Fashion business

Fashion business and clothing business, in general, have completely changed in the last 10 years. In a nutshell: clients buy what they love, we don’t really understand what it is and what we want them to love is not often working. Department stores are talking of “customized client’s experience”. Basically experience for those clients that don’t want to come to the store because they don’t see what they love: restaurants, workout sessions, renting and second hand – are great but there are a lot of those who do it better. I would like to share a few thoughts, essential in my opinion for real growth (by selling merchandise, not selling real state and cutting expenses).

1.      Getting back to the real customer: Department stores build their business structure based on a group of merchants on top, who make all the decisions. In the past, it worked perfectly, “shaping client’s taste” by giving them the best fashion world can offer (it was just a few brands, compared to now), was the way to go and it was super successful in the 90th and early 2000th. With clients in 2020, who are more educated on every level of fashion and have a lot of chooses, plus as we see with minimal traffic in stores, not really liking what they see, we have a simple question: What to do?

And we have a simple answer: ask your clients! If I can ask any merchant when the last have you talk to your average client? I am sure they would remember some special events when they were introduced to VIP clients. Those clients are important, to be honest; department stores have built a great system to support those few. Starting with the simple question: “What should we do to make you come back??” will give merchants a great connection to the client and a great understanding of their needs. And spending a few days in a store, especially in branch ones, would help a lot.

2.      Brands: If department stores would stay with the same brand metrics, growth would be minimal. Merchants need to innovate! It is very difficult to change the direction of 40-50 stores but taking on small projects (creating agile teams) and trying them in different markets, would bring newness to the assortment.

3.      Open traveling fashion school!!! Our clients are educated about fashion now; our buyers are well-traveled and have a great experience they can share. The interaction would lead to a new, meaningful relationship between the client and the store.

This is just a few points, if anyone wants to discuss it deeper – let me know.