The German online retailer Zalando is to expand into Ireland and the Czech Republic  this summer, the first new markets targeted in five years. The openings will give the fashion retailer access to a extra combined population of 15.4 million and take the number of markets it serves from 15 to 17. Zalando is the largest online fashion retailer in Europe, ahead of competitors such as Amazon and Asos. The company claims it is using the usual Zalando method: "launch, learn, iterate, and scale." Founded in 2008, Zalando sells close to 2000 brands, has 23.9m active customers, and full-year sales of €4.49bn. It is on course to increase sales by 25% this year.