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Boohoo has acquired the online businesses of Oasis and Warehouse, following a £5.25m cash transaction with Hilco Capital Limited.
The fashion group said the brands would be a “complementary” addition to its current portfolio, and it will now work to integrate them onto its platform in the coming months.
The group believes that both brands, which collectively generated £46.8m in online revenues in their most recent financial year, would benefit from its “insight, infrastructure, supply chain and operating model”.
In its latest trading update, Boohoo also confirmed its purchase of the remaining 34% minority interest in prettylittlething.com. It added it expects the acquisition to be “significantly earnings enhancing” for the group.
News of both acquisitions comes as the fashion giant reported “very strong” trading throughout its first quarter, despite the ongoing global pandemic.
Group revenue totalled £367.8m in the three months ended 31 May, marking a 45% surge year-on-year.
Whilst trading in March and early April was “mixed” in light of the pandemic, performance across all brands improved throughout April, with the group delivering a “robust” performance in May.
Despite the continued “uncertain backdrop”, the group delivered an overall strong gross margin performance, up 60 basis points year-on-year to 55.6%.
The fashion group also noted “strong” underlying growth across boohoo, PLT and Nasty Gal, while its newest brands, MissPap, Karen Millen and Coast, continued to trade “strongly”.
It comes as the group “entered the year with sustained momentum”. Boohoo added that its latest trading results demonstrate its “determination and flexibility”, as well as its “preparedness to deploy different ways of working to capture and process demand utilising our flexible supply chain”.
Looking ahead, the group expects to deliver another year of “strong profitable growth”, ahead of market expectations. Revenue growth is anticipated to be 25% for the current financial year, with an adjusted EBITDA margin of 9.5% to 10%.
John Lyttle, Boohoo CEO, said: “During unprecedented and challenging times, the group has delivered a very strong trading and operational performance.
“I am proud of how our colleagues and business partners from around the world have responded to ensure that we can safely bring to our customers the latest fashions, great value, fantastic prices and best in class service.”
He added: “Whilst there is a period of uncertainty within the markets in which we operate, the group is well-positioned to continue making progress towards leading the fashion e-commerce market globally.”
