Founded by Johnnie Boden in 1991, Boden is a British clothing retailer selling primarily online and by mail order and catalogue.
Initially launched as a menswear retailer, Boden’s offer now includes womenswear (introduced in 1992), childrenswear (introduced in 1996), Baby Boden (introduced in 2007) and 'Johnnie b' Teenswear (introduced in 2010. Boden's UK website was launched in 1999, and trades in over 60 countries worldwide including the USA, Germany and Australia.
Boden made the move into bricks-and-mortar retailing with the opening of its debut flagship store on London’s King’s Road in November 2017. There is also another store at Hanger Green in west London, and in the first half of 2018 Boden opened its first shopping centre store at Westfield White City. Boden has further strengthened its physical presence in the UK through a partnership with John Lewis that sees an edited collection of its womenswear and Mini styles available through several stores.
Boden’s improved visibility led to a 14% rise in first-time customers during 2017. The year to 31 December 2017 saw Boden record a 13% rise in group sales to £347.1m, up from £308.3m in 2016, and pre-tax profits of £27m, an increase of £1m from 2016. The brand said the increase in revenues was driven by more customers and a rise in average spend per existing customer.
Initial results for 2018 show that sales have continued to rise – they were up 12% for the first half of the year - and with plans to continue expanding its physical presence, Boden is definitely one to watch.
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