17th Oct 2005 07:00
ASOS PLC17 October 2005 FOR RELEASE7.00 AM17 OCTOBER 2005 ASOS plc ("ASOS" or "the Company") (Leading online fashion retailer) AGM STATEMENT * Sales up 86% in first 6 months for ASOS.com * Move to 70,000 sq ft. warehouse complete * Continued investment in retail and logistical resource * New website and back-office systems launched * 675,000 registered users as at 11 October 2005 * Optimistic about the long term prospects Nick Robertson, the Chief Executive, will make the following comments on currenttrading at the Annual General Meeting to be held at 2.30 pm today at ASOS plc,Maylands Avenue, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire. HP2 7DE. I am please to report that unaudited sales for ASOS.com increased 86% year onyear for the 6 month period to 30 September 2005. This is a strong start andreflects the continued growth of on-line shopping and the investment last yearin our buying team and product offer. With the move to our new 70,000 sq. ft. warehouse completed and the logisticalconstraints behind us, we have raised the bar again. Three additional buyershave been appointed since August, taking the total buying team to twelve. Wehave also added three to the merchandising team. Strategically, we will be usingthis extra resource to deliver around 200 hot new fashion lines per week, everyweek. We have also invested heavily in logistics resource with the appointment of foursenior members to the team. In September, we up-dated the website and gave 'ASOS Beauty' its own identityand home page. At the same time we implemented our new bespoke back-officesolution. I remain optimistic about the long term prospects for ASOS and we are putting inthe building blocks now to support continued high levels of growth. That said,our first half performance should not necessarily be taken as an indication ofthe outcome for the full year, especially with tougher comparables ahead and theall important Christmas trading period still to come. ASOS plcNick Robertson, Chief Executive Tel: 020 7240 7070Jon Kamaluddin, Finance Directorwww.asos.com Beattie FinancialBrian Coleman-Smith / Nia Thomas / Grace Dewhurst Tel: 020 7053 6400Seymour PierceMark Percy / Nicola Marrin Tel: 020 7107 8000 Note to Editors: ASOS plc is an Internet Retail and Marketing Services Group, established in June2000 and admitted to AIM in October 2001. Its principal business is ASOS.com, a leading online fashion and beautyretailer. A top five company in the UK Apparel and Accessories category (Source:Hitwise), ASOS.com has over 675,000 registered users at 11 October 2005,compared to 600,000 at 4 July 2005. It offers around 1,500 lines acrosswomenswear, lingerie, menswear, jewellery, accessories, footwear, beauty andgifting. Its primary customers are Internet savvy 18-34 year olds. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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