Missguided close to rescue in Alteri link-up - report

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Dec 20, 2021

Missguided could be close to a rescue deal with the struggling retailer reportedly in talks with turnaround specialist Alteri. A deal could be announced pre-Christmas.

The company has faced plenty of challenges in recent years but the latest supply chain crisis is what's said to have pushed it to the brink.

The Sunday Times claimed that the rescue deal would see Alteri — which is backed by US private equity giant Apollo — injecting cash and providing a loan to the Manchester-based firm that’s still led by its founder Nitin Passi. But Alteri’s involvement would be more than just a financial one with it believed to be taking a hands-on role and to be nominating directors to sit on the company’s board.

As the Boohoo profit warning last week revealed, the online fast-fashion retailers that did relatively well during the pandemic have been struggling more recently. They pivoted to loungewear last year and made the most of the temporary closure of non-essential shops. But rising costs, supply chain delays, higher rates of returns, and a partywear season that has been stopped in its tracks in recent weeks due to Omicron, have all taken their toll.

Retailers like Missguided have also faced increased competition from fast-expanding Chinese e-tailer Shein.

Missguided has had some positive news this year, including the launch of its first kidswear offer and its deal to sell its clothes through Asda stores. 

But the successive waves of the pandemic have proved problematic and in the autumn it was even reported that it was in talks for a sale to acquisitive retail giant JD Sports. It’s unclear whether that rumour was unfounded or whether the talks simply came to nothing.

The firm’s sales were around £290 million in the year to March, the newspaper said. In its last set of accounts, to March 2020, it reported a net loss of £8.3 million.