Free delivery helps ASOS to bumper Christmas

It was a very merry Christmas this year for online clothing retailer ASOS.

Sales for the nine weeks to 16 January 2009 increased by 118 per cent year-on-year, while sales for the 42 weeks to 16 January 2009 have doubled since last year, the company said.

ASOS recorded revenue of £81m for the 12 months to 31 March 2008 and a profit before tax of £7.3m in the same period.

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The site has 1.2 million active customers as of 16 January 2009 - a 112 per cent increase over the last 12 months - and 1.65 million registered users as of 27 June 2008, suggesting a relatively healthy ratio of browsers to buyers.

In a trading statement, ASOS chief executive Nick Robertson said Christmas sales, visitor conversion rates and average basket sizes all reached record levels over the festive period.

The site helped boost Christmas sales by running a number of free delivery weekends and product promotions. Although these strategies dented margins, the company said profit before tax for the next 12 months should be in line with the board's expectations.

Robertson added: "We remain cautiously optimistic about the outlook for ASOS with both young fashion and the internet proving more resilient in the current economic climate."