Monday 06 February 2017 9:04 am

Boohoo moves forward with $20m acquisition of Nasty Gal

Online fashion retailer Boohoo is moving forward with its $20m (£16m) acquisition of bankrupt rival Nasty Gal, announcing this morning that the deal will be completed by the end of the month.

Boohoo, which targets millennial shoppers, announced its intentions to buy up Nasty Gal's intellectual property assets and customer database on 28 December. This came just two weeks after the company said it would be snapping up a two-thirds stake in another rival firm, PrettyLittleThing.

Nasty Gal filed for bankruptcy in November last year after failing to find a buyer for the struggling business. Founder Sophia Amoruso said filing for bankruptcy was "the most responsible decision for this business".

The transaction between Boohoo and Nasty Gal has since been going through a bidding process controlled by the US bankruptcy court. However, no other bids for Nasty Gal's assets have been made, clearing the path for Boohoo.

The US bankruptcy court is expected to approve the deal around 8 February, and it is thought the transaction will complete on 28 February.

Retail analyst Nick Bubb said it was "surprising" that no other firms were interested in bidding for Nasty Gal's intellectual property assets and customer database.