Missguided seeks emergency funding as supply chain crisis hits finances

The etailer is hunting down a financial lifeline at a time when surging shipping costs and labour shortages are hampering retail’s ability to source stock as quickly as usual.   

According to The Sunday Times, Missguided has been talking to a number of parties including AlixPartners about securing a cash injection.

But a Missguided spokesman said: “The weekend media reports regarding Missguided are not accurate – Rothschild continues to manage our investment process. While we continue to talk to a range of parties as part of that process, this kind of incorrect speculation is more than disappointing and disrespectful to our partners and staff.”

However, the spokesman did not deny that the business was actively seeking fresh investment. 

Missguided founder and boss Nitin Passi had already been searching for a new investor to turbocharge the etailer’s growth. As previously reported, it was in discussions with JD Sports, but the high street chain is believed to have backed away from those talks. Concerns over supply chain disruption are understood to be among the reasons JD decided against a deal. 

Despite the breakdown of those talks, Missguided could yet still be sold to a fashion rival – the likes of Asos and and fast-growing Chinese etailer Shein have been touted as potential suitors.

Missguided is not the only retailer feeling the impact of the global supply chain crisis. Many fast-fashion operators, in particular, which import high volumes of clothing and sell them at low margins, have been exposed following a surge in shipping costs and consumer demand in the wake of the coronavirus crisis.  

This year, some £4bn has been wiped off the total value of online fashion giants Boohoo and Asos following warnings that supply chain disruption will persist beyond Christmas and into 2022.