Boohoo to acquire 66% stake in Pretty Little Thing
Online fashion retailer Boohoo.com is to acquire a 66% stake in Pretty Little Thing for £3.3 million.
The company said the remaining 34% will be used to incentivise Pretty Little Thing chief executive Umar Kamani and the senior management team. Boohoo will then have the option to acquire the remaining stake at market value in February 2022.
Pretty Little Thing grew its revenue by over 400% to £17 million in the year to 29 February 2016 and in the six months to 31 August, revenue climbed to £19 million from £6.4 million in the same period a year earlier.
The company said the transaction will complement its presence both in the UK and overseas.
Peter Williams, chairman of the Boohoo Group, said: “Pretty Little Thing was always going to be a natural fit with boohoo. Umar and his team are to be congratulated for creating a fantastic brand, which complements boohoo’s own inclusive and innovative brand, and we are delighted to add this fast growing, international business to the group. We believe this is an excellent opportunity to extend the group’s overall customer appeal through two distinct, complementary brands while further enhancing the group’s strong growth trajectory.”
As well as announcing the acquisition, Boohoo said it now expects to deliver full year revenue growth of between 38% and 42% against previous guidance of between 30% and 35% following strong trading across Black Friday and the peak trading period.
It also expects to achieve an EBITDA margin of between 11% and 12% against previous guidance of around 11%.
