Glasgow-based clothing retailer nets record revenues and eyes US market

Oh Polly chief executive and co-founder Claire Henderson. Picture: contributed.

A Glasgow-based womenswear retailer whose offering includes “bodycon” dresses has reported record revenues as it looks to grow sales by 140 per cent in its current financial year.

Oh Polly, which launched in September 2015, has flagged revenues of £15.6 million in 2018, and it said its rapid growth has put it on target to see turnover exceed £21m by the close of this financial year.

That represents a year-on-year jump of 140 per cent from 2017/18, and compared to £5.3m in 2016/17 and £2.1m in 2015/16. Pre-tax earnings are on track to more than double to exceed £3m.

The firm, founded by Mike Branney and Claire Henderson, said that “despite recent reports of stagnation in the retail industry and underperformance by some of the biggest online players such as Asos and Boohoo”, it has “exceeded expectations on a number of fronts during its three years of trading”.

Oh Polly added that in 2018 alone, it more than doubled the number of UK employees and is aiming to grow headcount to more than 140 across Glasgow and Liverpool by the end of 2019.

It also aims to grow US revenues over the next 12 to 15 months, with continued investment in its production facilities, talent acquisition and digital infrastructure – and it has been harnessing social media with an “Instagram-focused” sales strategy.

Chief executive Henderson said: “Oh Polly has gone from strength to strength over the past year, growing our market share both in the UK and overseas. With around 20 per cent of our revenue now coming from the US, we’ve got a huge opportunity to expand our sales in this lucrative market. With that success will come new jobs and investment, both within our UK operations and throughout our supply chain.”