Conducting Due Diligence Study for Liberum

Situation

In 2020, Liberum was appointed as the nominated advisor and Sole broker for Fashion e-tailer, In The Style (ITS), as the organisation explored its options for stock market listing. The fast fashion sector is made up of complex supply chains, high-volume production, and fast turnarounds, which can lead to multiple social and environmental risks.

As the Environmental, Social and Governance and sustainability performance of businesses has become a priority for financial investors, particularly due to recent human rights issues highlighted within apparel supply chains, Liberum sought to understand the social and human rights standards of ITS in comparison to competitors and best practice.

Solution

Liberum commissioned Anthesis to complete a due diligence study on ITS and its supply chain and human rights progress. Anthesis worked with ITS to understand the CSR strategy in place, including supply chain tier mapping, governance, business salient risks, supplier onboarding and selection, purchasing practices, and supplier communication and training. This involved a deep-dive review through policies, stakeholder interviews and competitor bench-marking.

Anthesis produced a public facing report for investors, highlighting ITS’ progress to date and predicted trajectory. A second report was produced for ITS to highlight any gaps found and recommendations for improvement, creating a roadmap for the business in line with its CSR strategy. The reports both outlined recommended timeframes for progressing issues with short, medium and long-term goals related to the social and environmental impact of the business.

The report also allows ITS to develop and understand its next steps to ensure the organisation can continue to improve on its supply chain and human rights progress.

Impacts

The report was well received by industry investors. ITS raised £49m during the initial public offering (IPO), with the placing being oversubscribed ahead of ITS’ debut on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange in March 2021.

The report also allows ITS to develop and understand its next steps to ensure the organisation can continue to improve on its supply chain and human rights progress, including mapping its supplier database, beginning to audit suppliers, and publishing its ethical trade and CSR policies.