Boohoo targets £100m profit after posting first pre-tax gain since 2021

Boohoo, the online retailer behind brands such as Debenhams, Karen Millen and Pretty Little Thing, announced a £28m profit for the six-month period ending August, overturning an £18m loss recorded a year earlier. Total revenue slipped to £410m, with Debenhams contributing £364m and the combined Boohoo and Pretty Little Thing segment reaching £369m. The company sold a Sheffield warehouse to Primark for £90m and disposed of the Nasty Gal brand for £12m, actions that CEO Dan Finley says will leave net debt negligible by year-end.

A £35m capital raise in February was used to reduce debt, though it caused a share price decline. Finley reaffirmed the target of a £100m pre-tax profit and expects significant cash generation in the medium term, while analysts project a near-£50m pre-tax profit by the decade's end.