Homewares and apparel retailer/cataloguer Next
reported sales of £1.57 billion in the first half of the
year-a rise of 3.6 per cent. Pretax profits were up 8.5 per cent to
£228 million in the six months ended July 2011. Sales in
Next’s online and mail order arm Next Directory
were up 15.1 per cent to £486.7 million, with profit up 11.3
per cent to £112.8 million.
International sales rocketed during the period and
Next expects full-year online sales outside the
UK to reach £32 million, up from £10 million last year.
Sales were particularly strong in Germany, USA, Ireland,
Australia and Poland. Next now plans to set up online stores for
Russia, China and Japan within the next six months.
Operating profit at John Lewis more than halved
in the half year ended 30th July. While sales inched up 2.5
percent at the department-store chain, to £1.42 billion,
operating profit plummeted £18.9 million to £15.8
million. The slump reflects the tough trading conditions on the
high street, plus John Lewis’s investment in systems, supply
chain and new store openings.
ASOS has launched an iPhone app allowing
customers to shop the Asos range, save items for later and manage
their accounts. On Twitter, ASOS’ eCommerce director James Hart
said an Android app will follow.
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