Last checked at 6 Jul 2020 07:00
For Immediate Release | 6 July 2020 |
boohoo group plc
("boohoo" or "the Group")
Response to media commentary
boohoo remains committed to supporting UK manufacturing and is determined to drive up standards where this is required. Where help and support for improvement is required, we have and will continue to provide it, to ensure that everyone working to produce clothing in our supply chain is properly remunerated, fairly treated and safe at work. We will not hesitate to immediately terminate relationships with any supplier who is found not to be acting within both the letter and spirit of our supplier code of conduct. This includes very clear expectations on transparency about second tier suppliers.
We are grateful to The Sunday Times for highlighting the conditions at Jaswal Fashions, which, if as observed and reported by the undercover reporter, are totally unacceptable and fall woefully short of any standards acceptable in any workplace. Our early investigations have revealed that Jaswal Fashions is not a declared supplier and is also no longer trading as a garment manufacturer. It therefore appears that a different company is using Jaswal's former premises and we are currently trying to establish the identity of this company. We are taking immediate action to thoroughly investigate how our garments were in their hands, will ensure that our suppliers immediately cease working with this company, and we will urgently review our relationship with any suppliers who have sub-contracted work to the manufacturer in question.
We are keen and willing to work with local officials to raise standards because we are absolutely committed to eradicating any instance of non-compliance and to ensuring that the actions of a few do not continue to undermine the excellent work of many of our suppliers in the area, who provide good jobs and good working conditions.
The Group has undertaken a number of actions in recent times to further strengthen its teams, procedures and processes, which are outlined below. The Group will continue to review and progress these in the future.
· Appointed our first Sustainability Director last year with a focus on developing the Group's sustainability initiatives and supply chain governance, with further strengthening of the team currently taking place;
· Introduced in 2019 industry-leading 14 day payment terms for our UK manufacturers;
· Retained in late 2019 an independent third party compliance organisation to strengthen our compliance and auditing programme;
· Commenced earlier this year a review of all Tier One and Tier Two UK suppliers, which includes a full audit of all of our suppliers' manufacturing facilities. This audit process is being carried out in accordance with the Group's existing procedures and standards, including the mapping of people records and hours worked back to the electronic payment of wages into bank accounts to ensure full compliance with minimum wage regulations. The Group continues to look at ways to further strengthen its audit procedures and processes.
· A requirement for UK suppliers as part of our review of the UK supply base is to acknowledge the Group's code of conduct and provide full disclosure of their own manufacturing locations and details of any manufacturers where work is sub-contracted. Non-compliance with this programme will not be tolerated.
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Enquiries |
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boohoo group plc |
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Neil Catto, Chief Financial Officer | Tel: +44 (0)161 233 2050 |
Alistair Davies, Investor Relations | Tel: +44 (0)161 233 2050 |
Clara Melia, Investor Relations | Tel: +44 (0)20 3289 5520 |
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Zeus Capital - Nominated adviser and joint broker |
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Nick Cowles/Andrew Jones (Corporate Finance) | Tel: +44 (0)161 831 1512 |
John Goold/Benjamin Robertson (Corporate Broking) | Tel: +44 (0)20 3829 5000 |
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Jefferies - Joint broker |
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Philip Noblet/Max Jones | Tel: +44 (0)20 7029 8000 |
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Buchanan - Financial PR adviser | boohoo@buchanan.uk.com |
Richard Oldworth/ Kim Looringh-van Beeck/Toto Berger | Tel: +44 (0)20 7466 5000 |
About boohoo group plc
"Leading the fashion eCommerce market"
Founded in Manchester in 2006, boohoo is an inclusive and innovative brand targeting young, value-orientated customers. Since 2006, boohoo has been pushing boundaries to bring its customers up-to-date and inspirational fashion, 24/7. boohoo has grown rapidly in the UK and internationally, expanding its offering with range extensions into menswear, through boohooMAN.
In early 2017 the group extended its customer offering through the acquisitions of the vibrant fashion brand PrettyLittleThing, and free-thinking brand Nasty Gal. In March 2019 the group acquired the MissPap brand, in August 2019 the Karen Millen and Coast brands, and in June 2020 the Warehouse and Oasis brands, all complementary to the group's scalable multi-brand platform. United by a shared customer value proposition, our brands design, source, market and sell great quality clothes, shoes and accessories at unbeatable prices. These investment propositions have helped us grow from a single brand, into a major multi-brand online retailer, leading the fashion eCommerce market for 16 to 40-year-olds around the world. As at 29 February 2020, the boohoo group had just under 14 million active customers across all its brands around the world.