A few weeks ago, I has the pleasure of attending the ASOS Fall and Holiday preview at the Ames Hotel. The most shocking thing I learned from my afternoon with the brand’s PR reps, Austin & Kevin? It’s pronounced “A-sauce.” Once an acronym for “As Seen On Screen,” the name has always been a set of initials in my head: A-S-O-S. “Asos” sounds like some sort of frat boy term (and I probably don’t want to know what it would mean). Now, this is likely the least important take-away from the event, but it was big news to me.

Those who are less familiar with the online retailer will be more interested in some of the other details.

ASOS is a UK-based company that gained a cult-following stateside long before their official US launch last year. This might sound similar to another popular retailer from overseas, but there are a few distinguishing factors:

• Price: Although they offer selections from hundreds of designers and many price points, their own ASOS lines are always at the affordable end of the spectrum.
• Quality: “We want people to be surprised by the high quality they are getting for the money,” Austin told me (and I, for one, have always been pleasantly so).
• Free Shipping: The biggest advantage to having the US site.

With lines like the vintage-inspired ASOS Revive, frivolous and feminine ASOS Salon, mod classic ASOS White, and edgy, contemporary ASOS Black (a favorite of Gregor and I), there really is something to suit every fashion sense. The sheer volume of options also means this won’t be like that H&M dress you see 3 other girls wearing on any given Newbury Street stroll.

Among the pieces I perused, I saw lots of sheer mesh panels, cut-out details, tailoring with a twist, tribal prints, animal prints, prints of animals, textural elements, faux fur, leather and – for the holiday selections – a heavy dose of sequins and sparkle.

While I still have a couple of months before I can snag the holiday collection (like those amazing teal glitter booties), many of the fall pieces are already on the site. On my wishlist:

[All pieces available on or coming soon to ASOS]

I’m looking forward to adding one or two of these items to my Autumn wardrobe. Just don’t expect me to start calling it “Asos” anytime soon.