Missguided grew fast on £5 dresses — then collapsed owing suppliers millions

Missguided was a Manchester-based online fast-fashion retailer founded by Nitin Passi in 2009. The brand grew rapidly on ultra-low prices — dresses for £5, bikinis for £1 — and aggressive Instagram and influencer marketing aimed at young women. At its peak it employed over 2,000 people and shipped to over 100 countries.

The model depended on constant volume growth and razor-thin margins. When supply-chain costs rose — freight, raw materials, returns processing — there was no margin to absorb them. In December 2021, investment firm Alteri Investors acquired a 50% stake, but the turnaround never materialised. Suppliers were owed millions of pounds.

On 27 May 2022, the BBC reported Missguided was on the verge of collapse. A winding-up petition had been issued. Four days later, on 31 May 2022, the company entered administration. Teneo was appointed as administrator. An estimated 87 staff were made redundant; 147 were transferred to the buyer.

On 1 June 2022 — the day after administration — Frasers Group, Mike Ashley's Sports Direct empire, bought Missguided's intellectual property and sister brand Mennace for approximately £20 million. Customers who had paid for orders that never arrived were told to claim through their credit-card providers. The brand that had dressed a generation of Instagram shoppers was sold for less than the cost of a single London flat.