Frasers Group is shutting down luxury ecommerce site Matchesfashion just three months after acquiring the business, saying in a statement that “continued funding requirements would be far in excess of amounts that the Group considers to be viable.” As a result, Matches has been put into administration, the UK equivalent of bankruptcy.
Since rebranding from Sports Direct International to Frasers Group in 2019, the company has been steadily growing its slate of fashion and lifestyle brands, which now includes Flannels, House of Fraser, Everlast, Amara Living, Gieves & Hawkes and Slazenger, among others. The company bought digital fashion retailer Missguided in 2022 but sold that company to Shein late last year.
Matches is a UK business but makes most of its money selling overseas, according to the BBC. The company has an online presence in 176 countries as well as three stores in London. Frasers Group spent £52 million ($63 million) to buy Matches in December 2023 as part of its ongoing “elevation strategy” to boost the luxury factor in its portfolio.
Since the acquisition, however, Frasers said in a statement that the business continued to miss targets and lose money: “Whilst Matches’ management team has tried to try to find a way to stabilize the business, it has become clear that too much change would be required to restructure it.”
Advertisement
