Today’s fashion customers want value. And post-COVID, that means a lot more than price. Millennials and even more so Gen Z want their purchases to support local businesses and strengthen communities--whether shopping online, or in-person. (And more and more their values influence how older generations shop as well.) They also want their purchases to express an individualized and unique sense of style.
When COVID hit our industry last spring, we engaged in a lot of soul-searching. Many fashion and luxury leaders reframed the disaster as a chance for meaningful change. Hundreds signed on to Dries Van Noten’s #rewiringfashion manifesto, the CFDA and BFC released a joint advisement for the health and future of the industry, and high-visibility players like Gucci’s creative director Alessandro Michele poetically called for a ‘seasonless’ future, one where fashion would once more live in harmony with the natural world. Production/overstock problems brewing for a decade or more imploded in their dysfunctionality, and mainstream market demand lined up with sustainability ideals. We had arrived at a rare inflection point where ‘changing the way we’ve always done things’ from a moral perspective was also making perfect business sense.
JOOR has streamlined, enhanced and added features to help buyers discover new brands from around the world. At this high-stakes time, there is an opportunity for buyers to create their most confident assortments and finalize orders virtually… just so long as they put in work, too. Here’s how you can make sure you stand out and set yourself up to make those new relationships from the comfort of your home.
What buyers need to know:
By now, we all get it: virtual wholesale appointments are here to stay. But did you know that they are not just a new way of doing business, but your buyer’s preferred way of doing business? On average worldwide, B2B buyers favor digital sales appointments 2X more than meeting in-person; and in Spain and the UK that number goes up to 3X. And even more interestingly: B2B buyers who have an excellent online sales experience become 2X more likely to return to the brand on an ongoing basis a ‘seller of choice.’
2021 is here, and with it, a new season of fashion events. Thanks to COVID, shows will remain virtual for the foreseeable future. That’s where JOOR’s virtual trade show platform, Passport, comes in – to power virtual shows and keep the industry humming.
When your house is on fire, put out the blaze before you start building on the addition. Conventional wisdom, right? Maybe back in a year ago… but these days, according to industry veteran and former Neiman Marcus president and chief merchandising officer Jim Gold, “...we all have to walk and chew gum.” That means not only tending to the critical, short-term needs that have to be addressed to survive the moment.
According to industry experts, wholesale needs to accelerate its structural and strategic agility--and do it fast. In order to pull through the next 18-24 months, brands must bite the bullet and finally shift to demand-focused business models. Thankfully, ‘building resilience’ isn’t an abstract concept only a technologist can put into action. It also doesn’t have to mean a top to bottom digitization that happens in one fell swoop.
