Kamani, Kane sell shares worth £142m

THE co-founders of Boohoo have sold shares worth £142.5 million in the British online fashion retailer, a regulatory filing showed on Thursday (5).

Mahmud Kamani, 55, and Carol Kane, 53, between them sold 4.3 per cent of Boohoo's equity through a placing to institutional investors, reducing their combined holding to 15.8 per cent.

The Manchester-based company's executive chairman, Kamani, sold 35 million shares at 285 pence each, whereas, Kane, an executive director, sold 15 million shares at the same price.

With the latest sell-off, Kamani has reduced his stake to 13.1 per cent, while Kane's is down to 2.7 per cent.

The placing was managed by Zeus Capital and Jefferies.

Founded in 2006, Boohoo expanded its operations quickly, listing its shares in 2014.

It acquired the PrettyLittleThing and Nasty Gal brands in 2017 targeting the younger generation with the latest fashion trends on various online platforms.

Shares in Boohoo, jumped 84 per cent so far this year, giving a market capitalisation of £3.42 billion.

In a trading update, the fashion retailer said: “Our new brands, Karen Millen, Coast, and MissPap have been successfully integrated on to our platform. The initial ranges have been very well received, and we continue to broaden our product ranges as we progress our multi-brand strategy.”

According to market analysts, Boohoo and other online firms are growing at the expense of traditional shopping groups such as Marks & Spencer, whose equity value has dropped to £3.7bn

Boohoo is the booming online fashion retailer whereas other fashion retailers are struggling to survive amid tough market conditions in the UK.

The company's top executives have decided not to sell any more stock for 18 months.

According to the company sources, the sales were intended to help with their personal financial planning.

In September, the fashion retailer crossed the £1bn mark in revenue for the first time.