Pretty Green: Liam Gallagher’s former clothing brand subject of Government probe – why the fashion label's in debt

Pretty Green – the fashion label started by Oasis front man Liam Gallagher – is the subject of a Government probe into its finances, it has been revealed.

Gallagher is no longer associated with the brand, having sold his stake as majority shareholder to JD Sports in 2019, and there are no allegations of wrongdoing, according to The Sun.

But investigators are looking into how the label – named after a song by The Jam – managed to find itself over £18 million in debt, and their probe will “go back to the inception of the business until the current day.”

“Liam is no longer involved in Pretty Green,” a source told the paper, “but there are big questions about how the business was run when he was heavily involved.

“They are trying to work out just how it came into such trouble.”

Here is everything you need to know.

What happened to Pretty Green?

The brand was formed in 2009 by Gallagher, with “an authenticity borne of a deep understanding” of British street culture “and the things that make it relevant today.”

It seemed to run a pretty smooth course for much of its first decade in existence; at one time, it had 12 of its own stores across the country and 40 concessions at other stockists.

Trading was thought to be around £4 million in its first year, and alongside a flagship store in Gallagher’s home city of Manchester, the label was able to open a branch in Japan.

In 2011, the Manchester store was targeted by looters as part of countrywide unrest that would come to be known as the “London Riots”.

In an interview with Time Out Tokyo at the time, Gallagher said he didn’t take it personally, adding the main thing was that no one got hurt, “and that works for Pretty Green.

"The gaff didn’t get burnt down, we’re insured. They’re only clothes. I wouldn’t want it to be happening on a weekly basis, but yeah, everything’s been taken care of.”

Is Gallagher still involved with Pretty Green?

Around the time of Pretty Green’s inception, Gallagher espoused a simple design ethos: “If it isn’t cool it gets binned.

"I know people might buy it anyway and not everyone’s me, but that’s how it is,” he said. “You’ve got to look at every detail, otherwise you’ll end up selling s***.”

Gallagher’s associations with the brand ceased in 2019, when House of Fraser, among the stores of which many of Pretty Green’s concessions were located, fell into administration.

This had a knock-on effect on Pretty Green, which similarly found itself in financial difficulties after a number of year’s struggling to match its early successes.

It was around this time that the business was sold to JD Sports, and Gallagher distanced himself from the label.

The sports-fashion company took over the flagship Manchester store, along with the brand’s online operations and wholesale business; Pretty Green now runs only a single store, and its concession stands in House of Fraser no longer exist.

Though previously the creator and owner of the clothing range, Gallagher is now in no way affiliated with it.