Monsoon storms to festive success

FASHION group Monsoon had a storming Christmas and New Year, pushing underlying sales ahead by 13% in the six weeks to 8 January, one of the strongest performances seen on the High Street.

Chairman and founder Peter Simon said the figures reflected the benefits of the group's investment in its Monsoon and Accessorize brands.

Reporting a 32% surge in first-half profits to £27.8m, Simon said he is confident that the group will produce a 'satisfactory' full-year performance despite the difficult retail background.

Monsoon, more than 75%-controlled by the Simon family, made a controversial move from the main market to the Alternative Investment Market last year. It is axing dividend payments to help fund expansion.

Simon said: 'We look forward to investing our money on long-term projects at the appropriate time without any pressure to do so.'

Sales for the six months to 27 November were up 29% to £169m, with a like-for-like increase of 10%.

A further 23 stores were opened in Britain and the group expanded internationally, including Russia, where it bought seven stores owned by its franchise partner. It now plans a major Russian expansion. Other moves in the first half included the successful launch of Monsoon Men.

Simon said the record first-half results gave the group confidence its strategy of expansion at home and abroad is working to build long-term value.