Joe Browns celebrates as sales rise again, adds to team

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Aug 30, 2018

Joe Browns continues to go from strength to strength and on Thursday reported an impressive 25% rise in sales for the first two months of its new financial year.

The increase marks an acceleration of the 12% turnover growth it recorded for the 12 months up until June. And the company said part of the growth has been due to strength in its wholesale operation which “has grown particularly well”.  In fact, wholesale rose by 40% in the first two months of year.

But the turnover increase has also been fuelled by the successful addition of the company’s first retail store, which opened in Meadowhall Shopping Centre in Sheffield last November.

The company is targeting more fast growth and is adjusting its product offer and team to be able to handle this. It also said Thursday that it’s expanding its product ranges in addition to appointing six new members of staff at senior level. And it has looked to a number of other successful brands to find these senior staff members, as well as promoting from within its existing team.

Andrew Thomson, who was formerly Brand Director EMEA at Original Penguin, has been appointed as Joe Browns’ new Head of Wholesale, “tasked with spearheading UK and international growth as well as progressing Joe Browns’ menswear and licensing divisions.”

Fiona Brown, former Global Digital Marketing Manager at GHD, will join the team in early October as Head of E-Commerce, while new in-house positions have been created and filled for a Senior Analyst, Designer, Ladieswear Buyer and Retail Floor Manager.

And more new positions will be added in the current financial year with the firm investing in both the marketing and creative teams, it said. It’s also set to invest in warehouse capacity and has applied for planning permission for a second time as it looks to double its capacity to accommodate its expansion and increasing demand.

Founder and MD Simon Brown said: “As everyone knows it’s pretty tough out there. It’s never been more important to offer remarkable product and to do this we need some remarkable people.”