The retail giant behind the likes of Sports Direct and House of Fraser has taken a stake in a Manchester-headquartered fashion group.
Frasers Group, which was established by billionaire Mike Ashley, has snapped up a 4.54% stake in N Brown, according to newly-filed documents with the London Stock Exchange.
N Brown's brands include Simply Be, JD Williams and Jacamo.
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Frasers Group, which is now run by Mr Ashley's son-in-law Michael Murray, also counts the likes of Jack Wills, Evans Cycles, Everlast and Flannels among its brands.
Earlier this year it acquired Lancashire-based Studio Retail Group after it collapsed into administration owing more than £80m.
It later bought Manchester-based online fashion brand Missguided for £20m after it also entered administration.
I Saw It First, which is also located in the city, was acquired by the group for an undisclosed fee in July.
The deal comes after shares in N Brown fell sharply last week after it warned the cost of living crisis will continue to hit its sales.
The company said that "uncertainty around macroeconomic conditions persists" and that it was second quarter product revenue decline of 9.4% continued into September.
The business added that it is planning on the basis of the "challenging market conditions continuing for longer".
After N Brown updated the markets, the company's share price dropped by more than 17% to its lowest level since May 2020 before later rising.
The company has also revealed its revenue for the six months to August 27 totalled £331.5m, down 4.6% compared to the same period in 2021.
Its statutory pre-tax profits were also slashed from £28.4m to £7.2m.
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