Womenswear sales boom drives Footasylum expansion plans
Fashion streetwear and sportswear retailer, Footasylum, has ramped up its UK expansion plans for 2023, following a notable increase in demand for womenswear.
Footasylum has revealed its plans for a series of new store openings and upsizings across the UK. The first new store will be in Watford, Hertfordshire and will open in Q3 2023. The 6,000 sq ft shop will be located in the Atria shopping centre and will bring Footasylum’s total number of stores to 60.
Other store openings are to be announced, but will include a new high-profile site in Central London.
Existing stores being upsized include those in Westfield Stratford, Leeds White Rose and Lakeside Shopping Centre in Essex. When completed, these stores will be significantly bigger in size.
The new plans follow the opening of a new Footasylum store in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire last December, the first new opening under the ownership of Aurelius Group, which acquired Footasylum in August 2022.
The retailer was acquired for £37.5m after the Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) ordered previous owner JD Sports to sell it amid competition concerns. JD had purchased the chain in 2019 for £90m.
According to Footasylum’s most recent annual revenue (year ending 29 January 2022) the firm saw growth of 21% to £281m, up from £232m in the prior year, with gross profit up 26%. Physical stores accounted for 51% of the company’s revenue, with online sales representing 46% and wholesale accounting for 3%.
Footasylum was founded in 2005 by David Makin, who previously co-founded JD Sports with John Wardle.