In The Style suffers two major investor cuts on losses warning

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
Feb 2, 2023

Two key investors have slashed their stakes in under-pressure online fashion retailer In The Style. The moves follow a warning in a trading update late last month, with In The Style admitting its losses will grow more than expected.

Lombard Odier Asset Management had cut its holding to just 2.54%, from a previously-held 19.82% stake in the business. The investor had been the company's second largest shareholder, behind founder and interim chief executive Adam Frisby.

Meanwhile, Octopus Investments has also cut its holdings from 6.9% to 1.5% following the same announcement.

In The Style continues to struggle with losses expected to grow and its future still under review. On the 20 January trading statement, it said full-year adjusted EBITDA loss will now be between £4.25 million and £4.75 million. The stock market-listed company added it also expects revenue to be around £46 million.

That comes after the retailer described trading for the three months to 31 December as “challenging” despite signs of an encouraging performance in November and during Black Friday. Total revenue for the quarter fell 22% on a year ago, with direct-to-consumer revenue down 13%.

That led to an admission of a strategic review with the business potentially up for sale. The company said that “there has been limited liquidity for In The Style's shareholders for some time and that the current market capitalisation of the company does not properly reflect the underlying growth potential of the group, which may be better realised under an alternative ownership structure”.