Women's fashion designer and producer Slimma Plc on Tuesday reported a six per cent rise in pre-full-year tax profit to £1.5 million from £1.4m in the year-ago period on the back of a 19 per cent climb in sales to £31.3m.

The company said in a statement all of its divisions were profitable in the 12 months to September 27 and its recent Frank Usher acquisition is making significant contributions to the group's overall profitability.

It added more than 90 per cent of its fashions are now sourced offshore and it will continue with that trend over the next couple of years as it looks to take advantage of the phasing out of textile quotas by 2005.

Chairman Alan Webb said he sees a challenging year ahead for the high street but "with the strong relationships we have in place with our customers, we believe we can deal with any challenges that arise, as well as taking any new opportunities that are available within the market place".