ASOS.com sees profits leap by 68%

ASOS.com, the online fashion retailer, has reported a 68% increase in first-half profits, showing resilience against the retail slowdown. The company says it views the coming months with “cautious optimism”.

The website, which sells versions of outfits worn by celebrities and those sold by popular designers, saw sales jump 107% to £67.5m for the six months to September 30.

Tartan dresses; platform shoes and jewellery were best sellers among the website’s core 18 to 34 year old customers. The company says that as of October 31 it had 1.88m registered users and more than 950,000 active customers.

The group made a pre-tax profit of £4.1m, up from £2.4m in the same period last year. It adds that sales were up 104% for the seven weeks to 16 November, compared to a year ago.

Meanwhile, international sales leapt 252% to £114m and ASOS says it sees international expansion as a “huge growth opportunity”. It has appointed its finance director Jon Kamaluddin, to the role of international director to support expansion. Kamaluddin will continue in his current position until a replacement is found.