New stores, fashions boost Ted Baker's profit

* Full-year pretax profit up 18.6 pct

* Company opened stores in Azerbaijan, Mexico, Qatar

* Initial reaction to spring/summer collections "positive"

* Raises total dividend to 47.8 pence (Adds finance director comments, details, share price)

By Aastha Agnihotri

March 17 (Reuters) - Ted Baker Plc (Other OTC: TBAKF - news) 's full-year profit rose by nearly a fifth due to strong demand for its offbeat fashions and the opening of stores from Mexico to the Middle East, setting the British clothing retailer apart from its rivals in a competitive market.

The company said on Thursday that initial reaction to its latest spring and summer collections had also been "positive".

Established British clothing retailers are engaged in a fierce battle with fast-fashion brands such as Inditex (Amsterdam: IT6.AS - news) 's Zara and the trendsetting designs of the likes of Reiss and Whistles.

Next Plc (LSE: NXT.L - news) and Marks and Spencer Group Plc have attributed disappointing sales to an unusually mild winter, while French Connection Group Plc's sales were hit by a lukewarm response to its spring collection.

Ted Baker's dresses, suits and shirts, often sporting quirky details such as flowery collars and polka-dotted sleeves, have helped it to stand out from rivals in Britain and, increasingly, overseas.

"Americans have quite a good term. They see us as a 'bridge-brand'," Finance Director Charles Anderson told Reuters. "By that they mean we are not high street, we are not luxury, we are somewhere in between."

Ted Baker's stock has more than tripled in the last five years. At a multiple of 26.9 times its 12-month forward earnings, it trades at a premium to most of its peers, according to Thomson Reuters (Dusseldorf: TOC.DU - news) data.

On Thursday, Ted Baker's shares fell 1.3 percent to 2912 pence by 1035 GMT, in line with a wider decline of the FTSE 350 General Retailers Index.

Ted Baker, which opened its first store in Glasgow in 1988, has outlets in more than 35 countries. The company has its own in-house team of designers, headed by Ray Kelvin, its founder and chief executive.

For the year ended Jan. 30, Ted Baker's profit before tax and exceptional items rose 18.6 percent to 58.7 million pounds ($83.7 million).

Revenue increased 17.7 percent to 456.2 million pounds for the same period, during which the company opened its first stores in Amsterdam, Azerbaijan, Hawaii, Mexico and Qatar.

The company raised its total dividend to 47.8 pence from 40.3 pence. ($1 = 0.7017 pounds) (Reporting by Aastha Agnihotri in Bengaluru; Editing by Sunil Nair and Robin Paxton)