Boohoo workers have been told to swap their gray tracksuit bottoms for an office wardrobe, as chief executive Dan Finley defended his decision to put all employees at the online fashion group back to a five-day week.
Finley, who has led the turnaround at the Manchester-based retailer since 2024, said the 1,500 head office staff should not be “sitting in bed in gray tracksuit bottoms” but at work, wearing and testing clothes produced by the business and working face-to-face with colleagues.
In a fashion company, he said, physical presence carries a certain weight: products need to be tried, styles need to be observed, and that cannot happen from the couch. Finley, who says he only wears clothes made or sold by the group, added that working in Manchester should be “celebrated”, with workers getting out and “living and breathing” the city, going to events, socializing and socializing after work.
The CEO believes that young employees, who make up a large part of Boohoo’s workforce and customer base, will benefit greatly from being physically present, learning from senior colleagues and building professional relationships that are difficult to replicate on a video call.
Founded in Manchester in 2006 by Mahmud Kamani and Carol Kane, Boohoo built its name on fast fashion led fashion, accessories and beauty, and now counts Karen Millen and Debenhams among its brands. The group, which has moved to rebrand as Debenhams Group as part of a wider market push, is in the midst of major restructuring plans to cut debt and recover from declining sales, driven by stiff competition from fast fashion rivals Shein and Temu.
Boohoo’s move puts it firmly on one side of the debate that continues to divide British business. Before 2020, working from home was often treated as a rarity or “Friday fun”, but the pandemic turned hybrid arrangements into the norm for millions. According to the Office for National Statistics, more than a quarter of working adults in Great Britain now split their week between home and work.
Many employers have since pushed back, saying a physical presence is essential for collaboration, directing young workers and overseeing results, while others are willing to justify expensive, long-term real estate rentals. Amazon has demanded a five-day full refund for its corporate staff, while major UK employers including Boots, Morrisons and engineering firm Laing O’Rourke have followed suit for head office staff. Others, such as Santander, have strengthened corporate rules without abandoning flexibility altogether, wary of resignations and willing to bank savings from smaller offices.
However, the situation seems to be slowly changing in favor of employers. The average number of people going to offices in the UK has been more than 40 per cent every week since the beginning of January, reaching 44.2 per cent in the week to 12 February, according to Remit Consulting’s ReTurn report.
For Finley, the reckoning is still simple: a fashion business that cannot see its own clothes and its people is blind. Tracksuit bottoms, it seems, will have to wait for the weekend.
