ASOS buoyed by further sales rise

Online fashion retailer ASOS today continued to defy the downturn after reporting a doubling in sales and a 68 per cent rise in interim profits.

ASOS, which stands for As Seen On Screen, posted profits of £4.1 million for the six months to 30 September.

Sales have continued their upward trajectory since then and were more than double in the seven weeks to yesterday, up 104 per cent.

The retailer targets 16-34 year-olds with clothing and accessories based on those worn by celebrities, and now has 1.88 million registered users.

It said it had increased the total number of products lines by 238 per cent year on year to 19,400.

Chief executive Nick Robertson said ASOS had "performed strongly" despite the slowdown in consumer spending.

The company more than doubled the number of brands on offer to 700 by October 31, up 135 per cent on the previous year. In the same period the number of active customers - those who had shopped on the site in the last six months - had almost doubled year on year to 947,000, up 95 per cent.

It said two new lines - designer discount arm ASOSRed and a maternity range - were also launched successfully.

ASOS said around 1,150 new product lines were now introduced onto the website each week.

New high street brands on the site in the last six months include Karen Millen, Warehouse, Whistles and Kookai.

The company said the overall mix of own label to branded product sales during the first half of the year was 52 per cent to 48 per cent.

International sales were up 252 per cent year on year to £11.4 million and Mr Robertson said expansion overseas was a "huge growth opportunity" for ASOS.

He said finance director Jon Kamaluddin would move to a new role as international director, to facilitate this.

But the company warned of "tougher" sales comparables in the second half of the year and said it needed perform through the all-important Christmas period.

"We view the coming months with cautious optimism," it said.