Gordon Merchant, the founder of Billabong International, has bought 2.5 million new shares of the company to raise his stake from 15.1 percent to 15.8 percent. The company had been in talks about a takeover with the private equity group TPG, though the talks ended in February. Merchant's new, bigger stake in the company will make it more difficult for TPG to force an offer to buy if Merchant isn't satisfied with the conditions. Meanwhile, Billabong has hired a new retail consultant, Launa Inman, who has 32 years of experience in the retail sector. She ran the Australian chain of Target stores in the past six years.

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