Could Asos be the Amazon of fashion?

When Asos announced stellar festive season sales last week it left its British high street contemporaries in its shade. It may even be beating Amazon in the fashion stakes, and the company's growth shows no sign of slowing as it continues to attract the millennial customer who is no longer shopping in stores.

Asos, which stands for As Seen on Screen, was founded in North London in 2000 and has grown into a 5.9 billion pound company since it was floated in 2001. To give that number even greater value, Marks and Spencer is worth a considerable 1 billion pounds less.

Asos saw sales in the last quarter grow 30 percent with relevant product ranges, swift delivery services and a cool social media presence.

Amazon and Asos to compete on service

But Amazon fashion is thought to be moving into the Asos fashion space. Amazon, the internet giant that is home to shopping for anything, anywhere, any time, is trying a "try before you buy" scheme for its Prime Wardrobe service in the US. A similar service that Asos offers in the UK.

The feature allows customers to order three or more items without paying for them at checkout. Members have a week to decide which items they want to keep and return. Shoppers who keep 5 or more items are given a 20 per cent discount.

Of course the brands that offer 20 percent discount are not luxury or overlapping brands with Asos' portfolio, but largely Amazon's own. Asos could not offer a similar discount with its branded merchandise, although it does offer a 10 percent student discount.

Amazon is thought to roll out its service to the UK, which analysts see as a direct competitor to Asos.

But Asos isn't sitting still. It too has ambitious expansion plans, opening new distribution hubs across Europe, and successfully tapping into the boom in online and mobile shopping, and currently supplying 15.4 million customers in the UK and overseas ,

But to remain a retail darling, Asos needs innovation and armour to not let Amazon invade its fashion space. While many brands initially touted Amazon as not being a seriously player in the online fashion marketplace, the e-tailer behemoth has proved them wrong, with huge scores of data and funds at its disposal and launching successful, own private label collections.

Let's hope Asos will not only keep its cool, but also its marketshare.

Photo credit: Asos homepage