asos - Internet Marketing News and Blogs

Affiliate-shy fashion etailer ASOS.com has reported an 83% rise in sales in the six months to the end of September, with its registered user base also increasing sharply.
 
The company’s profit before tax for the period increased from £300,000 to £3.4m as revenues reached £31.8m, up from £17.4m in the same period last year. The business looks in solid shape.

Online fashion retailer ASOS has recorded some impressive results for the 12 months to March 31, 2007, and has seen sales rise by 85% over the last three months.

Year on year, ASOS reported a rise in profits of 116% to £42.6m, while pre-tax profits grew by 144% to £3.4m. In addition, its customers' average order values increased from £39.32 to £43.80 in the same period.

ASOS CEO Nick Robertson was at the centre of a firestorm six weeks ago when he labelled affiliates 'grubby'.

In this interview, his first since 'Grubbygate', Nick explains the reasons behind his decision to close down the ASOS affiliate programme. The etailer certainly doesn't seem to have been hampered by its decision...

You have to wonder whether or not ASOS CEO Nick Robertson went on holiday for two weeks by accident, like Withnail of ‘I’ fame. Or did he strategically flee the masses of affiliates baying for his head on pike?

Labelling affiliates ‘grubby’ is looking like the UK internet industry's gaffe of the year so far, but something tells me it wasn’t just a throwaway statement. Crass and insensitive perhaps, and one hell of a generalisation, but presumably Nick has all kinds of reasons that will back up his choice of phrase.

What might these reasons be? Since Nick is on holiday (or in some affiliate-proof bunker) we’re not going to get any clarification anytime soon. But hey, ASOS is a public company, so let’s delve into the accounts for a brief waltz through its history with affiliates… it is rather revealing…

ASOS CEO Nick Robertson has managed to offend the entire affiliate marketing community by describing some of them as "grubby little people in grubby studios".