The British clothing retailer Asos Plc suffered significant losses in sales and a significantly higher loss in the 2022/23 financial year. The company admitted in its annual report published on Wednesday that a return to growth is not expected in the current year either.
In the past financial year, which ended on September 3rd, group sales reached 3.55 billion British pounds (4.08 billion euros), falling ten percent short of the previous year’s level. The company blamed the significant decline on adverse market conditions and targeted changes in its own procurement strategy.
The operating loss, which was 9.8 million British pounds in 2021/22, rose to 248.5 million British pounds. Adjusted for one-off charges, which resulted primarily from costs as part of the ongoing reform program and value adjustments, the operating loss amounted to 29.0 million British pounds, according to the company. In the previous year, the retailer had achieved an operating profit before special items of 44.1 million British pounds. The reported net loss increased from 30.8 to 223.1 million British pounds (256.7 million euros).
For the current 2023/24 financial year, management forecast a decline in revenues of five to 15 percent given the persistently weak demand trend. The company explained that an increase in sales is not expected again until the following year.