ASOS is one of our go-to sites for a fast and affordable fashion fix, but there's no denying that its abbreviated name can sometimes cause a few problems with pronunciation. Should it be "A-SOS", "AS-OSS" or "As Seen On Screen" like the good old days?
Well now the staff at ASOS HQ have solved the conundrum by explaining exactly how to say the brand name on their website.
ASOS have solved the conundrum of how to pronounce their name
A blurb on their site reads: "So you know us and love us at ASOS. But people often ask where our name comes from (usually straight after they ask us how to pronounce it – it's ACE-OSS, by the way)."
It turns out they're not the only retail giant whose name is commonly mispronounced – it appears we've been pronouncing Zara wrong too.
In the North Castilian dialect where Zara's headquarters are based, the high street store is pronounced phonetically as "dzah-dah".
Have you been mispronouncing Zara?
Apparently the Zs are said as a soft "th" sound and Rs are pronounced more like a D.
Who knew?
It's not only the way we pronounce Zara that's set to change, but the way we shop in their stores too.
Refinery 29 UK were taken on an access all areas of the brand's head office in Spain, where they explored the Logistics department, which exists to produce and test high-tech innovations for Zara's 2,100 stores.
Among the products in the planning stages are LCD displays for the shops and touch-screens in changing rooms so you can find the clothes you want in different sizes without having to go back out to get it yourself, or find a nearby sales assistant.
The brand are also planning to introduce self-checkout stations in a bid to reduce the queues in stores. They have already been installed in some of Zara's Spanish stores, so hopefully they'll be rolled out across the UK soon.
