The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
"Might Apple Have a Future as a Fashion Conglomerate?" (CNET)
"Lately, Apple has been hiring the tasteful from another world. First it was Paul Deneve from Yves Saint-Laurent. Then it was Angela Ahrendts from Burberry. This week, it was Patrick Pruniaux from Tag Heuer. Are these style-conscious people all working to dress up Apple, as Apple prepares to dress us up?"
"Adidas Joins Wearables Stampede With Fitness Tracker" (The New York Times)
"Paul Gaudio, the general manager of digital sports at Adidas, is aware of the tumult in the wearables market, but he does not seem daunted. On Wednesday, Mr. Gaudio is introducing the company's Fit Smart fitness tracker at a wearables conference in San Francisco."
"RetailNext Raises Another $30 Million to Track In-Store Data" (TechCrunch)
"In the world of brick-and-mortar retailing, few companies have been as successful at marketing analytics services to customers as RetailNext, which is expected to announce a new $30 million in financing today. The round, led by Nokia Growth Partners, includes investments from strategic corporate investors like Qualcomm Ventures, Tyco, and AMEX Ventures — the venture capital arm of credit card giant American Express."
"Tech Titans Take Their Fight to the Mean Streets of Same-Day Delivery" (Wired)
"Over the past several years, Amazon has foregone profits to fund massive new 'fulfillment centers' within range of the largest metro areas in the US. Once reluctant to set up operations in states such as California that would force it to collect sales tax, Amazon is now betting that proximity to its customers will lure them into ordering more, enticed by the sheer speed with which their every shopping whim can be fulfilled."
"Learning the Secrets of E-Commerce in China" (The New York Times)
"The online market includes both local competitors like DHGate, which sells goods for export from China, and international sites selling directly to Chinese consumers — including Amazon, which is beginning to gain mainland customers after a slow start. There are at least three major differences between American and Chinese online sales. Those differences illustrate both the challenges and the potential for growth in China."
At The Business of Fashion’s Professional Summit in New York last week, Sona Abaryan, partner and global retail and luxury sector lead at tech-enabled data science firm Ekimetrics, shared how businesses can more effectively leverage AI-driven insights on consumer behaviour to achieve a customer-centric strategic approach.
From customer loyalty types to its pillars of personalisation, SAP Emarsys customer engagement provides more than 1,500 companies with personalised marketing campaigns via AI-powered analytics, including Puma, Aldo and Reformation. BoF learns more.
Before fashion businesses can put artificial intelligence to work or target the right shoppers online, they need good data and a deep understanding of who their customers are and what they want. This case study offers a guide for brands that want to truly know their customer, allowing them to make smarter decisions that serve shoppers and drive results.
The US House of Representatives approved a bill that could ultimately lead to a ban of the app, but its path forward remains far from certain.