Boohoo has been fined €2.3m (£2m) by France's consumer watchdog after an investigation found the online fashion retailer had misled shoppers with fake discounts and mislabelled synthetic products as leather or suede. The penalty adds to a difficult period for the Manchester-based firm, whose parent company rebranded as Debenhams Group last year, as it faces intensifying competition from Shein, Temu and Vinted alongside rising delivery costs and US tariffs.

France's directorate-general for competition, consumer affairs and fraud control found that of the promotions it examined, 40% were not genuine price reductions, 7% offered smaller savings than advertised, and 48% were actually price increases. The fine follows a $100m settlement reached four years ago in a US lawsuit alleging Boohoo brands PrettyLittleThing and NastyGal ran sham sales for several years, though that case was settled without admission of liability. Boohoo said the French issues dated from October 2023 to February 2024 under previous management and have since been resolved, while Debenhams Group, which also owns Oasis, Warehouse and Karen Millen, continues to face pressure from major shareholder Frasers Group.