For the four months upto June, Asos’ total revenue grew 12 per cent. UK retail sales rose 16 per cent. But in Europe and the US, sales were held back by operational issues associated with Asos’ transformational warehouse programs. EU retail sales rose just five per cent in the four months reflecting weaker stock availability than planned due to the challenge of embedding new automation software in its euro hub. Despite similar warehousing issues at its US hub, sales in the US still rose 12 per cent in the four months. US sales were helped by currency effects.

All of this added up to a nine per cent increase in international retail sales for the four month period and a ten per cent rise in the year-to-date. The multi-brand store is seeing positive momentum in customer engagement with visits up 16 per cent year-on-year. The company is making good progress in improving customer engagement, but embedding the change from the major overhaul of infrastructure and technology in its US and European warehouses has taken longer than anticipated, impacting its stock availability, sales and cost base in these regions. The move to a multi-site logistics infrastructure will enable it to offer customers across the world its market-leading proposition, facilitate its future growth as well as lead to longer-term efficiency benefits.