An article in the Technology section of the New York Times provides further proof of the growing appetite for online luxury apparel sales, a $1b market this year and growing more than 20% annually.
Contrary to popular belief, it is some of the more expensive things that are being snapped up the most quickly, according to Brendan Hoffman of Neiman Marcus Direct, which
“has been exploding over the past 18 months, really at the upper end of the price points.” Basic garments sell comparatively slowly, Mr. Hoffman said, but items like $7,900 Valentino gowns, $5,500 Carolina Herrera jackets and other items “with more camera appeal” sell quickly. “We’ve yet to see any limits to what they’re willing to pay."
The article goes on to trot out the same old case studies and growth figures of Net-a-Porter and Yoox, and highlights how so many major brands are now moving online, but it fails to really dive into the issue of where do luxury ecommerce retailers go next. Apart from a cursory mention of new features on the Saks.com site, it glosses over the most interesting question of all: where could all of this take luxury in the years to come?
One thing is for sure. We have already seen luxury companies engage in a great land grab for the best retail spaces in the world’s international cities over the past decade. Now that most luxury companies are moving online, the next race will be to to make the experience of shopping online the most satisfying, most special, most interactive, and most personalised — while still respecting the simplicity and ease-of-use (beware the trap of Boo.com!) that makes online shopping convenient.
Photoclip courtesy of the New York Times
wow, this is fast~ (i’m the girl wow-ed to you before today’s lecture) Really nice having today. Learned alot and raised more questions later on,haha. u’r rit- what’s next? everyone can buy online,but how to balance exclusiveness and convinence? I read a book today questioning how luxury lost its lustre. will e-retail cause this situation or worsen it? Anyway, i have to say, your attandance made my day:) Thank you la~ (oh, and you even brought up purse blog !!) PS. Q&A: 1. you mentioned China Market is big enough to be profitable (huge). But it’s CHINA. So what’s ur opinion on - should it be any specific strategy or concern -during entrance? CUZ as to my slight observation, luxury brands kept coming in,but there was no any/much move locally actually~ 2. OH, last small question:) how do u like MJ’s latest image? Have a nice day and thanks for updating so quickly~~
Posted by: DaDa – 5 November, 2007 at 8:28 pmI believe exclusivity is the answer to anything related to luxury. Private invitations, gifts, rewards, basically the shopper is not only waiting to get the item they bought, they also want to be rewarded for making the purchase. Pretty much like credit cards and their reward programs. The more exclusive you make them feel, the more likely they will remain loyal to you and spread the good word.
Posted by: Dahlia – 6 November, 2007 at 3:25 am@Dada: Thanks for your kind words about my lecture and I will definitely put some thought into the whole China issue. Keep checking for a post soon on China. Not sure what you mean about Marc Jacobs latest image though… @Dahlia: Exclusivity is definitely part of what makes luxury - but often this is a matter of perception, as opposed to reality. I.e., as long as the customer feels a product is exclusive, whether it is actually exclusive or not sometimes doesn’t matter. I checked out your blog, by the way, congratulations on your launch and good luck!
Posted by: The Business of Fashion – 6 November, 2007 at 5:37 pmThanks! I’m a little new to blogging on a specific topic, but I really love reading your blog and it inspires me to do the same about my hometown :) I’m looking forward to reading about China’s take on its place in the world. I just read Time’s online report and it’s amazing how much economic power it has now.
Posted by: Dahlia – 6 November, 2007 at 5:59 pm@Dahlia: Your current hometown, is my former hometown. Montreal is an insipiring place for fashion so you have great raw material to work with. Good luck!
Posted by: The Business of Fashion – 6 November, 2007 at 8:29 pmWhat would you have to say to someone who is working on a business plan for my thesis in marketing & advertising tyring to create a possible competitor to the “guru” luxury web based selling company net-a-porter?
Posted by: JRC – 19 April, 2008 at 4:14 pm