River Island invests as Hut prepares IPO The Lewis family - which has increased the size of the fashion brand from a wool shop in 1948 in London's East End to a chain of more than 300 shops - invested in the multi-website retailer as part of what is believed to be a £10m fund-raising. As part of the investment, Clive Lewis, deputy chairman of River Island, is to join The Hut Group's board as a non-executive director. The Hut Group, the websites of which include music site Zavvi.com and nutrition supplements site MyProtein.com, is expected to float on the London Stock Exchange later this year with a value in excess of £300m. Previous investors include retailers Sir Stuart Rose, the former chief executive of Marks & Spencer, and Terry Green, Tesco's ex-clothing chief, and Balderton Capital, the venture capital firm. It is understood that the new fund-raising will give the online retailer, led by chief executive Matthew Moulding, further firepower for bolt-on acquisitions and capital. Details of the raising are expected to be announced next week alongside The Hut Group's post-Christmas trading statement. Ahead of the float, the retailer is due to make a decision on its chairman. Angus Monro is thought to want to step down, with Sir Terry Leahy, the former Tesco chief executive, in pole position to take the helm. A spokesman for the retailer declined to comment.