Frasers Group has bought online fashion retailer I Saw It First and plans to integrate it into recent acquisition Missguided.
The group says that I Saw It First will benefit from the “scale and strength” of the Frasers Group platform. Frasers Group has over recent years followed an elevation strategy of taking the business upmarket in order to attract new brands to its retail stores – including House of Fraser and Flannels department stores – and websites. It has also bought its own brands, from Jack Wills to sofa.com to Evans Cycles and Game, as it works towards that aim.
At Easter it bought fast fashion pureplay Missguided out of administration, with the intention of operating it as a standalone business, and is now adding I Saw It First to that business. Frasers Group says that I Saw It First, founded in 2017, now has more than five million customers.
In a recent full-year trading update, Frasers Group said its ‘elevation strategy’ of taking its stores upmarket and investing online had helped it to boost sales and profits in its latest financial year. “It’s clear,” said Frasers Group chief executive Michael Murray at the time, “that our elevation strategy is working and we are building incredible momentum with new store openings, digital capabilities and deeper brand partnerships across all of our divisions.”
I Saw It First is currently ranked Top50 in RXUK Growth 2000 research, while Missguided is ranked Top250 in RXUKTop500 research.
