Boohoo Group has announced that its CEO, John Lyttle, has decided to step down.
Lyttle has spent 5 years at Boohoo and stated that he would stay with the company whilst a successor is found, in order to smooth the transition.
“Over the last five years I have been proud to lead the Group and I believe there is huge potential in this business and I will continue to work with the Board to drive value for all shareholders whilst a successor is found,” he stated.
Mahmud Kamani, Group Executive Chairman added:
“I would like to personally thank John for the contribution he has made to the Group. John has built a talented and inspiring leadership team who will ensure we are best positioned for sustainable growth.”
The Manchester-based online fashion group also announced that it has signed a £222m debt financing agreement for the next stage of its growth.
The debt facility has been agreed with a consortium of its existing banking group and compromises of a £125m revolving credit facility, running until October 2026 and a £97m loan, repayable by August 2025.
In the trading update Boohoo said that it believed the group remained “fundamentally undervalued” following the developments of recent years – namely the creation of a business with 5 core brands:
- Debenhams;
- Young Fashion Brands: PrettyLittleThing, boohoo and boohooMAN;
- Karen Millen.
“The Board is focused on ensuring it takes the right steps to drive boohoo Group in the interest of all its stakeholders,” continued Kamani.
“We are delighted to have agreed a new lending facility which shows the support of our existing banks and their confidence in the Group. The business has evolved over last few years and has an offer that is much wider than our original focus on young fashion. The time is now right to consider options with regard to corporate structure, with the aim of maximising shareholder value.”
The company’s figures for the 6 months to August 31st saw falls across the board, with Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) before returns down 7% and Adjusted EBITDA down £10m to £21m.
However, it expected things to improve in the second half of the year:
“Whilst performance in the youth brands has remained impacted by the external environment, the Group continues to see considerable GMV growth for Debenhams external marketplace, with an additional 5,000 brands signed within the period.”
