Online fashion giant Asos has hired womenswear brand Fenn Wright Manson’s interim merchandising director Maria Hollins as its new trading director.

She replaces former Asos commercial director Gwynn Milligan, who was wooed by Mohamed Al Fayed-owned private-sales site Cocosa, where she was appointed managing director in September.

Hollins has led Fenn Wright Manson’s merchandising department since January. Prior to this she led the same division at womenswear retailer Whistles.

She cut her teeth at Arcadia, where she spent 18 years, rising to merchandising director.

Asos is understood to be on the hunt for another senior management hire as it prepares for growth.

Hollins joins Asos as its UK business suffers a sales slowdown. Over the three months to September 30, domestic sales inched up 1% compared with a 15% surge in the first quarter, which boss Nick Robertson put down to hard-hit younger shoppers being driven back to the high street by promotions.

However, total retail sales rocketed 53% over the period driven by the etailer’s soaring international sales, which jumped 141%.

Robertson expects overseas business, which accounts for 58% of its sales, to grow to almost 90% of revenue in the next three years.

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