Missguided mulls sale or listing - report

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Apr 11, 2017

Fast-expanding UK fashion retailer Missguided is looking for new investors with a cash injection sought to help it continue its ambitious expansion plans, according to reports.

Sky News said it has learnt that Rothschild is overseeing a review of the business that could mean outside investors being brought in next year or in 2019. And the review might also lead to an IPO with the company perhaps joining peers Asos and Boohoo among the most in-demand shares in the fashion sector.

The company, founded by Nitin Passi, has seen surging sales. Its most recent full-year results (to March 2016) saw it reporting turnover up 34% to £117 million, but sales are believed to have risen significantly since that time.

Having started as a pureplay e-tailer, the company has evolved into an omnichannel player with its first store opening at Westfield Stratford, to be followed by Bluewater in Kent. And it is also going for fast international expansion.

But if it does list on the stock exchange, it will find itself under more scrutiny than at present. Investors will not be happy about the company being named by a TV probe as one of the customers of a factory shown to be paying workers below the minimum wage, nor that it was identified in another TV exposé this week as selling real fur items that were mislabelled as faux fur.