Sir Philip Green and Mike Ashley hurt by MySale profit warning

Billionaire retail tycoons Mike Ashley and Sir Philip Green were on Tuesday left nursing millions of pounds worth of paper losses after MySale, the online fashion retailer they back, issued a profit warning.

AIM-listed MySale said tax changes in Australia, and the disruption that caused in the online market, led to more discounting amid higher competition in the second quarter.

It expects full-year profits and revenues to come in “significantly” below the A$15 million (£8.5 million) and $295 million analysts had been expecting.

Boss Carl Jackson called it a “short-term dip” and plans are under way to reduce costs.

The shares fell 15.65p, or more than 45%, to 19p.

Shelton Capital, Green’s wife’s investment vehicle, saw the value of its stake fall £5 million to £6.3 million, and Sports Direct’s was down more than £1 million to £1.4 million.

Zeus Capital analyst John Wilson said: “This trading update is clearly a large setback for MySale, having delivered multiple periods of growth and improvement in profitability.”