Cheshire fashion brand Sosandar will launch into bricks-and-mortar stores in spring 2024, calling the business “perfectly placed” to develop its omnichannel strategy thanks to growing brand strength coupled with a belief that consumers are returning to the high street.
In a trading update covering the six-month period to September 30, 2023, the fashion retailer said it expects revenue to grow by 10% year on year for FY24 to £46.8m and to remain in profit during the transition, despite swinging to a £1.3m loss for the period, down from a £77k profit in the same period last year.
Backing up this expectation, the company added that net revenue for the week commencing October 9 was the highest on record, excluding black Friday, and the highest ever for gross margin. It also announced it has signed new international agreements with The Iconic in Australia and The Bay in Canada to begin selling online in the fourth quarter of the current financial year, ending March 31, 2024, while net cash as of September 30 stands at £7m.
On its physical UK store strategy, Sosandar said it has been informed by the success of recent partnerships and will open up the 60% of the £55bn annual clothing market in the UK that is transacted in physical stores.
It added that the step into physical retail will ‘significantly expand’ the company’s addressable market into more locations where its loyal customers want to shop. The investment in the store opening programme will be self-funded from Sosandar’s existing cash resources.
Co-CEOs Ali Hall and Julie Lavington said: “We are extremely excited about the next stage of our growth journey. Our decision to open our own stores is the logical next step as we look to offer our customers more ways to engage and shop with Sosandar.
“We know that the added value of being able to touch and feel our clothes will appeal to our target customers. With a clear roll-out plan in place and strict criteria around the location of potential stores, we are confident that our stores will enable us to accelerate our market share and increase the awareness of our brand.
Over the last three years Sosandar has added to its own successful online presence by becoming a top selling brand with third party online partnerships including M&S and Next. This was followed by the recent launch as a flagship brand with Sainsbury’s both online and in-store.
