Sosandar H1 revenues jump 15% as own-site drives growth

Sosandar has reported that revenues jumped 15% to £18.7m for the six month to 30 September, as own-site sales and stable margins helped to support its performance. 

According to the fashion company, trading in the period was in line with expectations for the full year. 

The AIM-listed business saw own-site revenues rise by 28% in the period with gross margins holding steady at 62.2%. 

While Sosandar recorded a loss before tax of £1.1m, it said it reflected the second-half weighting of profits as well as the impact of its stores and the M&S cyber incident. 

The company ended the period with net cash of £7.7m, up from £7.3m at 31 March. It reiterated that trading remains on track to meet its forecasts for the year to 31 March 2026, which stand at revenue of £43.6m and profit before tax of £0.4m.

Sosandar said own-site growth was supported by higher web traffic, better conversion and increased order volumes from both new and existing customers. It remained one of the strongest performers across its third-party partners, including Next and entered the Autumn and Winter season with what it described as positive momentum. Its licensed homeware range with Next, launched in September, delivered an initial performance in line with expectations.

The company said its physical stores continued to weigh on profit while they mature, though branches in Chelmsford and Marlow were performing well after just over a year of trading and were on track to reach breakeven in their second year.

In October and November trading was described as strong, with continued year-on-year growth on Sosandar.com. Activity through M&S resumed following the retailer’s cyber incident, and the two companies were working together to scale stock intake. The business reported a step-up in gross margin to 67.2% for the period, compared with 64.6% last year, and an improved cash position of £9.5m as at 22 November.

The company said it had completed a capital reduction in October and had so far bought back five million shares, which are being held in treasury.

Ali Hall and Julie Lavingston, co-chief executives of Sosandar, said: “We are really pleased with how the business has performed over the past six months. During this period, we delivered a return to revenue growth, supported by strong momentum through our own website which remains a key driver of both sales and customer engagement, alongside a resilient gross margin.

“Looking forward, the foundations have been laid for sustainable, profitable, cash generative growth.”