fashion retail

what separates fashion from other kinds of retail is it’s very touch and feel, right? It's very personal. You wear it right with other kinds of retail. So the decision-making process, what people buy, how they buy it, and not to mention the whole styling aspect makes it a very sensitive,segment of retail. And not only that, but you even consider things like the climate as well. People buy things based on how warm it is, where they live. it's very different than say, for example, electronics or jewelry or even beauty products. 

we've gone through a sort of a number of shifts in consumer behaviour, a lot is driven by social media, a lot is driven by changes in technology overall. And not to mention all the sort of macro factors, society, economic, political, etc. Fashion has seen basically a kind of rejuvenation. in other segments of retail, we see a huge consolidation of the industry. In fashion, it’s quite different, we're seeing a lot more niche brands, a lot more niche business models, and a lot of new ways of delivering customer experience in delivering value for customers through fashion happening. so when it comes to the challenges that brands are facing, it’s almost kind of like you see some total shifts in identity, total shifts and changes in the way that these businesses operate, and coming and adapting to all these different changes into basically trying to find themselves in this modern world. Traditional brands are struggling. 

so how with it evolve?

perhaps one of the first things that is set to evolve, but sort of a realization of the industry that there is something that's not going to evolve, which is, the preference to shop in physical stores. most consumers in five to ten years will still be shopping in physical stores, and most of the revenue generated by retail brands will still be in physical stores - that's the first one. 

Second, the experience in the stores needs to be drastically different. And this is the landscape that retailers are going to use the customer experience, to differentiate themselves, before retailers they use to differentiate themselves to the products at price, how they promote and where they sell. But in five to ten already now. But in five to ten years time especially, this will be more apparent. 

And the third thing is the consumer values. So the consumer values are set to evolve drastically. One of the major values that we are starting to uncover is the lack of trust that consumers have for brands, especially shopping online. And this is creating a significant sort of ceiling to just how far those major e-commerce giants like Alibaba and Amazon are able to grow, right? So between these, I think these are the major evolutions that we're going to see. basically the fact that it’s still going to be the store that drives business. Trust is going to be a major component. And the customer experience is going to be the primary way of differentiating brands

trust is not just a core value, but a total gear. trust is paramount, not only building trust with our clients and the retailers that we serve, to help our clients establish stronger relationships with their customers built on trust. And when we think about today, in 2020, he counterfeit market for retail goods and fashion being one of the largest is going to be worth more than one point eight trillion dollars. - a huge sum of money, that's more than the GDP of Canada. So when we think about this problem and sort of the consumer that suffers from it, an overlooked area perhaps. by using platforms and some of the newest technologies, blockchain, we can create a value-added solution that can be plugged into any commerce channel that allows the consumer to verify whether or not a product is real or fake. it's with these kinds of technologies and these solutions that we basically bring together an end to end capability, not only to enable commerce, but also to deliver more innovative customer experiences and to build trusts with consumers.

Retail Stores

consumption patterns are changing, Consumers are now asking for more and more information And there are more ways to shop, They want not only good prices but also convenience, They want to make sure that they are not just buying the good-looking and easy-to-use products, But also, those that fit right in with their style

In this circumstance, Consumers are centric to our discussion on whether to provide virtual or physical stores. It is all for the convenience of the consumers. On the one hand, there should be online channels available, But on the other hand, tactility is essential to fashion products/clothing: The feel, the softness/stiffness And the other dimensions that cannot be presented with digital content, therefore Both online and offline presence is essential to satisfy our consumers, we need to take both channels into consideration, Consumers are requiring more and more information, Before we make the purchase, we often want to touch the fabric first And try the clothes on to see how it fits, Only after that will we decide whether to buy it or not - This is a big challenge

On the one hand, we need to consider the touching and fitting experience, But on the other hand, we need to observe the market trend, That is, in mainland China, and emerging mega markets such as India and Indonesia. The young generation is more and more used to online shopping, Virtual shopping has become part of their lifestyle, these markets will seek different development comparing to the western ones: Should we launch more products on the Internet? We need to wait and see, this is probably going to show in the coming few years

Online Shopping

for virtual shops, or online shops are easy and convenient. all you need is a pc or a phone and you can shop online. But from the perspective of products, Commodities can be sold well online. Only when you are familiar with them will you are convinced to buy them online. New products selling in online shop at the beginning entail numerous promotions. If you start a shop in a shopping mall, there is an opportunity that consumers passing by will know your shop. But if you start an online, and you don’t have enough marketing, People may browse but miss your website. So managing online shops is difficult. Usually, consumers want to know the details of the product. For example, if you buy a garment, you want to ensure its quality, you want to touch it, and feel it. You want to look at yourself in the mirror, to know whether you look good with it, and to judge whether it suits you. So I think the traditional brick-and-mortar shops cannot be replaced. But the popularity of online shops. we cannot deny however there is still a relative balance in their popularity with actual shops. online shops account for 60 percent or even 65 percent.

Some brands, like those in Europe, let consumers select products in physical shops. They allow consumers to touch the products. to feel the products.If the consumer wants to buy it,then just buy it online. There is such a situation The key is that you should provide at least one physical shop, to let consumers know the details of your products. so, When you start an online shop, It costs much to employ KOLs to promote your products. to even try Catching up with the physical shops you need finance, you need to spend. The cost is no cheaper than salaries for sales staff and rents. So I think in the future there must be a balance.