Luxury brand fashion retailer Ted Baker plans to open concessions via department stores in the United States, Portugal and Spain during the first half of the financial year. The labels strength and success despite the squeeze on spending most individuals experienced led them to have enough confidence to embark on this new business venture. In the second half of 2011, Ted Baker also plans to open a 3,000 square foot outlet in Beijing.

The brand, which connects the high street with luxury items, experienced great financial success in the last year and was able to increase its dividend by more than 20%. In fact, its pretax profits went from £19.5 million to £24.2 million, and the total payout per share for the year was 20.6p.

Founder and Chief Executive of Ted Baker Ray Kelvin said in an interview with the Financial Times, “Some people say brave, we think not. We’re doing it with a partner”. He went on to say, “We’re not a true retailer, we’re a brand. We have wholesale, licensing and retail. All our products are contracted a year in advance. We’re not a very quick response business. So we can factor in any price differences”.

Ted Baker is most famous for its shirts and suits, but it also produces accessories, shoes, lingerie and swimwear.