Mahmud Kamani, the co-founder of British online fast-fashion retailer Boohoo, has bought a chunk of Australian e-commerce business MySale – just as Frasers Group is attempting a takeover bid.
According to filings with the London Stock Exchange, Kamani now holds 4.76 per cent of MySale after buying 45 million shares on August 31.
Kamani is a billionaire British businessman who remains executive chairman of the now publicly traded Boohoo Group.
The acquisition comes just weeks after Frasers announced a bid for the 71.3 per cent of MySale shares it did not already own, having already acquired 28.7 per cent of the business last June.
Founded in 2007, MySale currently operates retail websites in four markets – Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Malaysia – with its sites Oz/Sale, NZ/Sale, My/Sale and Sing/Sale.
It is unclear if Frasers Group would tolerate Boohoo as a minority co-owner moving forward, or if Kamani may be considering a rival bid.
If the Frasers Group offer is accepted, the deal would be the company’s fourth e-commerce acquisition this year, following Studio, Missguided and ISawItFirst.com. The business believes it can use MySale and other online platforms to clear end-of-line products from across the group.
