BERLIN (Reuters) - Europe's largest dedicated online fashion retailer Zalando (>> Zalando SE) said on Thursday it plans to hire a large number of new staff as it expands its fashion platform to support a target of sales growth between 20 and 25 percent in 2015.

Zalando said it expects its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) margin to be broadly around the 2014 level of an adjusted 3.7 percent as it invests in technology to fuel future growth.

It expects to hire many new employees to support projects like a new curated shopping service and a broadening of its range, for example in booming women's sportswear.

"Zalando is in the pole position to continue to outgrow and drive the European online market in fashion," management board member Rubin Ritter said in a statement. "We will certainly not take the foot off the gas, not even a bit."

The Berlin-based firm, which only began selling shoes in 2008, now ships 1,500 brands to customers in 15 countries in Europe and has also been building up its own labels, hiring designers and buyers as well as 700 tech specialists.

E-commerce fashion sales are growing rapidly worldwide and could eventually account for at least a quarter of the market, prompting major players such as Inditex (>> Inditex SA) and H&M (>> H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB) to invest heavily in online operations.

Zalando shares, which listed in Frankfurt last year, jumped last month after the company rushed out better-than-expected preliminary 2014 results. The stock was indicated up 3.7 percent in pre-market trade.

Zalando said it had 14.7 million active customers by the end of 2014 and said mobile traffic hit a new high in the fourth-quarter of 48 percent, exceeding 60 percent in some markets around Christmas.

($1 = 0.9059 euros)

(Reporting by Emma Thomasson; Editing by Christoph Steitz and David Holmes)