Mike Ashley's Frasers Group buys fashion retailer Missguided out of administration for £20 million
Mike Ashley's retail empire has snapped up troubled fast fashion brand Missguided in a rescue deal.
The deal comes after the Manchester-based firm collapsed into administration on Monday (30 May) after suppliers accused the business of millions of pounds worth of outstanding payments.
On Wednesday morning, Frasers Group, which also owns Sports Direct and House of Fraser, confirmed it has bought the intellectual property of the retailer and sister brand Mennace for around £20 million.
It confirmed that Missguided will continue to be operated by administrators for a transition period of around eight weeks.
Frasers said it then intends to continue to run Missguided as a "standalone" brand within its group.
Michael Murray, chief executive of Frasers Group, said: "We are delighted to secure a long-term future for Missguided, which will benefit from the strength and scale of Frasers Group's platform and our operational excellence.
"Missguided's digital-first approach to the latest trends in women's fashion will bring additional expertise to the wider Frasers Group."
Missguided was founded in 2009 by Nitin Passi and grew rapidly amid rising demand for online fashion.
However, the company was hit hard by surging supply costs, wider inflationary pressures and waning consumer confidence in the increasingly competitive market.
Boohoo had been in talks to buy the business in a pre-pack administration deal, while Asos and JD Sports were also reported to have been interested.
Catherine Shuttleworth, of Get Savvy Marketing, told ITV News: "Fast fashion has really started to slow down in lots of different ways.
"One of the reasons is shoppers are really starting to feel the pinch ad younger shoppers are looking for more sustainable ways to buy fashion.
"They want to be able to wear clothes for longer and they're not accepting the fact that they can buy things that get thrown away because of their impact on the planet."