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James Holder, co-founder of fashion brand Superdry, has been sentenced to eight years in prison after being convicted of raping a woman following a night out in Cheltenham.
The 54-year-old businessman, from Cheltenham, was found guilty of rape last week after a trial at Gloucester Crown Court sitting in Cirencester. He was cleared of a separate charge of assault by penetration.
The court heard that Holder and a friend returned uninvited to the woman’s home after a night out at a bar in Cheltenham in May 2022. Prosecutors said Holder later raped the woman in her bedroom despite her repeatedly asking him to stop.
The victim told the court she was crying during the assault and eventually managed to escape the room before Holder left the property shortly afterwards.
Holder denied the allegation and claimed the encounter was consensual, but the jury rejected his defence and convicted him on 1 May.
Sentencing him at Bristol Crown Court, Recorder David Chidgey described the attack as “a despicable piece of sexual violence” and criticised Holder’s “sense of entitlement” and disregard for the victim’s rights.
Holder appeared via video link from prison and showed no visible reaction as the sentence was delivered.
