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Investor Presentaiton

DIRECTORS' REPORT BOOHOO GROUP PLC ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2021 THE DIRECTORS PRESENT THEIR DIRECTORS' REPORT AND ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 28 FEBRUARY 2021. REGISTERED OFFICE The registered office is 12 Castle Street, St Helier, Jersey, JE2 3RT. PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES The principal activity of the company is that of a holding company. The principal activity of its subsidiary undertakings is that of online clothing retailers. BUSINESS REVIEW The directors are required by Company Law to set out a fair review of the business, its position at the year end and a description of the principal risks and uncertainties facing the group and to prepare the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as adopted by the European Union. The review of the business on pages 26 to 33 provides this review and financial position and these are incorporated by cross-reference and form part of this report. The corporate governance report on pages 52 to 59 should be read as forming part of the directors' report. RESULTS AND DIVIDENDS Group profit after tax for the year to 28 February 2021 was £93.4 million (2020: £72.9 million). The audited financial statements for the for the year and group company are set out on pages 90 to 118. The directors do not recommend the payment of a dividend (2020: no dividend) so that cash is retained in the group for capital expenditure projects that are required for the rapid growth and efficiency improvements of the business and for suitable business acquisitions. DIRECTORS AND COMPANY SECRETARY The biographies of the directors who held office throughout the year and subsequently are set out on pages 50 to 51. The Company Secretary is Thomas Kershaw. The interests of the directors in the shares of the company and their share options and awards are detailed in the remuneration report on page 81. The company maintains directors' and officers' liability insurance, which gives appropriate cover for any legal action brought against the directors. The company has also provided an indemnity for its directors, which is a qualifying third-party indemnity provision for the purposes of section 234 of the Companies Act 2006 and was in place during the year and up to the date of approval of the financial statements. SHARE CAPITAL AND RESTRICTIONS ON SALE OF SHARES The authorised and issued share capital of the company and details of shares issued during the year are shown in note 23. The issued share capital as at 28 February 2021 was 1,263,255,457 shares of 1p. Powers related to the issue and buy-back of the company's shares are included in the company's articles of association and such authorities are renewed annually by shareholders at the annual general meeting. SHARE INCENTIVE PLAN TRUST The Share Incentive Plan ('SIP') trust is used by the company to provide free shares as share incentives to its employees. The trustees are Link Asset Services, an independent UK professional body. The SIP trustee buys shares and holds them in trust for the benefit of employees who remain with the company for three years. The trust held 22.6 million shares as at 28 February 2021. The trustees may vote on the beneficiaries' shares in accordance with the beneficiaries' instructions. SUBSTANTIAL SHAREHOLDERS Shareholders holding more than 3% of the company's shares as at 31 March 2021: 60 Shareholder Number of ordinary shares held Percentage held Mahmud Kamani* 152,979,880 12.53% Jupiter Asset Management 114,054,515 9.04% T Rowe Price Associates 82,165,541 6.51% Invesco Advisers Inc 76,328,033 6.05% Rabia Kamani* 56,944,782 4.51% Hargreaves Lansdown 40,932,989 3.25% Shareholders marked as * are considered to be a concert party. ASSESSMENT OF PROSPECTS AND VIABILITY The group's business activities together with the factors that are likely to affect the future development, performance, position and risks of the group are set out in the review of the business on pages 26 to 33. The continued impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the. group is not expected to change materially over the next year, provided that governments' actions in controlling the virus continue to be effective. Trading during the year to February 2021 has shown that online sales have been resilient during lockdowns in many countries. The group has substantial cash resources and undrawn credit facilities sufficient to continue solvent trading in the face of an unforeseen downturn in demand. As of the date of this report, we are continuing to operate, with the warehouses functioning under government-compliant safe working conditions and many office staff working from home. The directors considered the prospects of the group through an analysis of the markets for the group's product offering online in the UK and overseas and concluded that potential growth rates remain strong as the markets continue to develop as more customers become comfortable with online shopping. This provides great opportunities for future expansion. There is a diverse supply chain with no o key dependencies, enabling sourcing to be dynamic. Major expense categories relate to carriage and marketing services, which are widely diversified amongst suppliers. The business model affords a great deal of flexibility in responding to demand and economic changes: the wide range of products and relatively low buy quantities reduce inventory risk; a large customer base across many countries reduces specific economic and fashion dependencies; retail customers pay at the time of order with a small risk of default; and the high marketing expenditure is very controllable over a short time period. 61 // GOVERNANCE
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