Asos ahead of schedule turning ‘stock into cash’ as revenue drops 18 per cent

Online retailer Asos said it was ahead of plan with its stock reduction process, as it ploughs ahead with its turnaround plan.

The digital pure-play said adjusted revenue declined by 18 per cent in the 26 weeks to 3 March to £1.4bn. 

However, chief José Antonio Ramos Calamonte, scheme to turn “stock into cash,” as part of its turnaround strategy, showed signs of paying off. 

The brand sold 83 per cent of its autumn collection, an improvement of 17 per cent compared to the same period the year before. 

On Wednesday, the business also said it was ahead of plan on stock reduction with £593m stock at the first half of the year, close to its full year objective of £600m. 

Approximately half of the stock reduction came from the clearance of stock over 12 months old.

José Antonio Ramos Calamonte, its chief executive, said: “At the beginning of this year we explained that FY24 would be a year of continued transformation for Asos as we take the necessary actions to deliver a more profitable and cash generative business. 

“Under our Back to Fashion strategy, we set out three priorities for the year – to offer the best and most relevant product, to strengthen our relationship with customers and to reduce our cost to serve.

He added: “We have delivered on each of these in the first half of the year, including right-sizing our stock ahead of target to drive our best first half cash performance since 2017 and seeing excellent results in our Test & React model, which is growing at pace.”

“Asos is becoming a faster and more agile business, and we are reiterating our guidance for the full year as we lay the foundations for sustainably profitable growth in FY25 and beyond.”

In recent years, Asos has struggled to keep pace with new ultra fast fashion brands such as Shein. 

Around £40m has been wiped off its market capitalisation in the past five months after the business warned on its profits at the tail end of 2023.  

Shares are also down by nearly 55 per cent in the past year. 

Asos held its guidance for the full year, predicting a sales decline of five to 15 per cent. 

However the firm said it expects adjusted EBITDA for the following year to “significantly higher” as its turnaround plan will show continued signs of paying off.

In a separate announcement, Asos also named former Sainsbury’s and Amazon executive Dave Murray as its new chief financial officer.

He is set to take the reigns at the end of the month, replacing Sean Glithero, who joined last year on an interim basis.

Ramos Calamonte, added: “I am delighted to be welcoming Dave to the management team. His wide-ranging experience in the retail sector, notably in senior finance positions in several major retail, fashion and e-commerce businesses, will make him a valuable partner in the next phase of Asos’ journey to becoming a faster, more agile and more profitable business.”