Zozo Chief Executive Yusaku Maezawa said on Wednesday that instead of the polka-dot bodysuit, a basic set of measurements provided by users crunched with Zozo's data would be enough to produce custom-made clothes.

The end of the Zozosuit, which along with Maezawa's plans to fly around the moon has been central to spreading Zozo's name in Japan and abroad, risks removing a feature that has made the company and its line of basics stand out from other more established brands like Fast Retailing Co Ltd Uniqlo chain.

"The spotlight's been on the Zozosuit but we hope people will start focusing on the products," Maezawa said, referring to its expanding line of customised items such as shirts and jeans.

Zozo shares were down around 3 percent at 01:10 GMT, with the benchmark index down 1 percent <.N225>. The company's shares are down almost 50 percent since hitting a record high in July.

The operator of online fashion mall Zozotown reported that the cost of distributing the Zozosuit helped push down operating profit almost 30 percent to 4.2 billion yen ($37.2 million) in the July-September quarter compared to a year earlier. Delivery of custom-made items such as its business suits has also suffered delays.

Research into producing custom-fit shoes was progressing well, Maezawa said, with the clothing line also to be expanded to items such as hoodies and chino pants.

"Our view is that it first needs to show that its bugs are all fixed... before it expands to shoes," Jefferies analyst Hiroko Sato wrote in a note.

(Reporting by Sam Nussey; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)

By Sam Nussey