ASOS
ASOS is a British online fashion and beauty retailer founded in London in 2000. It sells its own ASOS label alongside hundreds of third-party brands and ships to customers worldwide.
| Founded | 2000, London |
|---|---|
| Original name | AsSeenOnScreen |
| Headquarters | Camden Town, London |
| Listing | London Stock Exchange |
| Brands owned | Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge |
| Website | asos.com |
What is ASOS?
ASOS is a London-based online retailer of fashion and cosmetics, headquartered in Camden Town with further offices in Berlin and Birmingham. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and the Danish group Bestseller is its largest shareholder.
History
The company was founded on 3 June 2000 by Nick Robertson, Quentin Griffiths, Andrew Regan and Deborah Thorpe under the name AsSeenOnScreen, selling items seen on film and television. It joined AIM in 2001 and was renamed ASOS plc in 2003. An own label for womenswear followed in 2004. In 2021 ASOS acquired the Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT brands from Arcadia Group.
Products and positioning
ASOS combines its own-label clothing and accessories with more than 850 third-party brands. It also operates a marketplace on which boutiques, vintage sellers and independent designers sell directly to customers.
Distribution
Sales are online only. ASOS ships to customers worldwide from fulfilment centres in the UK, the United States and Europe, and has run country-specific sites for markets such as Germany, France, the United States and Australia.
Why it matters
ASOS is one of the defining pure-play online fashion retailers of its generation, and its blend of own label, third-party brands and marketplace has been widely studied in fashion e-commerce.
Frequently asked questions
Who founded ASOS?
ASOS was founded in 2000 by Nick Robertson, Quentin Griffiths, Andrew Regan and Deborah Thorpe.
What does ASOS stand for?
ASOS originally stood for AsSeenOnScreen, the company's name when it launched in 2000.
