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Asos sales double

Online fashion retailer Asos has doubled sales for the year ended 31 March to £38.4 million. The company said it expects profits to be better than expected. The results appear stronger than they otherwise might due to the fire in its Buncefield depot that destroyed half of the company's stock last year, causing lower sales in the comparative year. Chief executive Nick Robertson, however, maintains that sales would have grown 80 percent even without the unexpected advantage and anticipates “another strong year of growth for the company.”

Sales for the four weeks ended 27 April again jumped 102 percent, thanks mainly to young shoppers looking for summer wear as a result of the warm weather.

The company said pre-tax profits and exceptional items – which included a payment of £570,000 from insurers for the Buncefield fire and a charge of £239,000 for the closure of a subsidiary – would be “slightly” ahead of market expectations.

www.asos.com
1 May 2007

Strong H1 for ASOS

Asos has recorded a strong first half, as sales soared a whopping 94 percent to £15.6 million. This was the result of investments made in the buying and merchandising teams last year, which led to a broader product offering. The British fashion and beauty etailer said it was on track to meet full-year expectations, adding that sales were still growing. Pre-tax profits before exceptional items for the six months ended 30 September rose to £269,000, up from a loss of £44,000 the year before. Operating costs rose by £1.4 million due to increasing head count, as the company continues to grow.

Sales in the eight weeks to 26 November rose 62 percent. The company, which targets consumers between the ages of 18 and 34, said that it had 1.1 million registered users on 27 November and is the second biggest online fashion retailer in the UK after Next. “As we approach the Christmas trading period I remain optimistic that we can look forward to another excellent year's trading,” said chief executive Nick Robertson.

www.asos.com
30 November 2006

Asos H1 sales soar

Fashion and beauty etailer Asos has recorded a 93 percent leap in sales for the first half. Chief executive Nick Robertson said the surge was the result of investments made last year in the company's buying and merchandising teams and the “subsequent increase in the number of products available from 1,500, 12 months ago, to 4,000 now.” The number of registered users also increased, from 675,000 last year to more than 1 million this year. Robertson said all departments had registered “strong” growth, especially the branded and footwear divisions. Asos continued to invest in its infrastructure in order to support future growth plans. Gains from the investment will be evident in interim results, which will be released on 28 November.

Although the firm has to contend with “much tougher comparables ahead (after adjusting for the impact of the Buncefield fuel depot explosion)”, the peak Christmas trading period also still lies ahead. Therefore, Robertson is confident that the full year results will be in line with market expectations.

www.asos.com
19 October 2006

Asos in exclusive collaborations

Asos.com, the fashion etailer, is planning a series of exclusive brand collaborations, the first being Arrogant Cat. The collaboration will launch later this month, and will be labelled under the umbrella” for Asos.com” and will feature several SMU's for the etailer. Chief executive nick Robertson said he wanted the business to expand its exclusive tie-up with Arrogant Cato to include other labels.

The Arrogant Cat for Asos range includes six dresses, a top and a coat, based on autumn trends such as dogtooth checks and volume. The pieces feature jewelled detailing and large bows. The etailer will also add Diesel to its online offer in November and Ted Baker will join in January. It added All Saints and Firetrap this month. Asos will also introduce a premium range of own label dresses for Christmas, with prices from about £70.

The company launched a monthly Asos magazine this week which includes celebrity “get the look” features styled from ranges sold by Asos, as well as style advice and an interview with the actress Mischa Barton. The magazine will initially be sent free to 100,000 Asos customers when they order from the website, and will then be sold online for £1. Asos has about one million registered users.

www.asos.com
21 September 2006

Celebrity obsession boosts Asos results

Asos achieved record growth this year thanks to the British public’s continued obsession with celebrity. Sales rose to £18 million, up from £13.5 million, for the year ended 31 March. Pre-tax profits soared 61 percent to £1.42 million. Chief executive Nick Roberston said, “The hot celebrities right now are Mischa Barton and Peaches Geldof, everyone wants to look like them.” Robertson said that thanks to the range of celebrity-inspired fashions, sales climbed 39 percent. This was despite the fire that damaged the company’s warehouse earlier this year. He also told the FT that Asos was building its own in-house design team to keep up with the ever-changing styles and trends which its target audience of “internet savvy 18- to-34 year olds” adheres to. “The Ibiza look is it at the moment, very bright colours, platforms, short skirts, sandals, and big sunglasses – we need to have them now,” he said.

Robertson said he expected sales to “hit the £100 million mark” in the next three years, but also said that investments in infrastructure would affect earnings growth. “Bottom-line growth will accelerate once the operational gearing kicks in but not this year or next,” he said. According to the FT, Asos’s success has forced many British fashion retailers to take a closer look at their online businesses. Ebay has just announced its plan to launch a new online service in the UK geared towards small and medium-sized retailers, especially fashion companies. The new site will be called Ebay Express and will cater to retailers “more comfortable with traditional fixed-price retailing of new goods.”

Despite Asos’s spectacular results, the FT warned readers that “the business comes with risks. It burns cash, faces a high level of operational risk and has shown weakness in its back office operations.”