| Date |
Development |
| April 26, 2022 |
The Oasis brand, in partnership with the online fashion rental platform Hirestreet, launches a rental scheme, allowing shoppers to rent holiday outfits, new season occasionwear and workwear |
| April 21, 2022 |
Adopts artificial intelligence-(AI) powered Aiimi Insights Engine platform to ramp up data-driven personalization and marketing |
| March 20, 2022 |
Collaborates with CottonConnect, a company focused on creating more sustainable cotton supply chain, to launch a sustainable range manufactured from sustainably-grown cotton. Boohoo, in collaboration with CottonConnect, have so far trained 2,500 farmers in Pakistan about the advantages of sustainable cotton manufacturing. |
| March 17, 2022 |
In collaboration with German inspection company TÜV Rheinland, introduces an in-house textile and apparel laboratory in Manchester, the UK, to enable cost-effective, efficient and speedy in-house garment testing for its brands, and offer its supplier better visibility of product performance. |
| March 3, 2022 |
Suspends its operations in Russia amid Russia-Ukraine heightening war tension |
| February 21, 2022 |
Collaborates with Paris Hilton to advertise the brand at the American celebrity’s metaverse fashion week |
| February 8, 2022 |
Partners with social enterprise Fashion Enter to provide student apprenticeships in the UK |
| February 7, 2022 |
PrettyLittleThing banner enters the metaverse through its first-ever virtual model |
| February 4, 2022 |
Launches its own vegan and 100% cruelty-free beauty brand Boohoo Beauty. Boohoo Beauty, featuring over 50 products, is available exclusively at boohoo.com, with prices ranging from £3.0 ($4.1) to £25.0 ($34.3) |
| January 26, 2022 |
Starts manufacturing at its first-ever 23,000 square feet factory in Leicester, the UK. The move came after a company review found that there were many several shortcomings in its Leicester supply chain. Boohoo also plans to use the manufacturing site as a training facility for its suppliers. |
| December 17, 2021 |
Expands its presence in Asia through the launch of its websites in Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan |
| December 13, 2021 |
Launches its first-ever NFT (non-fungible token) collection |
| December 3, 2021 |
Opens Debenhams flagship beauty store at Manchester Arndale shopping center in Manchester. The new store, spread across two floors, covers a total area of 7,552 square feet of retail space. |
| November 15, 2021 |
BoohooMan launches its first augmented reality (AR) campaign for Black Friday—a forward move into the digital space |
| October 14, 2021 |
Announces the launch of a new clothing line, Boohoo x Megan Fox, in collaboration with American celebrity and entrepreneur Megan Fox |
| October 13, 2021 |
Joins the Canada-based video and interactive platform OOOOO Entertainment Commerce (OOOOO). OOOOO enables retailers and brand owners to share product-based opinions directly to consumers through shoppable livestreaming and videos. |
| October 5, 2021 |
Debenhams launches a new online marketplace post its takeover by Boohoo in January 2021. The new website, supported by software as a service (SaaS) platform Mirakl, rolled out 200 brands at the time of the launch. |
| August 9, 2021 |
Opens up its supply chain to customer viewing to bolster consumer confidence in the retailer’s operations |
| July 15, 2021 |
Partners with Kuwait-based retail franchise operator Alshaya to expand former’s Debenhams brand in the Middle East |
| June 21, 2021 |
Announces plans to grow its own sustainable cotton in Pakistan amid increasing concerns over the mass production of the raw material in Xinjiang, China, where suppliers currently face allegations of human rights violations. The retailer will source its cotton from Pakistan in the first half of 2022. |
| May 13, 2021 |
Launches a new recycled clothing range that uses 95% recycled polyester and 5% elastane |
| April 13, 2021 |
Purchases a new office in Soho, London. The office will cater to the retailer’s all London-based brands and products, and will provide technology and a central support team. Boohoo’s presence in London has grown substantially through its recent acquisitions of Burton, Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Oasis, Perkins, Wallis and Warehouse brands. |
| April 9, 2021 |
Enters into a long-term lease agreement for a new warehouse in Daventry, the UK. The warehouse is scalable and the retailer expects to invest more than £50 million ($69 million) in the coming years, expanding capacity and offering Boohoo operational flexibility as it grows. |
| February 8, 2021 |
Acquires the intellectual property rights, digital assets and e-commerce rights of Arcadia brands Burton, Dorothy Perkins and Wallis, out of administration, for £25.2 million ($34.6 million) |
| January 25, 2021 |
Acquires UK-based department store Debenhams from the latter’s administrators for £55.0 million ($75.4 million). The deal includes the department store’s brand assets, e-commerce operations, intellectual property and own-label beauty and fashion products. |
| December 24, 2020 |
Unveils plans to open a huge factory with about 60 machinists in Leicester after ending relationships with 64 suppliers in recent months, after the company came under fire over concerns about poor working conditions and overworked and underpaid staff in the company’s suppliers’ factories. |
| December 21, 2020 |
Appoints PKF Littlejohn as the group’s auditor, following the resignation of PwC in October 2020. PwC was the group’s auditor for over seven years. |
| November 17, 2020 |
Announces the appointment of Shaun McCabe, CFO of Trainline and a non-executive director at AO World, as an independent non-executive director, with immediate effect. McCabe will take on the role of Chairman of the Boohoo’s Audit Committee and sit on the Group’s Remuneration and Nomination Committees. |
| July 8, 2020 |
Launches an independent review into its UK supply chain and commits to investing £10.0 million ($12.6 million) to eradicate supply chain malpractice following slavery allegations |
| July 5, 2020 |
Faces a modern slavery investigation after a report by the newspaper The Sunday Times found that the company’s supplier’s factories in Leicester were paying its workers as little as £3.50 ($4.37) an hour |
Fiscal year ends on February 28 of the same year[/caption]
Summary
Founded in 2006 and headquartered in Manchester, Boohoo Group PLC is a UK-based online retailer of low-priced fashion. The company’s brands include Boohoo, BoohooMan, Burton, Coast, Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Karen Millen, MissPap, Nasty Gal, Oasis, PrettyLittleThing, Wallis and Warehouse, which design, source, market and sell accessories, apparel, beauty products and footwear, aimed at consumers aged 16–40. The group operates across the globe with major markets in Australia, France, Germany, the UK and the US.
Company Analysis
Coresight Research insight: Boohoo has reported strong double-digit sales growth in the last six years. The company has grown from a single-brand retailer into a multi-brand one and has been steadily investing to diversify its offerings through acquisitions. This multi-brand strategy, led by its “test and repeat” model, has supported its sales growth and margins. Furthermore, the company has performed strongly amid the Covid-19 pandemic, which fueled an unprecedented surge in demand for online apparel across the globe. In fiscal 2022 (ended February 28, 2022), its number of active customers increased by 10% year over year, reaching 20 million. The company also witnessed a 14% increase in orders from active customers, with the order frequency up 4% year over year.
The company has significantly expanded its total addressable market through its recent (since June 2020) acquisitions and integrations of department store Debenhams, Arcadia Group brands Burton, Dorothy Perkins and Wallis, and womenswear brands Oasis and Warehouse. Furthermore, Boohoo is capitalizing on its recent strategic partnerships, such as with brand franchise operator Alshaya Group in Kuwait, with online fashion retailer About You in Germany and with UK-based fashion e-commerce platform Very, to bolster business expansion.
However, the company’s international proposition in overseas market, mainly in its key US market, has been impacted owing to delivery delays. Nevertheless, Boohoo’s US distribution center, which is expected to be operational by 2023, will facilitate a step-change in the company’s delivery proposition, enabling it to offer next-day delivery in the US, compared to eight to 10 days currently. Higher freight costs remain a key challenge for the company—and impacted its EBITDA by about £60 million ($82 million) in fiscal 2022 versus pre-pandemic costs. Boohoo anticipate these costs to trend down towards more normalized levels in the medium term.
Company Developments