Sosandar boosts portfolio with new stores

Clicks to bricks retailer Sosandar is underlining its commitment to physical retail with the signing of two new leases for its own stores. The fashion chain, launched by Ali Hall and Julie Lavington in 2016, has agreed to open new stores on James Street in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, and in the Southgate shopping area in Bath. Sosandar stores average around 1,500 sq ft. The retailer said both locations met its “strict criteria of top-tier, thriving locations, where Sosandar customers over-index”. The new store announcements come as Sosandar reports a decline in revenue from £14.3m to £12.2m in the three months ended 31 December. The decline comes as the group shifts away from price promotional activity. For the full year, the retailer said it expected turnover to reach £40.5m and to make a pre-tax profit of around £1m. Sosandar added that it had £8.2m of net cash that it would use to self-fund its planned store expansion. The retailer currently has four stores, which it said had all performed well during the period and had led to a “demonstrable uplift” in traffic to Sosandar.com in the locations where it had opened physical stores. In an interview with EG last year, founders Hall and Lavington said they had identified around 50 locations across the UK for physical stores.  “We are looking for main shopping streets with high footfall, not side streets,” Lavington told EG. “Our customers want convenience and a seamless shopping experience.”