The ongoing public disagreement between Mike Ashley's Frasers Group and Boohoo has taken a new twist as the beleaguered fast-fashion retailer announced that its co-founder, Mahmud Kamani, has been replaced as chairman.
Tim Morris, a non-executive director, has assumed the role immediately, with Kamani taking on the position of vice chairman.
In an official statement, the board of the Manchester-based group explained that it had chosen to split the chairman's role to "enable the company to have an independent chair and allow Mahmud to continue his day to day executive role".
In a separate announcement, Boohoo's leading investor, Frasers Group, demanded a shareholder's meeting to oust Kamani as a director and replace him with Mike Ashley and Mike Lennon, as reported by .
Frasers Group's second public letter highlighted "dismal interim results", "a lack of transparency", "imminent and unannounced debt repayment" and "further supply chain allegations". Boohoo has been accused by The Times of rekindling ties with a manufacturer it had previously cut off following its modern slavery scandal.
The letter outlined Frasers Group's reaction to Boohoo's circular statement last week, in which it claimed that Ashley and Frasers "attempted to exert influence over the board's refinancing, business review and appointments to the board for the good of themselves alone, and are acting in their own self-interest."
Boohoo commented: "Frasers has prior history of this sort of corporate behaviour shareholders should ask themselves what Frasers' true intentions are, and why is it apparently seeking to disrupt the Business Review. Is it purely to maximise value, or is there an ulterior motive to acquire boohoo's assets for below market value? ".
Frasers, in a reversal of roles, has now levelled accusations at Kamani for acting in his personal interests to the detriment of Boohoo, stating: "[The board] is ultimately run by Mr Kamani, for the benefit of Mr Kamani," and described the board as "dysfunctional".
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