// THG boss Matthew Moulding calls an end to ‘over-fishing’ in social media rant against hedge funds, the media and analysts
// “In the words of Alanis Morissette ‘Isn’t it ironic’,” Moulding wrote on LinkedIn
THG co-founder and CEO Matthew Moulding has published a lengthy video on social media, taking aim at institutional investors, stockbrokers, analysts and the media.
Moulding took to LinkedIn to quote Alanis Morrisette and share a company video featuring popular cult films Wolf of Wall Street and American Psycho.
The video also features negative newspaper headlines about his company alongside stats about THG’s growth and expansion.
His video comes just hours after the retailer’s operating losses more than doubled to £495.6m amid weakened sales and non-recurring costs,
But its shares soared after confirming it had received a preliminary, provisional buyout proposal from American private equity giant Apollo.
Subscribe to Retail Gazette for free
Sign up here to get the latest news straight into your inbox each morning
In the lengthy statement posted on social media, Moulding said it has “sadly become standard practice for a select few within the world of hedge funds, media and bank analysts to regularly build negative coverage against UK-listed companies, including THG.”
He added: “In simple terms, the UK market has suffered from years of “over-fishing”, where small groups of industry professionals come together to try and damage UK businesses, and their share prices. Nobody tells you about this when joining the LSE [London Stock Exchange], but it finds you soon enough.
“The number of CEOs of other listed companies that have reached out to me since THG joined the LSE is remarkable. Each wanting to share their war stories.”
Moulding has become famous for airing his concerns about the scrutiny that comes with listing a business in London, describing the process as having “sucked” from start to finish.
This comes as it was reported that Moulding was told to get his house in order ahead of reporting widening losses this week.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
