Begrudgingly the very high-end of high-end fashion is establishing a presence in the e-commerce ecosystem. Designers such as Prada and Marc Jacobs are establishing storefronts on the web, at least in a limited fashion. Prada, for example, is only selling accessories online, after avoiding the internet entirely up until two months ago. More recently Marc Jacobs set up its first online retail endeavor. Prior to its launch last week, its site was used as a branding tool (via CNN). Other labels that recently went online to sell include Jimmy Choo and Hugo Boss.
The reason for their push online is purely financial, CNN says: luxury brands' customers are no longer restricting their shopping to traditional channels. They had been reluctance to take this step because of fear of tarnishing the aura of exclusivity, according to luxury goods analyst Marshall Cooper, CEO of LuxuryBrandNetwork.com. "On the web, it's much harder to create this aura," he told CNN.
Incorporating Feedback
These designers are following the same trail other stores and brands have taken to find success online. Some are reaching out to customers via Facebook and Twitter to incorporate their feedback into their products. Athletic wear retailer Lululemon's first-quarter operating profits more than tripled since the same period last year in part due to its use of social media. The company has made tweaks to where pockets sit on pants to the placement of waistbands on running shorts as a result. Francesca Audelo, who started a line of vintage-inspired hair accessories called FancyThat, also incorporates customer feedback into designs, according to Forbes.
Burberry staged an interactive campaign for its Autumn-Winter 2010 collection, in which consumers of the luxury retailer were able to click, drag and control their views of the ad. The products, the models, the collection itself were all motion-responsive with users able to control the cast and products in each shot. The campaign launched in July on Burberry.com; there was also a social media component on Twitter and Facebook as well. All together, 14 images and six interactive videos of its Burberry Prorsum, Burberry London, Burberry Brit and Burberry Accessories collections were featured.
In February the company showed its Burberry Prorsum Autumn Winter 2010 Womenswear Collection at London Fashion Week as a live global 3D broadcast to screening rooms at five private events around the world in Paris, New York, Dubai, Tokyo and Los Angeles. Viewers around world watched the show live online in 2D as well as on over 80 global online news, blog, and fashion websites. Joe Zee of Elle and fashion blogger Bryan Boy guest-tweeted the show on Twitter.
Online Private Events
Another example is provided by Saks Fifth Avenue, the upscale brick-and-mortar retailer, which began experimenting with short online "private event" sales in order to compete with increasingly popular high-end discount websites. The items Saks features in its online sales are off-season or specifically designed for the special events, meaning they should not diminish demand for higher-priced, in-season store and online items.
