First Day of Dealings

RNS Number : 3232V

Sosandar PLC

02 November 2017

 

Sosandar plc

("Sosandar" or the "Company")

Admission to AIM and First Day of Dealings

Sosandar plc (AIM: SOS.L) (formerly known as Orogen plc), the online women's fashion retailer, announces its admission to trading on AIM ("Admission") today following the reverse takeover of Thread 35 Ltd ("Thread").

The number of ordinary shares in issue immediately after Admission will be 106,814,658 giving the Company a market capitalisation of approximately £16.1 million at the issue price of 15.1 pence per share. Dealings in the ordinary shares will commence at 8.00 a.m. today, 2 November 2017, under the TIDM of "SOS" and with the ISIN number GB00BDGS8G04.

About Sosandar

Sosandar launched in September 2016 and is the brainchild of former Look magazine editor Ali Hall and former Look and InStyle publishing director Julie Lavington. The Company is an online womenswear brand specifically targeted at a generation of women who have graduated from younger online and high street brands, and are looking for affordable clothing with a premium, trend-led aesthetic. This targeted market segment was estimated to be worth, for the year ended December 2016, £3.7 billion.

Based on previous experience within the UK fashion industry and their understanding of the target demographic, this is a segment of the market that the Company believes is currently under-served.

Thread achieved total gross sales for the 11 months ended 31 July 2017 of £847,000 and net sales (after returns) of £478,000.

Admission Highlights

·     Successfully raised £5.3 million (before expenses) via a placing of 35,099,338 new ordinary shares at an issue price of 15.1 pence per share

·     New monies to fund further expansion of its current product pipeline, raise brand awareness and to grow the enlarged group

Ali Hall Co-Founder and Joint CEO commented: "Sosandar has truly resonated with a new generation of fashion conscious women looking for chic, trend led, quality but affordable clothes.  The Sosandar team is very excited by the opportunities ahead."

Julie Lavington Co-Founder and Joint CEO added:  "Today's announcement coupled with this significant investment heralds a very exciting time for the brand.  Sosandar intends to expand its market share in the already large and successful, yet still growing online fashion market.  Investment will be used to further extend the product range and develop brand awareness amongst potential customers."

Adam Reynolds, Non-executive Director, said: "I am delighted that Orogen has found an attractive acquisition opportunity so quickly.  Sosandar is operating in a market that is showing growth and it has a highly motivated and experienced management team. With added balance sheet strength, I believe we will be able to accelerate this growth opportunity, benefiting all shareholders in the enlarged group."

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of EU Regulation 596/2014.

Enquiries

Sosandar plc
Julie Lavington / Ali Hall	c/o Walbrook PR
Cairn Financial Advisers LLP (Nominated Adviser)	[phone]
Sandy Jamieson/Liam Murray / Richard Nash
Turner Pope Investments (TPI) Limited (Broker)	[phone]
Ben Turner / James Pope
Walbrook PR	[phone]
Paul Cornelius / Nick Rome /Sam Allen	[e-mail]

About Sosandar

Sosandar is an online womenswear brand specifically targeted at a generation of women who have graduated from younger online and high street brands, and are looking for affordable clothing with a premium, trend-led aesthetic. Based on previous experience within the UK fashion industry and their understanding of the target demographic, this is a section of the market that the Company believes is currently being overlooked.

Sosandar was launched on 19 September 2016 following ten months of preparation that included building the management team, designing the initial Sosandar range, sourcing suitable suppliers, appointing a logistics provider and building the website. The Sosandar business model is built around using trend-led, in house designs that are sourced from a variety of global suppliers to cater for a growing market of fashion conscious women, while utilising an outsourced logistics provider that can support its planned growth over the coming years.

Sosandar's founders are Alison Hall and Julie Lavington, who have previously worked together at high street fashion and celebrity style magazine Look, as editor and publishing director respectively. They have a combined experience of over 35 years in the media and fashion industries, including in the design of fashion ranges for some of the UK's high street retailers, including Debenhams, Office, Oasis and JD Williams.

 

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