Frasers Group is now N Brown's second-biggest shareholder

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
Jan 30, 2023

Frasers Group has dramatically upped its stake in N Brown, now holding a 17.88% share of the business, according to filings with the London Stock Exchange.

The owner of Sports Direct, Flannels and an ever-growing list of fashion brands becomes the online fashion retailer’s second-largest shareholder behind Lord David Alliance, who acquired the group in 1968.

The latest investment becomes its third in N Brown since October 2022 when the highly acqusitive group first took a 4.54% stake in the Simply Be, JD Williams and Jacamo owner. It then raised its stake in November to 5.04% after the firm had warned the cost-of-living crisis would continue to hit its sales.

Earlier this month, N Brown said sales fell to £249.2 million in the 18 weeks to the 31 December amid a “difficult trading environment”. Sales for its JD Williams, Simply Be and Jacamo brands fell 5.5% to £120.9 million and sales for its heritage brands including Home Essentials and Fashion World plummeted 17.6% to £45.5 million.

In a statement to the London Stock Exchange, N Brown said the "well-documented cost of living pressures continued to impact our customers" during its third quarter.