Global online fashion retailer ASOS has revealed a growth in group revenue of 43 per cent over the last year for its third quarter.

The company has revealed total group sales revenue rose to £193,199,000 during its third quarter, concluding on 31 May.

Total UK retail sales grew by 39 per cent during that period to £64,347,000 while US retail sales were £21,255,000, an increase of 59 per cent, leading to an overall growth in retail sales of 45 per cent at £193,613,000.

During the same period the company also opened a dedicated Russian website on 1 May and saw its overall active customers grow to reach 6.5m, with 23,2m unique visitors a month and 12.1m registered users.

Nick Robertson, CEO, added that the company continued to see stronger growth in countries with dedicated websites, notably the United States, France, Germany and Australia and that it anticipated “a small improvement” for the year as a whole.

Meanwhile, Stewart Baxter, director of Mesh Marketing, said that strong results were "a testament to ASOS's continued masterclass in e-tailing."

He added: "ASOS was one of the first to grasp that online fashion retail is not just about convenience, or even good value, it’s also about creating an entertaining and intuitive experience that enables people to enjoy shopping online, via quality images, sharp editorial and the sheer vastness of items on offer.

“ASOS has set the bar when it comes to what we expect from online shopping. It was the first retailer to curate shopping looks from summer wedding outfits to festival fashion and promote them across social media - and now everyone’s at it.

“For now, ASOS is still leading the pack in discovery shopping, combining the massive power of social media and celebrity trends to inspire its fashion fans and draw attention to its lines.

"But with rival brands playing catch up, the challenge for ASOS now is to keep ahead of the pack, set the pace and continue to exercise creativity. Fortunately ASOS has already realised that, just like its customers, in the e-tail market it needs to set trends rather than follow them."

Sainsbury’s has announced a total sales growth of 3.6 per cent while also revealing that its Taste the Difference range had reached £1bn of sales.

The supermarket has released figures from its first quarter trading statement, also claiming that its market share had grown by 0.2 per cent to reach 16.8 per cent, while it saw like-for-like sales rise by 0.7 per cent during the first quarter.

Sainsbury’s chief executive Justin King described the performance as “solid” and said that following the supermarket chain’s own-brand re-launch completion, sales had grown by nearly seven per cent, with its Little Ones nappies relaunch co-ininciding with the withdrawal of Huggies from the UK had also proven a success.

Meanwhile, Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference range had also grown by sales by over 10 per cent to over £1bn in sales he revealed.

“Our strategy of focusing on general merchandise categories which are complementary to our great food offer is helping us gain market share. Non-food continues to grow at over twice the rate of food. We have seen particularly strong sales in homeware, with kitchen electricals growing at over 34 per cent year-on-year and cookware growing at nearly 23 per cent year-on-year,” King continued.

“Convenience remains a strong driver for growth, with sales up nearly 20 per cent year-on-year, underpinned by strong life-for-like sales. Our groceries online business is growing at over 16 per cent year-on-year.”

19 convenience stores have now been opened with a further 13 refurbished and another two expected to be opened for each week this year. Alongside that, the company has also opened one new supermarket and refurbished a further six.

King also highlighted the supermarkets commitment to its ‘Live Well for Less’ promise and competitive pricing and targeted promotions through both Nectar and coupon-at-till.

The Spectator has launched its online archive which will contain every article from the magazine’s 180 year history.

The archive, delayed by over a year, includes the magazine’s first leader from 1828 and has been divided into decades and years in a bid to make it more accessible to readers.

Writing in a blog on The Spectator website about the launch of the archive, online editor Sebastain Payne wrote: “Digitising 1.5 million pages has been no easy feat and it remains a work in progress — we’re aware there are still a few gaps in the beta archive. “

Payne added that, of course, the content from the last five years could also still be found on the publications regular website as well.

Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) has joined forces with Tesco this summer to encourage customers to recycle more at home, as well as educate them on how to reduce their carbon footprint.

From today (Wednesday 12 June) the ‘Together We’re Making Recycling Count’ campaign will invite Tesco Clubcard holders to ‘pledge’ to recycle. In return for their commitment customers will be rewarded with a 50p off voucher for Coca-Cola, Diet Coke or Coke Zero, or an additional 25 Tesco Clubcard points.

“This campaign demonstrates our commitment to reducing both our own carbon footprint and helping our consumers do the same. We all know that recycling our household waste counts, but this campaign allows both us and our retail partner, Tesco, to really make that genuinely tangible for shoppers,” said Julian Hunt, VP public affairs and communications GB, Coca-Cola Enterprises.

A jointly developed website will ask customers to complete three multiple choice questions prior to their pledge with a live feed totting up the number of pledges received during the initial six-week long initiative.

On top of counting the pledges the website will also calculate the equivalent tonnage volume of waste recycling allowing visitors to see how much of a difference they are making.

Eight weeks after the campaign has finished CCE and Tesco will follow up with pledgers to remind them of their promise and offer them the chance to enter a prize draw with the chance to win one of five £300 eco-fridges with Tesco vouchers for food or one of 12,000 exclusive Coke fridge magnets made from recycled PET bottles.

Hunt added: “Working closely with Tesco has allowed us to develop jointly a campaign that uses effective online communications to reach as wide an audience as possible and the pledge mechanic ensures that we are helping consumers understand exactly what they need to do to play their role. We know that consumers often positively change behaviour, but they need both education and encouragement and this joint campaign is set to do this across the whole of summer 2013.”

Stella Artois Cidre has unveiled an out-of-home campaign with Posterscope, which will see digital ads for the apple and pear cider brand appear based on real-time weather.

The campaign, which shows boxes of handpicked apples, sees bespoke scheduling service Liveposter automatically turn ad spots on and off based on the results of a real-time weather data plug-in; meaning a two-degree increase in temperature above the national average will see the cider ad displayed in that location.

Andy Logan, marketing manager for Stella Artois Cidre said: “This summer, Stella Artois Cidre, the most sophisticated cider brand will deliver the most sophisticated summer of refreshment, right on cue when the temperature rises.

“This innovative media mechanic is yet another way we are pushing the boundaries through digital technologies to be relevant to our consumers, at just the right time.”

Ads will not appear in in locations registering lower temperatures or where it is raining.

ITV is offering users of its ITV Player app for Apple devices the chance to pay a subscription fee that will allow them to watch catch up content without ads.

The new version of the app comes under ITV’s ongoing strategy to test new business models in the online arena. James Micklethwait, online product director for ITV, described the move as part of “ITV’s ongoing Transformation Plan” which aims to “drive new revenue streams by exploiting our content across multiple platforms”.

The new ITV Player app introduces a premium upgrade, costing £3.99, which will enable viewers to watch the last 30 days of ITV content across ITV, ITV2, ITV3, ITV4 and CITV without advertising. Live simulcasts of ITV3 and ITV4 will also be available through both 3G and Wi-Fi.

ITV Player’s free catch up content with ads and live simulcast of ITV and ITV2 will remain on the app at no cost. When users update the app on their Apple device they will be given the option of whether or not to subscribe to the premium package.

Steven Power, product manager for ITV Player on mobile, added: “As ITV Player on mobile devices continues to grow – over seven million downloads on iOS to date – it is important we deliver innovative business models and adapt the product to the evolving market. I’m genuinely excited that we’re the first commercial broadcaster to offer viewers the choice to watch content with or without advertising.”

Up to 40 editorial roles are to be created at the Daily Express, Sunday Express, Daily Star and Daily Star Sunday websites as the newspaper group makes a shift toward digital.

It's understood most of the roles will be filled by moving existing print staff but may result in some new hirings.

Express titles have struggled to assert position in the online boom and the news signals a change of direction.

Other titles, such as the Financial Times, have made shifts away from print in recent months, resulting in concerns over job cuts rather than job creation.

BMW has become the first brand to partner with Telegraph Media Group (TMG) and Condé Nast’s Wired on its new tech-focused content platform.

The car marque is running a three-month campaign on the platform, which combines top trending technology stories from both publications, to promote its 13 Concept Coupé model.

The aim of the campaign is to raise awareness of electric vehicles in the UK and ensure that BMW’s electric vehicle programme is well understood by its target audience.

A BMW spokesperson said the campaign marks a “true partnership” between three brands with content and distribution “working seamlessly” between all three parties.

“By pulling innovative content from WIRED and taking it to a broader audience via the Telegraph platform we are able to create exactly the right environment for our BMW i content to live in and to engage our target audience. It parallels perfectly with the overall approach to BMW, bringing the next level in automotive innovation to the broad premium audience,” they said.

The campaign is aimed at “bridging the knowledge gap” that exists around electric vehicles in the UK, according to the spokesperson.

“There is an appetite for technology content out there and so we have structured this partnership to bridge this gap and generate engagement and interest in the BMW electric mobility programme,” they added.

The tech hub will feature stories based on their search and social popularity and will feature insight and predictions from experts including The Telegraph's consumer technology editor Matt Warman, contributing editor for Pocket-lint.com Hunter Skipworth, TechRadar’s news editor Kate Solomon, and Peter Cochrane, futurist and long-term entrepreneur.

The campaign will also run across The Telegraph’s and Wired.co.uk’s print, online and mobile platforms. The Daily Telegraph will also publish half-page, bi-weekly features as part of its Saturday technology pages.

Matt Warman, consumer technology editor of The Telegraph, said: “The volume of technology content published daily is staggering, most of which are rumours. This new platform enables us to provide a filtered view of only the important technology news stories of the day supported with expert opinion on the implications for the every-day consumer.”

The partnership was brokered by Aegis Media’s Vizeum.

Ever been out with your mates to the pub and devised what has to be a multimillion pound generating Get Rich Quick scheme, only to wake up the next morning having completely forgotten about it? Yeah, of course you have. Well, The Drum and Foolproof have discovered why – it turns out it’s because you were drunk. As simple as that.

Sony has unveiled its latest offering Xperia Access, providing interview content and live performances as well as a behind-the-scenes look at the music industry.

Xperia Access aims to explore the music world and those who work within it and is housed on Sony’s smartphone Facebook profile. All of the Xperia Access content is hosted on Vevo allowing Xperia owners and music fans to enjoy access to intimate gigs, experiences and festivals throughout the summer.

“This summer we wanted to celebrate that with Xperia Access - a backstage pass into the world of entertainment that only Sony could deliver. Being able to work with other parts of Sony to produce truly unique content is what sets us apart from our competitors, and we’re really looking forward to creating a summer of exclusive experiences,” commented Catherine Cherry, Sony Mobile Communications marketing director, North West Europe.

Sony Music artist Rita Ora kicks off the campaign with a live set for Xperia competition winners. Staying true to the ethos of Xperia Access the gig takes place at Sony Music’s Derry Street headquarters, giving music fans the chance to get up close and personal with the best music Sony has to offer.

Nick Gatfield, chairman of Sony Music Entertainment UK, added: “Xperia Access is a great way for us to showcase the brilliant new artists we’ve been signing and developing over the last 12 months and also provide fans with a rare insight into the creativity that goes on behind the scenes with interviews with stylists, producers, designers and many others. It’s very exciting to be creating this unique platform, which allows consumers to access exclusive Sony content on their smartphones.”

The ISBA has hit out at campaign group Alcohol Concern after its latest report – Stick to the Facts – called for a ban on alcohol advertising at music and sporting events to protect young people from such promotional messages.

Ian Twinn, ISBA’s director of public affairs, labelled the report “a seriously flawed work of fiction”.

Twinn commented: “It is another attempt by an anti-alcohol lobbying group to impose further restrictions on an industry that is already subject to strict self-regulatory rules and is an industry with an extremely high rate of compliance.”

Alcohol Concern has claimed that young people are facing “excessive” exposure to alcohol brands claiming that current regulations for alcohol advertising are not effective.

In response to these claims Twinn said: “The truth is that self-regulation is working; the UK features some of the toughest advertising rules in Europe with rules which already ban alcohol adverts during programmes where there is a likelihood of a high proportion of children tuning in.”

Recent Department of Health figures show that fewer young people are drinking, leading Twinn to question the Alcohol Concern to “explain how underage drinking is declining in this country, where we have alcohol advertising, yet in France, where it has been banned, it is going up?"

He concluded that the investment made by alcohol brands is not evidence of their influence over children, adding: “Why would advertisers want to waste money marketing to a demographic which can’t legally buy their product. What the advertisers are doing is trying to influence adults, not young people, to drink their brand, and they do this sensibly and responsibly.”

Car rental group Enterprise Holdings has seen mobile cost-per-clicks (CPCs) double since the rollout of Google’s Enhanced Campaigns.

The launch of Enhanced Campaigns this February, marks Google’s biggest ever overhaul of AdWords aimed at simplifying the running of multi-device campaigns for marketers, while letting them adjust bids for ads according to device type, location and time of day.

Enterprise Holdings, parent company to car hire brands including Alamo, tackled its migration early to ensure it had transitioned its 22 sites in time for the peak summer season.

It saw mobile CPCs on exact-match brand term for Alamo double as a direct result, according to online marketing director for EMEA Stefano Biondi.

“That happened because we were forced to target all operating systems on mobile devices. In the past we didn’t have a responsive-design site we had a mobile-specific one so we didn’t target Blackberry devices for example because of the screen size, but we did target Apple devices, so we bid different amounts for different operating systems and devices.

“But with EC we are forced to bid the same across everything, and that caused our brand CPCs to rise and conversions drop as we were suddenly appearing on Blackberry devices and ones that, in an ideal world, we wouldn’t want to be appearing on,” he said.

The group launched its first responsive-design site a fortnight ago, which means it now has a consistently good user experience across all operating systems on all mobile handsets, although it is still expecting the majority of its traffic and conversions to come through iOS devices.

If the responsive design site helps improve conversion rates in time, that could help counteract the inflated CPCs, according to Biondi.

“One of our main variables has changed and that is the responsive design site so if that starts helping drive more traffic and conversions then maybe we won’t mind so much about the rise in CPCs. So if Google doing this makes people think they must create responsive design or mobile sites I guess ultimately it’s a good thing, but it will be a challenge to get there in the meantime,” he said.

Biondi expects mobile CPCs to continue to rise as more campaigns migrate over to the new format in the next month, particularly for more competitive key terms.

“As more advertisers flip over to EC they will be forced to enter auctions for mobile, which they may not have been in before. They can set up modifiers and adjust accordingly but we are going to see more competition in mobile now and that will push up CPCs. Ma be we were having a good time of it before and this will be the new norm,” he said.

Google has set 22 July as the cut-off for campaign migration, after which any remaining campaigns that have not yet moved to Enhanced Campaigns will be switched over automatically.

For more on the effects of Google's Enhanced Campaigns rollout see the Drum's forthcoming print search supplement, released 21 June.

The Independent is to partner with Microsoft’s Bing to bring the paper’s latest news to the UK Bing News app for Windows 8.

The Independent joins six other UK publishers on the app including the likes of the Guardian, The Times and Sky News. The deal sees all original content from The Independent’s team of journalists accessible to Windows 8 users with just one tap of the Start screen.

As with all featured publishers, readers will have access to the entire newspaper from within the app, including the opinion section ‘Independent Voices’. Selected content from The Independent will also be drawn into ‘Bing Daily’ – a round-up of the biggest news stories each day from each publisher.

Head of licensing and syndication for The Independent, Michael Pocock, said the deal was “testament to The Independent’s ongoing commitment to digital innovation and growth”.

MiNetwork, the network for ambitious agency owners, has joined forces with highly respected business advisor Martin Palethorpe of The Pragma Group to host a webinar in June aimed at giving agency owners and managers some new tools and techniques to help them to build a brilliant marketing agency business.

Palethorpe has a deep-rooted passion for advising and challenging leaders to develop themselves and their organisations to maximise long-term performance. Through his partnership and work with Results International and accountancy firm The Wow Company, he has substantial experience working with the owners of marketing agency businesses and the challenges that they face in growing and moving to the next level in their development.

One of his key areas of expertise is how to manage people effectively and the webinar will include strategies on how agency owners can develop the most healthy and successful organisations by focusing on building the loyalty, productivity and creativity of your key people.

The webinar takes place at 3pm on Monday 24th June and will also include advice and guidance on the following areas:

• A framework for developing a healthy successful company
• The importance of a cohesive quality leadership team
• Developing a clear inspired direction
• Communicating and involving your people
• The basics of managing
• Aligning your people systems

The webinar package is priced at just t £45 + VAT and includes:
• The 60-minute live webinar
• Access to the recorded webinar & slide deck
• A 30-min telephone consultation with Martin to discuss challenges in your agency

To buy your ticket click here.

The webinar is FREE for MiNetwork members to attend. Please contact Richard Draycott for the link.

McDonald’s has today unveiled a campaign to promote its two flavours of iced fruit smoothie: strawberry and banana, and mango and pineapple.

The campaign will run on TV, in cinema and in store; with the TV ad to break tonight during ITV’s Coronation Street and run until 17th July, complemented by special five-second ‘teaser’ spots and idents on Channel 5 in July before shows such as Neighbours.

The campaign will be backed up by digital elements from Razorfish, including users of the McDonald’s app being given the chance to try a smoothie for free by ‘breaking the ice’ on the screen. Some users will discover a digital voucher beneath the ice, which can be redeemed in store, while others will gain access to themed videos and interactive games.

The ‘icebreaking machine’ game on the McDonalds website also offers winners tickets to the Key 103 Live and Metroradio Live music festivals.

Glacéau vitaminwater is unveiling a new summer campaign, offering emerging talent in the worlds of fashion, music, design and media the chance to work with a mentor.

The #shinebright campaign will see names such as fashion blogger Susie Lau, streetware label Trapstar founder Mikey Trapstar and architect /designer Jenny Grettve become mentors.

The integrated campaign is set to include PR, media partnerships, sampling, social media, social advertising and OOH, and looks to promote the nurturing creativity and talent.

A campaign hub is set to go live next week, to allow people to find out more about the creative challenges set by each of the six mentors.

The six #shinebright opportunities are open until Friday 16 August.

Bridal, formalwear and special occasion retailer David’s Bridal has selected Halpern and Golley Slater London to assist with its launch into the UK market.

Halpern has been briefed with implementing the strategic UK consumer and trade PR campaign for the brand centred on its grand opening. The agency is to also develop a strategic campaign cementing the brand into the UK retail market.

Of the Halpern appointment, David’s Bridal VP of public relations Charly Rok commented: “David’s Bridal is delighted to be working with Halpern…We are looking forward to launching and developing the brand PR campaign with them.”

David’s Bridal has appointed Golley Slater London to take responsibility for digital strategy and web design, on and off line advertising, point of sale and the CRM strategy. Golley Slater London’s media business will also handle buying on and off line media to support the launch and ongoing marketing activity.

Brian Beitler, EVP, chief-marketing officer for David’s Bridal added: “We really engaged with the complete multi-channel solution that Golley Slater offered us. They understood how we had differentiated ourselves in the US marketplace and demonstrated that they are ideally placed to support us as we move our brand into the UK. They also showed strong understanding of the retail space, both on and off line and offered us an integrated media solution. We are looking forward to working together.”

McCann Erickson has announced the appointment of Suzanne Powers as EVP chief strategy officer, joining from her role as global strategy officer at Crispin Porter + Bogusky.

Powers succeeds Daryl Lee, who was promoted to global CEO of UM, McCann Worldgroup’s global media agency partner.

She said: “McCann is a great brand, and I am excited to be part of writing the next chapter. Truth Well Told is not only a ‘mantra,’ it’s an organizing principle for how to approach solving brand challenges in a modern world, across the agency culture and the global brands. The strategic group is incredibly strong, and I’m looking forward to working with them.”

Harris Diamond, chairman and CEO for McCann Worldgroup, added: “Suzanne has the energy, passion and skills to lead our incredibly talented group of strategic executives. She brings us a unique perspective on how to build global insights and ideas across our brands, geographies and culture.”

The Famous Grouse is this week unveiling a new campaign promoting the ‘famous British summer’, with a new TV ad and microsite.

The campaign will also feature on-pack offering consumers the chance to win a leisure break, and on Facebook through a custom-made ‘Famous Summer’ app fans will be asked to share stories about summer days out to be in with a chance of winning prizes including picnic kits, umbrellas, branded Wellington red boots and tickets to days out.

Peter Sandstrom, marketing director Maxxium UK, commented: “As a nation embracing the staycation – it’s the perfect time to celebrate summertime in the UK, whatever the weather, with the UK’s favourite whisky.

“What better way to do this than with an inherently British promotional campaign, which as well as supporting our core range, is also timed to coincide with limited edition packs?”

The six-figure campaign is also set to include limited edition packaging, a new summer cocktail menu and bespoke display units showcasing the limited edition packaging.

Bauer Media UK is to promote and broadcast Robbie Williams ‘Take the Crown’ stadium tour across its Place Portfolio of stations this summer.

The deal sees Bauer Media UK broadcasting backstage from Williams' Etihad Stadium show in Manchester on Wednesday 19 June before airing a two hour special on Thursday 20 June that will include an interview with the man himself and an hour of selected live tracks from the show.

Robbie:In Demand will air across 16 Place stations in England and Scotland on 20 June, including Key 103, Metro FM, Clyde 1 and Radio City.

“Robbie is a legend in the UK music industry with over 70 million worldwide sales, and so we are pleased to be able to offer our listeners access to such exclusive, brilliant content across the multiple platforms of our Place Portfolio,” said Owen Ryan, group programming director, Bauer Media Place Portfolio.

As well as the two special shows next week each Place station’s breakfast show will be running a competition offering listeners the chance to attend the 19 June Manchester show. The competition runs from today (Wednesday 12 June) in Scotland and from Friday (14 June) in England.

English In:Demand and Boogies Big Saturday Show in Scotland will also be offering a meet and greet pass to the show, including VIP backstage access, travel and accommodation. Both Scottish and English winners will get to meet Williams on 19 June.

Phil Witts, head of regional radio for Island, added: “We are delighted to be working with Bauer Media on such an exciting project. Robbie is the ultimate showman and always puts on a brilliant performance. We wish all the competition entrants the very best, the winners are in for a fantastic show.”