RETAILER’S NEW SPORTS VENTURE

MOUNTAIN Warehouse is launching a women’s sportswear brand called Zakti, said founder Mark Neale.

In a bid to cash in on the trend for sports and leisure wear

(pictured), the outdoor clothing and equipment retailer will sell 350 products, including gym, cycling and yoga wear, and plans to open dedicated stores selling the brand.

The first two stores in London, and a website, will open this weekend. Neale started the firm with a single store in 1997 and now has more than 220 branches in the UK, Poland and Germany.

It has just reported record sales of £59.3m and a 31pc increase in profits to £4.3m for the half year to the end of August.

The group, which employs more than 1,500, also announced it was launching direct sales into the Chinese market via internet retailer Alibaba.