In a show of strength amid Boohoo’s ongoing boardroom spat with Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group, group CEO Dan Finley reaffirmed his confidence in the online fashion group, specifically Debenhams.
In a message uploaded onto the Boohooforall website, Finley said: “I believe Debenhams alone, with the progress we’ve made and the opportunities that lie ahead, has a greater value than the entire market cap of our group today (£500m+)”.
Discussing how the business is faring in the 5-minute video, Finley said: “I believe our group is fundamentally undervalued.”
He continued: “We will get back to our best, leading the digital fashion market globally.
“We will expand the marketplace model across the group, streamline our operating model, create a line agile and purpose driven business.”
Alluding to the group’s ongoing challenges, both financially and its spat with Frasers, Finley said: “There was a lot of noise in the press, an attempted disruption of our business. Let me be clear, I’m fully focused on leading this business and determined to deliver value for all our shareholders”.
Boohoo has struggled with performance in recent years following the rise of fast-fashion giants like Shein and Temu, with their ultra-cheap fashion offerings.
In its latest half-year results, revenue fell 15% while adjusted operating profit fell 10.5% and net debt increased by over £100m.
Frasers – which holds 27% of Boohoo – demanded at the end of last month that Mike Ashley takeover as chair, alongside restructuring expert Mike Lennon as director, to turnaround the loss-making fashion group and put an end to what it described as “dismal results, lack of transparency, terrible refinancing, and further supply chain allegations”.
However, the Sports Direct owner’s bid to take control could be undermined by its own sliding sales. Last week it cut its profit outlook for the year to £550m-£600m after a 33% drop in pre-tax profit to £207.2m and an 8% fall in sales in the first half.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
