Laura Ashley, a Welsh textile design company now controlled by the MUI Group of Malaysia showed an unprecedented growth in first half as its sales increased by 4.9 per cent in the first half of the year to Pounds 144 million, compared to Pounds 137.3 million during the same period on 2013. UK retail sales rose 3.8 per cent to Pounds 124.6 million. The company’s online sale increased by 6.1 per cent in the same period. Sean Anglim, Finance Director, said that the growth was evident across all new season ranges. It has plans to expand into the South American, Chinese and Indonesian markets. It opened two new stores in the first half of the year 2014 and closed down three, leaving it with 208 shops in the UK.
