Frasers Group, owner of brands including Sports Direct and Debenhams, has been allowed to join Next and others in a group auction for Harvey Nichols, Sky News has reported.

The luxury department store chain issued a memo Tuesday, seen by the news outlet, informing suppliers it had been “obliged” to allow Mike Ashley’s company to participate in the process. This is despite concerns reportedly raised by several of the luxury brands stocked in Harvey Nichols.

Earlier in the month, British clothing retailer Next emerged as a favourite to acquire the company after it was put up for sale by previous owner, Sir Dickson Poon. Next is reportedly in the process of preparing an early-stage bid for Harvey Nichols, and it is expected that formal bids could begin arriving this week.

The department store brand appointed advisors at FTI Consulting to explore the a sale after years of financial difficulties, with the retailer recording five consecutive annual losses.

Frasers Group has been pushing to expand its reach in the luxury fashion market since 2020, when it rebranded to target a more upmarket clientele. Last week, its bid to acquire German fashion house Hugo Boss for €2 billion was rejected by the board, which described the offer as “financially inadequate”.

This followed a failed bid to acquire Australian footwear retailer Accent Group for £166 million.

Frasers Group was also reported earlier in the year to be in talks to acquire some regional locations of Harvey Nichols, but no deal was reached.

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