissed him first and “it was obvious what he wanted to happen”.

“At no time did I see or hear her cry,” he said.

When asked shortly afterwards why he left the flat, Holder replied: “I had been out much longer than I expected and needed to get home.

“I let myself out. He was in bed asleep.”

On cross-examination, Holder denied going to the woman’s home because he “saw an opportunity to have sex with her.”

Prosecutor James Haskell asked: “You saw something you wanted and you took it, because the truth is, when you got to the living room door you said something like: ‘What’s going on, is everything okay?’ You wanted to coax him into the bedroom, so you said: ‘Can you show me?’

“It ended because he managed to escape from the bed.”

Holder replied: “That’s not true. He fell asleep immediately. He fell into a deep sleep, so I put on my clothes and left.”

The defendant, from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, was remanded in custody ahead of sentencing at Bristol Crown Court on May 7.

Michelle Heeley KC said Holder immediately went to court throughout the hearing, seeking bail before the sentencing hearing to allow him to “put his affairs in order.”

“I am requesting bail as a matter of mercy to say goodbye to his wife and children and to put his affairs and financial matters in order,” he said.

“This is a plea for tolerance and mercy towards this man at this stage.”

Recorder David Chidgey rejected Holder’s bail application, saying he was a flight risk following his conviction.

“Mr. Holder is a man of considerable means and, in my view, as he faces a substantial prison sentence, his temptation to use his considerable resources to escape is overwhelming,” he said.

“One view is that the victim in this case had not had the opportunity to put her affairs in order when she experienced a horrific and distressing event.”