Shein Buys Missguided Brand From Britain’s Frasers

A woman leaves a pop-up store of Chinese fast-fashion retailer Shein in Paris, France, May 5, 2023. (Reuters)
A woman leaves a pop-up store of Chinese fast-fashion retailer Shein in Paris, France, May 5, 2023. (Reuters)
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Shein Buys Missguided Brand From Britain’s Frasers

A woman leaves a pop-up store of Chinese fast-fashion retailer Shein in Paris, France, May 5, 2023. (Reuters)
A woman leaves a pop-up store of Chinese fast-fashion retailer Shein in Paris, France, May 5, 2023. (Reuters)

Shein, the China-founded fast-fashion retailer, has bought the Missguided brand from Mike Ashley's Frasers Group, the e-commerce giant's first purchase of a British brand.

Frasers said on Monday, Shein will acquire the intellectual property and trademarks of Missguided, while Frasers will retain its real estate and employees which have now been integrated into Frasers' fashion division.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed but Frasers said the transaction has enabled "exciting discussions" with Shein regarding opportunities for potential collaboration across its brand portfolio.

Frasers, formerly called Sports Direct, bought Missguided out of administration for 20 million pounds ($24.2 million) in June 2022.

"This move is particularly noteworthy because it marks Shein's first acquisition of a British brand, aligning well with its focus on the UK as one of its fastest-growing markets," Shore Capital analyst Eleonora Dani said.

It will bring the Missguided label to Shein's online platform, which serves about 150 million users.

Frasers also owns the "I Saw it First" and "Missy Empire" brands in women's online fashion.

Frasers CEO Michael Murray said retaining the combined Frasers fashion teams while rationalizing its portfolio in this space to focus on fewer brands made sense in the current climate.

"We are also excited about the ongoing discussions around further collaboration between Frasers Group and Shein," he said.

Shares in Frasers were up 1.4% in early trading.

Shein has moved its headquarters to Singapore but manufactures most of its products in China.

Reuters reported in July that Shein was working on a potential US initial public offering and had been in talks with the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq.

In August, Shein partnered with SPARC Group, a joint venture between Forever 21 owner Authentic Brands and mall operator Simon Property, as the online fashion retailer looked to expand its market reach in the United States.



Hermes 2Q Sales Rise 13% on Continued Appetite for High-End Luxury

People stand with Hermes shopping bags as they wait at a traffic light in Tsim Sha Tsui, a bustling shopping hotspot, in Hong Kong, China December 5, 2023. (Reuters)
People stand with Hermes shopping bags as they wait at a traffic light in Tsim Sha Tsui, a bustling shopping hotspot, in Hong Kong, China December 5, 2023. (Reuters)
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Hermes 2Q Sales Rise 13% on Continued Appetite for High-End Luxury

People stand with Hermes shopping bags as they wait at a traffic light in Tsim Sha Tsui, a bustling shopping hotspot, in Hong Kong, China December 5, 2023. (Reuters)
People stand with Hermes shopping bags as they wait at a traffic light in Tsim Sha Tsui, a bustling shopping hotspot, in Hong Kong, China December 5, 2023. (Reuters)

Birkin-bag maker Hermes reported a 13% rise in second-quarter sales on Thursday, demonstrating the continued appetite from wealthy shoppers for its luxury handbags, even as less affluent consumers pull back.

Sales at the French luxury group grew to 3.7 billion euros ($4.02 billion), a 13% organic sales rise that strips out currency fluctuations. The figure was in line with analyst expectations, according to a Visible Alpha consensus.

Operating profit for the first half was 3.1 billion euros, compared to a forecast from consensus provider Visible Alpha for 3.2 billion.

One of the most steady performers in the luxury goods sector -- even as economic conditions worsen -- the French group's results stand out after a string of disappointing earnings updates from peers which have raised investor concern about uncertain prospects for the sector in the coming months.

Hermes' famously classic designs and tight management of production and stock have helped reinforce the label's aura of exclusivity, and CEO Axel Dumas told reporters the company had seen "no big interruption in trends".

However, he said Hermes was seeing slightly less traffic with aspirational clients, which was impacting higher volume products like fashion accessories.