{{Short description|Indian fashion retailer and businessman}} {{Undisclosed paid|date=November 2017}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox person | name = Umar Kamani | image = | alt = | caption = Umar Kamani in his PrettyLittleThing office in Manchester, 2015 | birth_name = Umar Kamani | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1988|3|21}} | birth_place = Manchester, England | death_date = <!-- {{Death date and age|df=yes|YYYY|MM|DD|YYYY|MM|DD}} or {{Death-date and age|Month DD, YYYY|Month DD, YYYY}} (death date then birth date) --> | net worth = | alma_mater = Manchester Metropolitan University | occupation = {{hlist|Entrepreneur|Fashion retailer, Restaurant partner}} | known_for = Co-founder and CEO of PrettyLittleThing | spouse = Nada Kamani | parents = Mahmud Kamani | relatives = Adam Kamani (brother) }} '''Umar Kamani''' (born 21 March 1988) is a British fashion retailer and businessman. At 24, Kamani and his brother Adam co-founded a fashion firm and online retail company selling clothing, accessories and other items to women mainly aged between 12 and 25, "PrettyLittleThing.com."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/business/enterprise/brothers-plan-grow-prettylittle-brand-6065745|work=Manchester Evening News|title=Brothers plan to grow PrettyLittle brand to big thing|date=20 September 2013|accessdate=12 November 2016}}</ref>
==Career==
=== Boohoo.com === In 2006, Kamani began working in the family business as a manager at Boohoo.com. In 2014, Boohoo debuted on the Alternative Investment Market with a market value of £560 million.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/mar/07/boohoo-sale-company-shares|work=The Guardian|title=Family behind Boohoo.com pocket £240m from sale of company shares|accessdate=14 November 2016}}</ref> This float was a major contribution to the Kamani family's wealth.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ft.com/content/c4a97b8c-a603-11e3-b9ed-00144feab7de|work=Financial Times|location=London|title=Boohoo raises a smile for Manchester's Kamani family|accessdate=14 November 2016}}</ref> In September 2016, analysts began speculating that Boohoo.com would acquire PrettyLittleThing after reviewing Boohoo's financials, which showed a 40% increase in turnover to £127.3 million for the half year which ended in August 2016.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thebusinessdesk.com/northwest/news/740348-boohoo.com-mulls-pretty-little-thing-acquisition.html|work=The Business Desk|title=Boohoo.com mulls Pretty Little Thing acquisition|accessdate=14 November 2016}}</ref>
=== PrettyLittleThing.com === Brothers Umar and Adam Kamani co-founded PrettyLittleThing.com in January 2012. By the middle of 2013, celebrities including Miley Cyrus, Michelle Keegan, Rita Ora, Jessie J, Ryan Thomas<ref>{{cite news|last=Panther|first=Lewis|title=Coronation Street star Ryan Thomas lands his first Hollywood role – but it's not in a film|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/coronation-street-star-ryan-thomas-8387408|accessdate=14 November 2016|newspaper=Mirror|date=9 July 2016}}</ref> and Nicki Minaj had been seen wearing clothing from their rapidly growing fashion retailer. 66% of the company was acquired by Boohoo for £3.3 million in December 2016. The PrettyLittleThing.com team grew from 65 to 300 employees from 2014 to the end of 2015. This increase was to accommodate the workload influx from fulfilling 20 orders a day in 2014 to shipping 20,000 parcels a day by the middle of 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/business/umar-kamani-making-pretty-little-9150671|work=Manchester Evening News|title=Umar Kamani on making Pretty Little Thing the next big thing|date=30 April 2015|accessdate=14 November 2016}}</ref> Additionally Umar reported a 500% increase in full-year sales to £30 million.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.retail-week.com/sectors/fashion/boohoo-founders-son-racks-up-30m-annual-sales-with-prettylittlething/7003066.article|work=Retail Week|title=Boohoo.com founder's son racks up sales of £30m with online fashion venture PrettyLittleThing|accessdate=14 November 2016}}</ref> In 2016, PrettyLittleThing opened their flagship US location in Los Angeles, California. The launch party was hosted by Kylie Jenner.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://footwearnews.com/2016/fn-spy/parties/kylie-jenner-rocks-tamara-mellon-heels-pretty-little-things-launch-238593/|work=Footwear News|title=Kylie Jenner Rocks Tamara Mellon Heels at Pretty Little Thing's U.S.A. Launch|date=9 July 2016|accessdate=14 November 2016}}</ref>
In May 2020, Kamani sold his 34 per cent remaining stake in PrettyLittleThing.com to BooHoo for £330 million.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Editor |first=Ashley Armstrong, Retail |title=Pretty Little Thing's Umar Kamani got £3.4m dividend before selling out to Boohoo, run by his father |newspaper=The Times |language=en |url=https://www.thetimes.com/business-money/markets/article/pretty-little-things-umar-kamani-got-3-4m-dividend-before-selling-out-to-boohoo-run-by-his-father-q38zx73mc |access-date=2023-04-19 |issn=0140-0460}}</ref> The deal gave him £161 million in cash and a stake worth roughly 2.6 percent in Boohoo.<ref name=":0" />
In April 2023, Kamani announced he was stepping down as Chief Executive at PrettyLittleThing.com.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Editor |first=Isabella Fish, Retail |title=PrettyLittleThing co-founder Umar Kamani quits Boohoo Group |newspaper=The Times |language=en |url=https://www.thetimes.com/business-money/companies/article/prettylittlething-co-founder-umar-kamani-quits-boohoo-group-k0f89mnhv |access-date=2023-04-19 |issn=0140-0460}}</ref>
==Personal life== Kamani married British-Saudi model Nada Adelle in May 2024.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Humphries |first=Will |date=5 May 2024 |title=Fashion tycoon marries in extravagant four-day wedding |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/society/article/fashion-tycoon-marries-in-extravagant-four-day-wedding-mnl8clwr5 |work=The Times}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kamani, Umar}} Category:Living people Category:1988 births Category:Alumni of Manchester Metropolitan University Category:British businesspeople of Indian descent Category:British retail company founders Category:Businesspeople from Manchester Category:English people of Gujarati descent Umar