Boohoo buys Debenhams brand and website for £55m – but stores set to close January 25, 2021 Online retail giant Boohoo has announced it will buy Debenhams’ brand and website for £55m, but will not rescue the high street chain’s stores or jobs. The deal – announced this morning – means Debenhams’ remaining 118 department stores will close down and could result in up to 12,000 job losses. Boohoo said the acquisition [...]
Boohoo appoints new auditor following factory working conditions scandal December 21, 2020 Boohoo has appointed PKF Littlejohn as its auditor, after PwC quit earlier this year in the wake of allegations of poor factory conditions in the fashion group’s supply chain in Leicester. Deloitte, KPMG, BDO and Grant Thornton each ruled themselves out of the race to replace PwC, with PKF ultimately winning the bid. PKF will [...]
Boohoo exits 64 Leicester factories over code of conduct breaches following supplier scandal December 16, 2020 Boohoo terminated relationships with more than 60 Leicester suppliers following an investigation into working conditions at garment factories in the city. The fast fashion firm has exited 64 factories following a scandal that found some clothing suppliers in the city were paying workers less than minimum wage. Boohoo’s director of responsible sourcing and product operations [...]
Boohoo hires retired judge Leveson to oversee supply chain revamp November 26, 2020 Boohoo has appointed retired judge Brian Leveson, who handled the Leveson inquiry, to independently check its drive to improve its supply chain and business practices. In September an independent review found several failings in the online fashion retailer’s supply chain in England, after allegations about working conditions and low pay. The review then set out [...]
Boohoo factory saga ‘one of the worst ESG scandals’ in UK history, Leicester MP says November 18, 2020 The discovery of poor working conditions in Boohoo’s Leicester supply chain has been branded “one of the worst environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) scandals in modern UK history”, by one of the city’s MPs. Liz Kendall, the MP for Leicester West, today again called on Boohoo’s executive chairman Mahmud Kamani and chief executive John [...]
Boohoo and Nike grilled over supply chain links to slave labour in China November 5, 2020 MPs this morning grilled fashion firms, including Boohoo and Nike, over potential supply chain links to slave labour and exploitation in China. The retailers’ sourcing and sustainability bosses were today called in to give evidence to the Business Select Committee, as part of an investigation into the extent to which the products of forced labour [...]
Boohoo takes £775m hit as auditor stands down October 20, 2020 Boohoo saw almost £775m wiped off its market value yesterday after the beleaguered fast fashion retailer said PwC was stepping down as auditor. Boohoo’s announcement that it was running a tender for a new auditor and that PwC would not take part in the process spooked investors, sending shares down 20 per cent to 254p [...]
Leicester factory scandal: Boohoo supplier involved in ‘multi-million-pound’ fraud scheme October 13, 2020 Leicester clothing factories with links to Boohoo and Select Fashion have been involved in a “multi-million pound” money laundering and VAT fraud scandal, an investigation has found. Firms based in the city’s garment manufacturing district, some of which were suppliers to the fast fashion retailers, were revealed to have been involved in fraudulent activity relating [...]
MPs probe fast fashion industry after Boohoo’s Leicester factory scandal October 6, 2020 The fast fashion industry will be scrutinised by a committee of MPs in the wake of Boohoo’s Leicester clothing factory scandal, after the government dismissed most of the recommendations of an initial inquiry in 2018. The Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) has today launched a follow-up inquiry into sustainability and working conditions within the fashion industry [...]
Boohoo is on the wrong side of history when it comes to business ethics and sustainability October 5, 2020 It is alarming to see Bohoo’s profits surge despite confirmation of allegations of endemic abuse at every single step of their supply chain. Yet this outcome does not necessarily come as a shock given that Boohoo’s reputation has consistently been married to a culture of neglect and exploitative worker conditions. Once again, we see commitments [...]