Boohoo ‘owes suppliers hundreds of thousands of pounds'
The company, which is rebranding as Debenhams, has been rebuked for delaying payments to its suppliers, with claims it has ignored requests for it to reimburse clothes-makers.
Speaking to Drapers, one UK supplier alleged they were owed several hundred thousand pounds for products they had delivered to Boohoo over a three-month period. Another said they were waiting for tens of thousands of pounds worth of payments which were six weeks overdue.
Boohoo declined to comment on the report.
The criticism comes just weeks after The Telegraph revealed that customers were also facing delays to repayments, with the company accused of failing to pay out refunds.
In June, dozens of customers took to social media to criticise Boohoo for late payments.
This week, some claimed they had referred Boohoo to Trading Standards for the failure to return their money.
Writing on TrustPilot, one customer accused Boohoo of 'shocking, disgusting service' after waiting more than three weeks to receive their money back on a package they returned. Another claimed they would never use Boohoo again after spending weeks trying to get a refund.
Boohoo last month admitted it was taking longer for customers to receive refunds, saying: 'We're aware that some customers haven't received their refunds as quickly as usual and we're working to resolve that.'
It comes as the company races to finalise a refinancing deal, with sources suggesting an announcement about a new debt package is imminent.
Boohoo is closing in on a £175m debt deal, with US investment giant TPG expected to provide a significant amount of the new funding.
The refinancing talks come against a backdrop of sliding sales at Boohoo. It reported a 16pc fall in revenues in the year to February, as it battled mounting competition from Chinese fast-fashion company Shein. Figures last year revealed that Shein had overtaken Boohoo when measured by UK sales.
Boohoo has sought to rebrand as Debenhams with bosses saying they are hopeful the online department store will become the 'driving force of the business' and 'lead the group recovery'.
Frasers Group, a major shareholder in Boohoo, voted to block its name change to Debenhams earlier this year, meaning it is still listed as Boohoo on Aim. However, it has updated its corporate branding and main market ticker to Debenhams Group.
It follows a scuffle between Boohoo management and Frasers' Mike Ashley this year. Frasers had sought to install its founder Mr Ashley as Boohoo's new chief executive. Boohoo shareholders voted down a proposal to add him to its board.
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