Fashion
Investment group Carlyle takes control of Very Group from Barclay family
Published
November 10, 2025
The Very Group is under new ownership. The former Shop Direct, which owns Very and the legacy Littlewoods e-tail businesses, is now controlled by its major lender, global investment firm Carlyle. Another lender, Abu Dhabi-based media group IMI, is continuing as “a key stakeholder”.
The company said it’s “a positive outcome for The Very Group, providing it with a strengthened capital base and enhanced financial flexibility to support investment in its long-term growth plans”.
It also “underscores Carlyle and IMI’s confidence in The Very Group, its management team, leading brand position, strategy and long-term growth potential, having supported the business since 2021”.
Carlyle and IMI will now “support the company’s management team to continue to deliver against its strategic priorities, including driving innovation and leveraging technology and data to improve its customer offering”.
It means the former owners, the Barclay family, will no longer have any involvement in the business after controlling it for over 20 years. It’s been in control during the period in which Very Group morphed from a traditional catalogue-based retailer to one of the UK’s biggest online business.
Very Group, which is chaired by Nadhim Zahawi, the former Conservative Chancellor, has annual revenues of over £2 billion and it serves 4.4 million customers.
The Barclay family had tried to sell the business before and while no information was given about the value of the latest transaction, one report speculated on a valuation of around £2.5 billion, which is less than the Barclays had previously hoped for.
The family has lost control of a number of its businesses in recent periods after struggling to pay off major loans. Carlyle and IMI first became involved with Very earlier this decade as they lent major sums to the group.
But Very itself is believed to be in good financial shape. Last month it reported results for the year to June and while they included a pre-tax loss of £505.4 million, that was caused by a write-down of an inter-company loan made to the Barclay family’s holding company as lenders prepared to take over the business.
Other figures were more positive with an increase in adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation of 15.9% to £307.1 million and an adjusted EBITDA margin that rose to 14.7% from 12.5%. That was the highest earnings margin it has ever achieved. While revenue dipped slightly, its focus on more profitable sales was what boosted the margin.
On Monday, Very CEO Robbie Feather said the new ownership deal “marks an important milestone for The Very Group as we move into an exciting new phase of growth. We are delighted to continue to partner with Carlyle and IMI. Their continued backing provides us with a stronger foundation to execute on our strategy, increase investment in technology and the customer experience, and to build on the momentum across the business”.
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Under this arrangement, the buyer supplies raw materials like fabrics and accessories. Manufacturers receive only the cutting and making charges.
Bangladesh apparel manufacturers expect an additional $5 billion from high-end garment exports in the first year after the government scraps the 50-per cent ceiling on free-of-charge (FoC) imports, trade body BGMEA said.
Under this arrangement, the buyer supplies raw materials.
The additional earnings could cross $10 billion in the second year once the FoC quota is fully abolished, BGMEA noted.
The additional earnings could cross $10 billion in the second year once the FoC quota is fully abolished, Chowdhury said.
The country’s Ministry of Commerce has decided to amend the Import Policy Order within the next two weeks, allowing garment exporters to source all raw materials from overseas buyers, process them and ship the finished products back, the Chief Adviser’s Office said.
Exporters now are permitted to import only half of the required raw materials under the FoC arrangement.
A few years ago, FoC imports were capped at 33 per cent of total raw materials. This was raised to 50 per cent later.
Bangladesh’s apparel exporters use FoC for less than 5 per cent of total shipments now due to restrictive conditions and reported complications at the Chattogram customs department.
As FoC is straightforward, less risky and faster, garment exporters feel without any quota on FoC import, global brands will place more orders with Bangladesh.
Manufacturers say orders for high-end man-made fibre and polyester garments are shifting from China to Bangladesh as the United States has imposed higher tariffs on Chinese goods.
Many Bangladeshi factories, however, cannot take full advantage of this as these are barred from importing more than half of raw materials under the current FoC regulations.
Chowdhury said FoC reduces risk as buyers cover raw material costs and cannot abruptly cancel orders, according to domestic media outlets.
However, Showkat Aziz Russell, president of the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA), said the government should consult all stakeholders before taking any decision. He believes higher import of raw materials could harm the domestic textile industry by reducing demand for local yarn, fabrics and accessories, and lowering local value addition.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
Published
November 10, 2025
The British Fashion Council (BFC) has announced that Rei Kawakubo, Adrian Joffe and Dickon Bowden will receive the Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator at The Fashion Awards in London next month.
The trio is being recognised on 1 December in London “for their incredible contribution to the global fashion industry through the establishment of Dover Street Market (DSM), an internationally renowned shop for emerging talent, established brands and cross-disciplinary collaborations. Widely regarded as the first concept store of its kind, DSM has become an innovative platform for immersive brand storytelling and artistic exploration”.
DSM celebrated its 20th anniversary last year and has become a key name at the cutting edge of international luxury fashion retail. But it’s seen as more than just a shop. The BFC said that “through experimental installations and unconventional displays, it has created a living, breathing cultural space that dissolves the boundaries between fashion, art and commerce. DSM has fostered a collaborative community in the fashion industry and continues to shape the global conversation with locations in London, Tokyo, New York City, Singapore, Beijing, Los Angeles and Paris”.
While Comme des Garçons co-founder and creative director Kawakubo is perhaps the best-known name among DSM’s founders, all three have played a key part.
Kawakubo “has greatly influenced the contemporary fashion industry with her revolutionary designs and shaped the conceptual foundation of DSM,” the BFC said.
Meanwhile Adrian Joffe is the CEO and co-founder and president of Comme des Garçons International. “His leadership has been instrumental in the brand curation and evolution of the DSM concept over time”.
And Bowden is the VP of DSM as well as “a guiding force in the company’s international expansion”.
BFC chief executive Laura Weir said: “Rei, Adrian and Dickon’s steadfast commitment to innovation, support for emerging talent and dedication to building an authentic creative community continue to influence the industry and challenge wider fashion discourse.”
Previous recipients of the Isabella Blow Award for include Tyler Mitchell, Campbell Addy, Edward Enninful, IB Kamara, Katie Grand, Amanda Harlech, Mert & Marcus, Nick Knight, Pat McGrath, Professor Louise Wilson and Sam McKnight.
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The allocated amount represents more than half of the €536 million total investment needs for these projects—the remainder coming from national, regional and local governments, public-private partnerships, businesses and civil society organisations.
The European Commission has granted over €358 million (~$414.2 million) to 132 new projects across Europe under the LIFE Programme for environment and climate action.
It will mobilise €133 million (the EU will provide €76 million) to contribute to circular economy and improving quality of life, with 31 projects backing the transition to a clean, circular, energy-efficient and climate-resilient economy.
LIFE projects play a significant role in the Eurioean Union’s (EU) transition to a clean, circular and resilient economy, helping safeguard and restore the EU’s biodiversity, supporting industrial competitiveness and contributing to the EU’s long-term goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2050.
This investment will have a lasting impact on the region’s environment, economy, industry and the well-being of all Europeans. The projects will cover all areas of the LIFE programme.
It will mobilise €133 million (of which the EU will provide €76 million) to contribute to circular economy and improving quality of life, with 31 projects supporting the transition towards a clean, circular, energy-efficient, and climate-resilient economy.
It will mobilise €96 million (of which the EU will provide €58 million) to 19 projects to strengthen climate resilience and mitigation efforts.
It will also mobilise €82 million (of which the EU will provide €77 million) to 48 projects aimed at accelerating the clean energy transition, an official release said.
Among the 31 projects selected to promote a more circular economy and quality of life, the €3.6 million LIFE Woodmer project in Sweden will produce biopolymers from waste wood to reduce hazardous chemicals and plastics in packaging and textiles.
The €1.9 million project InBioSoil in Spain uses fungi to clean up soil contaminated with persistent organic pollutants.
To ensure a clean energy transition, the 48 new projects announced today range from citizen-led local energy cooperatives to retrofitting old buildings and installing affordable heat pumps. They include the €1.2 million LIFE SUNACADEMY project, a new renewable energy training academy in France, with a focus on residential and large solar installations.
The €1.8-million NESOIplus project will provide for clean energy solutions and capacity building targeted to remote island communities in the Azores, Canaries and Martinique. And with a budget of €1.6 million, the BAIL-RENOV project will give an increased focus on landlord’s needs all along the energy renovation process in rental properties in France.
Over its 33 years of existence, the LIFE Programme has co-financed more than 6,500 environmental and climate action projects across the EU and associated countries.
The present LIFE programme started in 2021 and runs until 2027, with a budget of €5.43 billion. The grants financed under the LIFE Programme are managed by CINEA, the European Climate Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
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