Asos today reported 38% sales growth in the first quarter of its financial year, and said it planned to open a new distribution centre in Europe as it unveiled 69% growth from European markets alone.
Total sales at the online fashion retailer hit £335.6m in the four months to December 31, 38% up on the same time last year. Total revenues, which also include income from third parties and delivery charges, rose by 37% to £342.5m.
UK sales performed well, rising by 37% to £133.7m, while international sales, which now account for 60% of Asos’ sales, rose by 38% to £201.9m. US growth ran at 28% and rest of the world at 19%, but the real source of overseas expansion came in the European Union, where sales grew by 79% to £87.2m.
Chief executive Nick Robertson said the Christmas period was “strong” and that the quarter represented a good start to the financial year.
“The results,” he said, “were driven by significant improvements to our customer proposition, including better delivery options, additional payment methods and the roll out of our premier service in key international markets.”
He added: “Work on significantly increasing the capacity of our Barnsley site continues and we plan to open our central European distribution centre later this year. The business continues to trade in line with expectations.”
By the end of the period Asos had 7.9m active customers, 41% more than at the same time in the previous year. Margins were up, reflecting, it said, tighter stock control.
