Gerard McGurk, senior vice-president for general goods merchandising, said the move was part of Robinson's plan to increase the sales proportion of its house-brand products to 10% of total sales in the near future, up from 6.5% last year.

"The purchasing of fashion products ranging from bags and leather goods to men and women's fashion products and accessories grew by 10% in the first five months of the year, higher than the whole year projection of 6%," he said.

The higher-than-expected growth of fashion products reflected the company's co-development of fashion products with suppliers that were introduced at Robinson two months before being supplied to other retailers.

Robinson's house-brand fashion products offered good value at cheap prices, he said. More product lines would be introduced throughout the year.

The company hired George Ermis Maroulis - a veteran fashion designer with more than two decades of experience in Australia, the US and Asia - to design apparel under the Viva Candy brand exclusively for Robinson. Mr Maroulis previously designed for international brands such as Banana Republic and The Gap. He also worked for Macy's department store in the US.

Viva Candy is Robinson's 31st fashion label. It targets teenagers and working women, with items from 890 to 1,590 baht. Competing brands usually charge 2,000 baht for similar items, he said.

The company also plans to add the "I am a man" house-brand to expand its male customer base.

Sales of Robinson in the first quarter grew by 8%. The company said the sales momentum continued through May despite the country's political uncertainties.

The performance of some of some Bangkok stores, including the Sukhumvit and Bang Rak branches, was only slightly affected by the unrest. Falling sales were offset by some upcountry branches such as Jungceylon in Phuket, which grew by 43%, and Hat Yai, up 23%.

ROBINS shares closed on the SET at 13.80 baht, down 10 satang, in trade worth 9.92 million baht.