What does Skroutz know about Fashion?

When we started selling fashion, Skroutz was like an elephant in a showroom. We initially approached fashion just as we successfully did tech and beauty - calling brands “manufacturers,” for example! Our users were patient, trusted us and we’ve made progress, but there’s still much work to do. Here are some key challenges we’ve tackled recently.

1. Size Recommendations: We first displayed basic size guides (asking users to measure their bodies with rulers..), but our automated size recommendations had a great impact. Now, when users browse sneakers, for example, they’ll see a recommended size based on previous purchases in same or similar categories. This simple change, boosted our Add to Cart/Sessions from 4% to 7%.

2. Fashion Navigation: Fashion e-shops often feature large, high-quality photos to attract customers. To enhance our user experience, we updated our fashion layout to emphasize fewer but larger images, streamlined titles, and implemented strict photo quality guidelines. Additionally, after observing that 50% of fashion users navigate primarily by filtering for brands, we made brand filters more accessible, now with prominent brand logos and an easy-to-find brand filter option.

3. Social Content: Shop the Look! Such a great feature helping users take a closer look to a piece, also combined with an outfilt. We tried it some time ago, but it didn’t gain traction. Low CTR and no real value to users. However, after seeing Google Shopping recently announcing its focus on personalized feeds and product videos, we know we were on the right track 2 year ago, when we implemented the same thing! Now, we produce around 250 fashion videos monthly, with users spending approximately 600 hours interacting with them.

4. Product Range Quality & Expansion: We aim to avoid showing users low-quality products. In 2022, we promptly removed 500,000 items that had few or low-quality images or lacked branding. Now, with nearly 3 million high-quality SKUs driving pageviews, our users enjoy an improved experience. Many shops also leverage our data insights to expand their offerings, with some doubling or even tripling their sales after addressing assortment gaps.

5. New Promo Tools: Based on merchants’ feedback, apart from our automated discounts mechanism, we introduced flexible promo tools like 2+ deals and coupon discounts, which have driven higher sales. Also, factors for successful promo campaigns include exclusive Skroutz discounts, 50% off already discounted pieces, and 30% off new collections.

Challenges Ahead

1. Cross-Category Ranking: Fashion professionals know how to set up storefronts. On the other hand, we initially turned to technology to create them for us! With categories like “Men’s Clothing” having around 800,000 items, keeping subcategories well-organized is essential, and also tricky. Our algorithms alone weren’t enough, as inconsistent products started to dominate the top pages. For instance, underwear frequently appeared on the first fashion category pages due to high sales volume and year-round conversion rates. To improve relevance, we now use a combination of automated and manual curation, ensuring that appropriate items are highlighted. We also organize each row by grouping products from the same category for a more cohesive browsing experience.

2. SKU Consolidation: Let’s take Converse Sneakers as an example! Repeated listings of the same product in different colors clutter our pages. We’re working on consolidating products, so users see our variety on the main listing and color options are available after they move on product pages.

3. Personalization & Style: Our homepage, deals, and recommendations are now fully personalized. Our vision? Instead of users browsing a static, one-size-fits-all shop like a traditional store, we’re creating a unique shopping experience for each user, showcasing items tailored to their individual style. But how do we define and categorize style? Using machine learning and image recognition, we group products by style, ensuring each user sees options that resonate with their preferences. With around 5,000 fashion brands and 20,000 new products added daily, we’re thrilled to help users discover their personal style filters!

On top of this, we’ve tackled one more challenge with a fresh, more stylish approach. By listening to our partners' feedback, we’ve made substantial progress in refining our platform. Skroutz is constantly evolving, dedicated to making fashion shopping as smooth and enjoyable as possible. I’m truly excited to see what the coming months will bring! ??