BoohooMan boss Samir Kamani: 'Why open stores when you can open countries?'

Samir Kamani has just one job listed on his LinkedIn profile. This might be common for a 24-year-old, however, this job is not office administrator or store assistant - it’s chief executive of Boohoo Man.

Kamani, the son of Boohoo founder Mahmud Kamani, has led the fast fashion group’s booming menswear business since it launched its own stand-alone website just over three years ago.

Some might call it nepotism but Kamani should not be underestimated when it comes to knowing his brand, knowing his customers and most importantly knowing what he wants BoohooMan to achieve.

And he has his sights set on international domination.

After making waves in the US, BoohooMan launched its own website in France and Germany last week. When asked whether opening stores are in his plans, he replies: “We’d rather open countries”.

“We want more international growth and to dominate. We’ve got a good opportunity because our customers are really liking and believing in our brand.”

Boohoo does not split out sales for BoohooMan but sales of the two brands grew 15% in the six months to August 31 - its last reported half year. The group said that BoohooMan had ”performed strongly with an ever-extending product range and increasing customer reach.”

An influential brand

His quest for global success is evident in BoohooMan’s latest celebrity collaboration. This week the fashion retailer revealed American rapper Quavo - one third of rap group Migos - was the new face of BoohooMan.

By picking Quavo as a brand ambassador over a star more well-known in the UK, Kamani hopes to propel the brand overseas.

“We’re really going for the US audience with it,” he says.

BoohooMan is no stranger to celebrity tie-ups, with footballer Dele Alli and Love Island stars Josh Denzel and Wes Nelson just some of its collaborators. Its use of influencers has helped the brand grow and resonate with its young audience.

With over 140,000 followers on Instagram and several sports stars and supermodels as his friends, Kamani is an influencer in his own right.

But how does it choose which stars to work with? 

“We look at which audience we want to appeal to. We let our customers choose. [It’s] who they are inspired by, what they’re looking at, who’s relevant, who’s on trend with the brand.”

“With Quavo we’ve pushed boundaries with the product. We feel that with each collection with each ‘face of’ we’re pushing it into ’fashion’ as much as we can and hopefully that will work with the US market as well as the UK,” Kamani says.

The more fashionable man

The collaboration brings 200 festival-inspired pieces - think tie-dye double denim, neon tracksuits and bumbags - in sizes extra small up to double XL to BoohooMan on Aprll 11.

The fashion-forward collection fits with Quavo’s own style. Scrolling through Instagram his 12.1 million followers are treated to photos and videos of him in outrageous outfits, diamond-encrusted everything and updates on his pet tiger.

Kamani believes men have become adventurous in their fashion choices and are increasingly shopping online, giving BoohooMan the perfect opportunity to serve them.

“They’re getting braver with their outfits and guys are testing themselves and pushing boundaries,” explains Kamani. “I couldn’t imagine some of the guys wearing some of the product online now a few years ago and now they’re actually buying it. I feel like they’re getting more fashionable,” he added.

We’ll find out if that extends to neon tracksuits and tie-dye denim next month.