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US retail chain Urban Outfitters, seen by some as ’the new Gap’, is

looking to expand in the UK after the runaway success of its first

London store. Sites are being considered in Leeds, Manchester and

Dublin, as well as London’s Camden, Soho and Covent Garden.

A spokesman for Urban Outfitters says: ’We’ve looked at sites right

around the UK, all the major cities - this isn’t the end of it.’

Over Christmas, the London store, in High Street Kensington, generated

the highest sales of any outlet in its global chain.

Urban Outfitters is aimed at a category it describes as ’upscale

homeless’ people between 18 and 30, who have left their parents’ home,

but have yet to settle down with a partner and mortgage.

Clothing forms the heart of the business, ranging from designer to

vintage, but it also offers accessories and home furnishings.

The London store was launched last June with fly-posting and PR through

PR agency Red Rooster.

In the US, the chain, founded in 1970, has 30 stores concentrated on the

east and west coasts.