Mike Ashley's retail empire has bought a £75m stake in Bolton's electricals giant AO. Frasers Group, which includes the likes of House of Fraser and Sports Direct, now holds almost 19% of company's shares making it AO's second-largest shareholder.
It is the latest in a series of deals for Frasers Group which included increasing its stake in Boohoo rival Asos. It has also been building up its shares in Manchester-headquartered fashion group N Brown.
It also acquired Manchester's Missguided and I Saw It First as well as Lancashire-based Studio Retail out of administration last year. The group is also in talks to buy a brand from Manchester-headquartered THG.
