USC predicts £7m upward trend

USC, the fast-growing Scottish fashion retailer, is projecting turnover for the current year of £100m and profit of up to £7m. Angus Morrison, the company's co-founder, said USC's core customers - 15- to 24-year-olds - are expected to grow in numbers by about 6% up until 2006.

"There is huge potential for growth," said Morrison. "Around 61m pairs of jeans were sold in the UK last year," as was quoted in the Sunday Times. Brands on USC's rails include Burberry, Lacoste, Henri Lloyd, Diesel, DKNY, FCUK and Firetrap.

Morrison and David Douglas set up USC, formerly known as United Sports Corporation, in 1989 and quickly spotted what they considered a gap in the market for "fusion fashion". Morrison had been a sportswear retailer in Edinburgh's Waverley market and Douglas, a fashion agent, had been operating a shop in Falkirk.

USC started as one shop in Edinburgh and by the end of this year it will have 40 outlets across Britain, including flagship stores in Glasgow's Buchanan Street and Edinburgh's Princes Street. It now employs 1,200 staff.