MANCHESTER, United Kingdom — British online fashion retailer Boohoo reported a better-than-expected 49 percent jump in annual profit on Wednesday, bucking the trend in a tough market for clothing retailers as its affordable fashion chimed with consumers.

The group, which targets 16-30-year-olds with its Boohoo, Nasty Gal and PrettyLittleThing brands, reported a pre-tax profit of £76.3 million ($99 million), beating market expectations of £66.9 million, for its year to end-February. Revenue rose 48 percent to £856.9 million.

Shares in Boohoo, which recently hired John Lyttle from Primark to be its chief executive, have risen 40 percent over the last year, giving the group a market capitalisation of £2.5 billion.

Founded 14 years ago in Manchester, northern England, Boohoo has expanded rapidly, listing its shares in 2014 and buying the PrettyLittleThing and Nasty Gal brands in 2017. The firm is tapping in to younger consumers who shop on their mobile phones and share fashion tips via social media.

"I am very excited to have joined the Boohoo Group at this key stage of its growth, with the group's disruptive and proven business model having delivered yet another excellent set of financial and operational results," Lyttle said.

Boohoo said trading in the first few weeks of its new year had been encouraging, and it expected revenue to grow 25 to 30 percent, with an adjusted core earnings margin of around 10 percent and capital expenditure of £50 million to £60 million.

By Paul Sandle; editor: Jason Neely.