Asos Confirms Founder Robertson Has Quit

The founder of online fashion retailer Asos has confirmed he is stepping down as chief executive with immediate effect.

News of Nick Robertson's departure, as reported by Sky News on Tuesday evening , was announced to the Stock Exchange in a statement on Wednesday.

It marked 15 years since he launched the company that went on to become one of the UK's most successful internet start-ups.

Asos said he would remain on the board as a non-executive director and chief operating officer Nick Beighton had succeeded him in the top job.

However, the news was not greeted particularly warmly by investors, with the company's share price losing 5% of its value in early trading.

Chairman Brian McBride said in a statement: "On behalf of everyone who works at Asos, I'd like to acknowledge Nick Robertson's extraordinary achievement.

"His passion and vision have built a start-up into a world class company.

"We are all delighted that Nick will continue to contribute to the company that he started.

"We are fortunate to have such an able successor for the CEO role in Nick Beighton.

"Nick has unique experience of the company built over six years, equipping him to drive Asos along its growth trajectory to become the world's leading online fashion retailer for 20 - somethings."

The departure of Mr Robertson, who holds a stake in the company worth hundreds of millions of pounds, will be a symbolically important moment for Asos, which launched in 2000 and now claims to be the second-most-visited fashion website in the world.

The company began life under the name As Seen On Screen, bringing cheaper imitations of celebrities' fashion choices to the mass market but evolving over time into a broader fashion retailer.

Its success ranks it among the most important online ventures established in the UK since the original dotcom boom, although the company has endured a difficult couple of years in which it has been hit by a string of profit warnings, slowing international sales and a fire at one of its warehouses in Yorkshire.