Ann Taylor’s parent company Ann Inc has been purchased by Ascena Retail Group.

Ascena Retail Group Inc announced on Monday that it will be acquiring Ann Inc, for $47 per share in cash and stock, in a deal worth $2.15 billion, intending to encompass the popular LOFT brand.

Generating 22 percent of the total of Ascena’s revenue, LOFT will be its largest brand. And that is not all, the figure will be over a third of the total revenue when adding to it Ann Taylor.

With about 5000 stores, and sales more than $7.3 billion in 2014, Ascena will become the largest retailer in the US, for women’s apparel. Ascena estimates a future profit boost of over 20 percent after just the first year of closing the deal.

The two companies committed to a merger deal, unanimously approved by their Board of Directors. The transaction is expected to be completed in later half of 2015.

“This powerful transaction joins two strong and highly complementary organizations and management teams and dramatically reinforces our leadership position in women’s specialty apparel retailing,” said Ascena’s CEO David Jaffe.

Ascena also expressed that is could see $150 million a year in “synergies” to be realised in three years which “include sourcing and procurement, distribution, logistics and other efficiencies,” making employees uneasy as it might mean the possibility of job cuts.

Ann Inc, which owns LOFT and Ann Taylor experienced a fall in store sales in three of the last four quarters, which was further hit by higher costs in the past two quarters, competition from fast-fashion chains and problems in the West Coast ports. The company, having been urged by shareholders, hedge funds Engine Capital LP and Red Alder reportedly approached JP Morgan to work out a sale last year.

Shares of Ann Inc rose by nearly 21.5 percent to $47.05 in pre-market trading and stocks trading above the offer price on Monday.