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Spring 21' trend which include a 'softer palette of powder blue and sage green'. These are 2 colours which have been featured throughout my range due to research on colour palettes and runway shows. Trends also include utility jackets with large pockets and Bermuda shorts which are loose fit and breathable.

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Comfort is on the rise for SS21 due to Covid-19, including comfort footwear. Socks and sandals are making a come back, which is inspiration to why I have chosen sandals as part of my accessories range for my collection. I know sandals are comfy and can be styles with many outfits, especially giving a dress down effect for suits and work attire. Sandals and socks are featured in Dior Homme Spring 21' and MSGM Spring 21' collection.

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Loose fit style jeans/trousers are in season for SS21 due to Covid-19, there has been a rise in comfort loose fit trousers with 'an evident rise in google searches'. This has helped me in developing trousers for my range knowing they are in high demand. I have included cropped denim loose fit trousers in my range which are for style and comfort.

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Boss Spring 21 menswear collection really inspired me for my range, as it had featured many short suit sets, which i have included for my collection. It also has a range of colours that all work well together.

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Ingo Wilts is apologizing for missing our allotted FaceTime appointment to speak about his spring 2021 Boss collection. "It was an emergency-it started raining!" he laughs good-naturedly, when he calls back an hour later. "We have figured it out, but we had to adapt a little." Wilts and his team had been working hard on the collection in Germany, before moving the collection to the showroom in Milan and carrying out fittings for the last two weeks prior to the show at Palazzo del Senato. Reminded of the logistical stresses of hosting a physical catwalk show, it's surprising, perhaps, that more designers haven't opted for digital unveilings of their new collections, especially given the COVID restrictions. Not Boss.

"We were one of the last ones who showed last season, and we are one of the first to show now," says Wilts, referring to that anxiety-inducing period in February when the coronavirus was tightening its grip on the city as the fashion shows played out. "Coming back to Milan is a show of optimism. Plus, we are German, we have rules, and we will follow the rules for our 133 guests and our staff very carefully."

Wilts admits he's over the downtime that lockdown afforded at home in his loft apartment in Germany even if, at first, he rather liked not traveling incessantly. "I started cooking and baking again, exploring this side of myself, and just before lockdown I started running again," he says. "But then I couldn't go out so I ran around my loft in circles. I would run around in circles for 45 minutes," he says. "It was so relaxing, not being constantly on a plane. But now I really miss it." If he could get away for a holiday, he'd go straight to New York. "My friends there say it's not the same, but it's the first time in a long time I have not spent my summer vacation in the U.S. I love that city," he sighs.

Such radical life changes manifested in the Boss collection, too. "When we started designing this collection last year we were not expecting lockdown and I would have said it was: Tailoring! Heritage!" He gives me some jazz hands across the screen. "But we had to adjust everything. We still have the tailored side, but we pushed the casualization. This collection is more casual than ever for Boss." Fans of a well-cut suit shouldn't despair: There are several long-line styles in the collection, in camel and pale blue, with elegant, gently rounded shoulders and trousers with just the right amount of slouch. But just as convincing are the pairings of suit jackets with luxurious cargo pants and flat hiking sandals, of a double-faced leather coat with a hoodie and tracksuit trousers-a new, more laid-back prospect for this most meticulous of brands, and one which suits it.

There are moments of whimsy, too: Instagram scrolling led to a collaboration with the London-based artist William Farr, whose wire and flower sculptures have been translated into delicate floral prints that wend their way in hand-stitched embroidery across crisp white suiting. Knitwear in forest green feels equally fresh, a new color for Boss. But there are plenty of old favorites. "We repurposed a lot of fabrics in the stockroom. My team is totally into it; even for the sportswear pieces they used smart clothing fabric and put a bonding behind it to make it feel new." In a further green-minded move, the brand will donate the 40 acacia trees that decorate its show space to the city of Milan. What won't change? The familiar exhaustion that comes once a show has wrapped. After the last guests have left, Wilts will be taking two days to decompress in Milan. He grins at the prospect, positively relishing being in another city again. "I'm so excited!"

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Ingo Wilts is apologizing for missing our allotted FaceTime appointment to speak about his spring 2021 Boss collection. "It was an emergency-it started raining!" he laughs good-naturedly, when he calls back an hour later. "We have figured it out, but we had to adapt a little."

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Salvatore Ferragamo Spring 21 had a lot of loose fit items for menswear including tapered trousers with matching suit jackets/shirts including sage green which is featured in my range.

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During lockdown, with time on his hands and having exhausted all of Netflix, Paul Andrew went on an Alfred Hitchcock binge. The Birds, Marnie, and Vertigo were at the top of his best-of list; he found out that the same obsession was also shared by director Luca Guadagnino, who in his film Io Sono l'Amore apparently referenced a lot of Hitchcock-the gestures, the lighting, the poses; a certain high-class look of enigmatic sophistication. Andrew wasn't sure at that lockdown time if and when he would be able to stage a real fashion show, so he decided to go for a short film instead. Asking Guadagnino to work together on a project for the spring collection was just in the cards-and a thrilling opportunity.

The film, shot in an eerily empty and utterly Hitchcockian Milan at the beginning of August, opened today's Salvatore Ferragamo show, which was staged in the open air in the hectagonal colonnaded courtyard of the late-Baroque period Rotonda della Besana.

Backstage before the show, which felt unusually serene, Paloma Elsesser was looking intently at one of Andrew's mood boards, wearing an hourglass black leather number that could have come straight out of Kim Novak's wardrobe in Vertigo. The dress signaled a more sensualist, high-gloss direction for the designer; he tried his hand on less-oversized proportions, favoring instead a shapely, more feminine, formfitting silhouette. The color palette, inspired by the chromatic quality of Technicolor, also added a hint of sensual vibrancy and visual punch. "That's my favorite, Tippi Hedren's green," he said, pointing out a neat little tailleur with a waisted jacket in eau de nil; it would have actually looked slightly bourgeois if not for the off-kilter intervention of a fluid sarouel, replacing the more conventional pencil skirt.

While sticking to the refined linearity he has envisioned for Ferragamo, Andrew punctuated this collection with impactful staccato highlights-think a seersucker checkered fabric with a tactile finish; thick knitted and knotted pieces with an artsy flair; quivering feathers sparsely scattered on straight cotton pants or on a pinafore. A floral motif printed on a canvas trench coat was sketched from the abundant wildflowers growing everywhere in Tuscany during the quarantine.

The coed collection was edited down by Andrew to just 30 looks, which was surely beneficial to conveying a convincing rhythm and a focused message. "Less but better; it's our way forward," he said. "I'm really into it." The Andrew-Guadagnino connection also proved a winning creative combination, to be hopefully continued in the future. "Lockdown has been dark, surreal, and mysterious, like a Hitchcock movie," chimed Andrew. "But strangely, like in a Hitchcock movie, the ending is always somehow beautiful. I'm trying to celebrate the beauty that is going to come out of it."

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Salvatore Ferragamo Spring 2021 Menswear Collection

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During lockdown, with time on his hands and having exhausted all of Netflix, Paul Andrew went on an Alfred Hitchcock binge. The Birds, Marnie, and Vertigo were at the top of his best-of list; he found out that the same obsession was also shared by director Luca Guadagnino, who in his film Io Sono l'Amore apparently referenced a lot of Hitchcock-the gestures, the lighting, the poses; a certain high-class look of enigmatic sophistication.

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Ambush spring 21 collection featured lots of oversized pockets on jackets and suit style jackets which gave me inspiration for using oversized pockets on different items in my range.

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It's impossible to look back at the nose-dived Mercedes from the previous Ambush collection photos and not see some sort of metaphor for this year. On a Zoom call from Tokyo, Yoon Ahn said she didn't intend for the statement to register so dark, simply that it captured the idea of "being forced to stop."

So what was the statement she set out to make this season? Unsurprisingly, one of comfort and ease. But Ahn is not the type to veer too casual, and she made a point to propose looks that were at once relaxed and ready to wear out in the world. "The last thing you should be concerned about right now is how uncomfortable you feel," she said. And since how we feel in our clothes is so linked to fabric, she focused on breathable linen, soft wool, and natural-looking denim featuring tactical pockets or assembled as patchwork. "It's like a quilted blanket but defined in a denim way," she said of the latter. "I wanted materials that get better with time."

Of course, feeling comfortable is also contingent on fit. Neither cardigan nor jacket, the pieces that tied in front or at the side looked polished without being constricting. Pants were wide yet dimensional rather than shapeless. Knits, as a counterpoint, were clingy and contouring in the manner of Alaïa. "They hold their shape; we call them second skin," said Ahn. One particularly dynamic dress in Japanese paper yarn twisted around the body like a slanket reimagined as a sexy two-piece ensemble.

While pillowy clutch bags worn like sleeves vaguely hinted at how we have been passing these last few months, jewelry responded to a desire for dressing up. Dyed natural quartz evoked rubies, emeralds, and sapphires in glossy gold settings. Ahn liked the idea of precious heirlooms "done in an Ambush way." There was something to this collection that felt both of-the-moment and more enduring than her previous endeavors-a desirable comfort zone.

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It's impossible to look back at the nose-dived Mercedes from the previous Ambush collection photos and not see some sort of metaphor for this year. On a Zoom call from Tokyo, Yoon Ahn said she didn't intend for the statement to register so dark, simply that it captured the idea of "being forced to stop."

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Menswear SS21, Lou Dalton featured many shorts and short sets dressed up with shirts which gave me inspiration for my work-wear range building.

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The appeal of Lou Dalton is in the authenticity of her approach to modern, British-sourced outdoor gear. That characteristic travels internationally-she has fans in New York and Japan-even at a time when no one's flying around. This season, she's made a virtue of being grounded, with a back-to-the-land promise that there are pleasant days of walking and open-air hanging out ahead of us. "Amongst these turbulent times we all need hope and something to excite us," she says. "Although this season doesn't necessarily pinpoint a particular place or narrative, it does tap into a sense of familiarity, something safe and secure. I've wanted to shine a light on the workmanship of the handful of mills and manufacturers we collaborate with, to create an uncomplicated range with a clear end-use in sight."

Not that her wide-leg, tailored shorts have anything ordinary and watered-down about them. Part throwback to World War II or scout uniform, their voluminous shape, fitted into the waist, makes a fashion statement that may have women trekking to her door for the first time. Post-gender clothing built to last-and possibly to share-is part of the path toward purposeful sustainability that young British designers were setting out on long before the pandemic hit.

Purpose in the fashion industry took on another meaning during the early months of lockdown-it became about saving lives. Dalton was one of British fashion's first responders, joining up as she did to the Emergency Designer Network formed by her London sister-designers Phoebe English, Holly Fulton, and Bethany Williams to make and distribute PPE to hospitals and frontline workers. Thanks to these women's voluntary initiative, uncounted numbers of people in the U.K. were protected from COVID-19 when Boris Johnson's government failed to do so. For Dalton, it created an even stronger bond with British factories and clothing workers, many of whom also got behind the effort.

So this collection represents her close-knit ties with "quality manufacturers," like John Smedley in Derbyshire, who has been making her fine-gauge knitwear since the factory opened in 1784. "I've been collaborating with them for five years. Long may it last!" she laughs. In reinterpreting classic polo shirts or sweaters in a kind of animal-print, camo pattern, her intention is to make sure that skilled British garment workers weather the pandemic storm, as well as kit out the modern man attractively. "There's been a sense of unity, a coming-together to support one another. Regardless of how big or how small your business is, we are as one, and we will get through this together," she says, adding, "That has very much been the response from the manufacturers I collaborate with. So hopefully, what we're doing will be enticing enough to bring boys to the door."

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Lou Dalton Spring 2021 Menswear Collection

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The appeal of Lou Dalton is in the authenticity of her approach to modern, British-sourced outdoor gear. That characteristic travels internationally-she has fans in New York and Japan-even at a time when no one's flying around. This season, she's made a virtue of being grounded, with a back-to-the-land promise that there are pleasant days of walking and open-air hanging out ahead of us.

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Reports explaining Co-ords are on the rise as the 'king' of co-ords BoohooMan are taking control. This is good information to help with planning my range as it has said Boohoo has had a 75% increase in Co-ords landing on their website meaning they are in high demand and will soon be at the forefront for SS21.

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Reports on what pop colours are featured for SS21. Tangerine and burnt orange are found in many collections for SS21 such as Reese Cooper Spring 21' and Etro Spring 21' which is where I got inspiration from for my colour choices.

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Trends for SS21, this edited report talks about work wear and minimalism in bold colours for upcoming ranges for SS21. This is a reason why i chose to just stick to a plain range with no prints, as I think it emphasises work wear and works well for my brand.

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This list helped me figure out where each item on my range will be coming from as they have listed all the factories. This also helped me find out the sourcing policy of my brand, which is mainly factories direct, so I have used factories as my main supplier in my sourcing strategy with Topman.

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As my brand is Topman, it is now only featured on ASOS's website. I have looked into the sourcing programme for ASOS to get an idea of how Topman would source and how sustainability is now becoming the forefront of the brand.

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Over a decade ago, we launched Fashion with Integrity. Since then, it has guided our approach to business and our drive to be a responsible company that delivers positive benefits for people and minimises its impact on the planet.

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This website give general lead times from China to London. It also gives the average production time equalling over 21 weeks which will be helpful for me to plan my critical path from China.

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Click Here to Get the
Asia Import Platform: General Products
Lead times, when outsourcing production to Asia, involves much more than assembly, packing and shipment. Yet, many importers are far too optimistic about the time it actually takes to get from deposit payment to delivered produce.

In this blog post, we guide you through the four phases of production, quality assurance and delivery. We also explain how you by simple measures can reduce the risks for serious delays, and why you need to consider the risk of quality issues.

1. Tooling Production

Custom designed products, and components, often require additional tooling, such as injection molds. Prints, for example logos, may also require additional tooling, which by most manufacturers must be ordered from a subcontractor. Making, and adjusting, a new mold may take anything between 14 to 60 days, depending on its complexity. However, the tooling is usually good for more than one order, sometimes hundreds of thousands of units. In other words, this lead time can be deducted from all future orders.

2. General Production Time

When a manufacturer states a certain production time, they are not only referring to the time it takes to assemble the items. For some products, the assembly process is very brief, and is counted in days, sometimes even hours, for small quantities. However, production cannot begin the day after you've paid the initial deposit.

As Chinese manufacturers maintain a minimum amount of materials and components, purchases must be made from the subcontractors - which in turn may need to start production on their end. This is why manufacturers in most industries hesitate to set a production time shorter than 30 days. Then again, the production time varies greatly depending on the industry, and the volume ordered. However, in most cases, the production time is set somewhere between 30 to 60 days.

3. Quality Assurance and Compliance Testing

Upon completion of mass production, a wise importer assigns a Quality Inspector to check up on the goods, prior to delivery. While an inspection can be scheduled with short notice, often within 72 hours, the QC report and its photos may not be available until a day or two after the occasion. Delivery of reference samples, if required, may take up to a week, sometimes more, to arrive. All in all, it adds up.

Buyers in the United States, Europe and Australia may also be required to submit product samples for compliance testing, which is even more time consuming. In my experience, it can take days before testing companies even issue their invoice, and then another 10 to 14 days before the results are back.

4. Shipping and Logistics

This is the part is what most importers worry about. However, this is the only lead time where you can actually be quite certain to avoid delays. First, the cargo must be transported from the factory to the nearest Port of Loading. This doesn't take much longer than a few hours, but include scheduling and waiting time, and you're looking at one to three days.

Upon arrival in the Port of Loading, the cargo is then placed in temporary storage in a warehouse. Depending on the arrival timing, the cargo can usually be loaded on the next container vessel within 2 to 4 days. Obviously, the transit time varies entirely depending on location. Below follows an overview for a a few routes:

Shenzhen - London: 29 days

Shenzhen - Hamburg: 30 days

Shenzhen - Los Angeles: 19 days

Shenzhen - New York: 33 days

Shenzhen - Vancouver: 17 days

Shenzhen - Sydney: 13 days

Shenzhen - Melbourne: 15 days

Shenzhen - Singapore: 7 days

As the cargo lands in the Port of Destination, the cargo must first be unloaded and go through customs clearance, all of which adds on another two to three days, before the cargo can be forwarded to the final destination.

Lead Time Summary

Managing Delays

As if what you just read wasn't bad enough, it does get worse. Many Chinese manufacturers are all but masters of time management. Delays during the production is anything but unheard of. Yet, it is possible to at least make sure that its not your order that's put on hold.

Chinese suppliers rarely hesitate to take accept new orders, even if their production plan is already filled to the brim. After all, once a buyer has wired the deposit payment, they are stuck, and will think twice before taking their business elsewhere. Yet, what you can do is to make sure that it's the other sucker that gets his or hers patio furniture delivered in late October, rather than you. The solution is something as simple as a late delivery clause in the sales contract, written as follows:
If the entire batch of products is not completely manufactured, packed and made ready for inspection, within XX days (counting from the date of the deposit payment), a deduction of US$XXX shall be made from the balance payment, for each consecutive day, until this requirement is fulfilled.
In all honesty, it is still not an easy task to enforce a breach of the late delivery clause. That said, this has saved our clients from delays for years, and I cannot remember a serious reported delay for at least the last 3 years. Considering the number of clients, and orders, we've managed since then, I dare to say that it works quite well. Still, it does make sense, even from the supplier's perspective.

Imagine that you, as a factory owner, can't keep your production schedule and must choose between two buyers. The first has no late delivery clause, perhaps not even a sales contract, while the other requires a daily deduction of US$500. I dare to bet you'd prioritize the latter.

Quality Issues

A Late delivery clause is likely to make the supplier think a few times before putting your order on hold. However, the more serious delays are often caused by factors, outside of the suppliers (direct) control. A statement I often make while writing for Chinaimportal.com, is that quality issues are certain. The question is not if, but how severe they'll be.

Serious quality issues, both cosmetic and functional, may sometimes not be discovered until the later stages of production, or even after the entire batch is packed. In a situation where a high number of defects are discovered during the pre-shipment quality inspection, the only wise decision is to start over from scratch and order a remake. Same goes for compliance issues, in case your product fails such testing.

Do you want to launch your own private label or custom designed product?

We know how hard it can be to go from an idea, to a mass produced and profitable product. The Starter Package is the only all-in-one solution that includes everything you need to get through every step of the process:

a. Private Label & OEM Product Manufacturer Lists

b. Product Specification Templates

c. Product Label Samples

d. Compliance Document Samples

e. Tutorials, Video Walkthroughs and Task Lists that guide you step-by-step through the entire process

In addition, you can also book quality inspections, lab testing and shipping directly from the platform. Click here to learn more.

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Production & Lead Time in Asia: A Complete Guide

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Click Here to Get the Asia Import Platform: General Products Lead times, when outsourcing production to Asia, involves much more than assembly, packing and shipment. Yet, many importers are far too optimistic about the time it actually takes to get from deposit payment to delivered produce.

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Advantages and Disadvantages of sea freight.

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Advantages and Disadvantages of sea freight.

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I found this website to discuss the pros and cons of sea freight. I will be using this a guide for my logistics and transport strategy, I found it interesting as there was more cons than pros.

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Advantages and disadvantages of sea transport for international trade | nibusinessinfo.co.uk

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The pros and cons of using sea transport when importing or exporting and the practicalities of shipping goods by sea

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Reading up on the big differences of retail buying and wholesale buying. I found out the pitfalls of both and how it can be difficult to stick to your brands identity.

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Many businesses wonder what really sets wholesale business and retail companies apart from one another, so we've dedicated an entire chapter in this article to take you through the pros and cons of each business model in more detail.

Wholesale vs Retail: Which one is for you?

You have a product, and it's a good one. You may be looking at the best way to take that product to market, or you may already be selling it in small quantities and are now planning for growth.

Essentially there are two main ways to sell your product - either as a wholesaler, or as a retailer. Each has its benefits and potential pitfalls. When choosing the most appropriate avenue to market, you must consider which model fits best with:

Let's discuss this in detail...

What's in this article?

You have put your all into developing your business and you want your product to get to its target market in the most effective way possible. The question is: do you want to be a retail business, or join the wholesale market?

The choice of retail vs wholesale, or even a bit of both is a big decision. Read this article to discover the options available to reach your customers and help decide what is the best business model for your business.

We will focus on:

What are the differences between wholesale suppliers and retail businesses?

Why being a wholesaler might suit you?

Why being a retailer might suit you?

Can wholesalers sell products via retail and vice versa?

What do you need to know for multichannel retailing?

What else do you need to consider?

Wholesale vs Retail

First things first, what is the difference between a wholesale and a retail? And why are those differences important?

What is wholesale?

A wholesaler is a person or company who sells products in bulk to various outlets or retailers for onward sale, either directly or through a middleman. Wholesalers are able to sell their products for a lower price as they are selling in bulk, which reduces the handling time and costs involved.

They usually provide large quantities of goods, but can take on orders for smaller quantities as well. The wholesaler may also be the manufacturer or producer of the product, but they don't have to be.

What is retail?

A retailer is a person or a company who sells products directly to their customers for a profit. The retailer may be the manufacturer of the product, or may acquire relevant products from a distributor or a wholesaler. The products they sell will be at a higher price than they would be from a wholesaler, due to markups.

Why Wholesaling Might Suit You

Being a wholesaler gives you access to a diverse range of outlets and allows you to reach a large customer base. Offering your product as wholesale allows a larger audience access to your wares, therefore you are able to grow your business quickly.

This can drive interest for your product and can make you attractive to retail stores who can see that there is a solid audience for your goods and are more likely to want to stock your product.

1. Brand Awareness

Acting as a wholesaler is a great way to build awareness for your product. Instead of consumers having to purchase exclusively from a particular shop, be it an ecommerce store or brick and mortar, consumers can see your product in a variety of outlets. It can allow a wide range of consumers who might otherwise not have been aware of your product to build a relationship with it.

2. Drop-Shipping

As a wholesaler, you can take advantage of a method of selling known as drop-shipping. A retailer or merchant sells the product, but doesn't own the inventory. Instead, the order comes directly through to you and you dispatch the product directly to the customer. As a drop shipper, you gain the advantages of retail sales (such as targeted branding and a direct line to the customer), while a specialist retailer handles the front end of things. You retain ownership of the inventory, though it does add complexity to your supply chain.

When drop-shipping, the system at the center of your business should offer you the flexibility of being able to differentiate your drop-ship orders from others. Whether this be in the form of a drop-ship symbol against orders, a different order status or a report filter, you should be able to separate out these orders at a glance, quickly and easily. This allows for simple and effective reporting, as well as your team being able to process the orders quickly and in the correct way, according to your drop-shipping workflows.

3. Global Expansion

When selling wholesale products, it's much faster and easier to expand into global markets. Any growth and expansion is defined primarily by your relationship with those clients who buy goods from you. If they sell globally, then so will you as you're just getting the goods to where they need to sell them.

Ensure your accounting system is setup to allow for multicurrency transactions so that you can clients can place purchase orders in multiple currencies.

Another part to this is that when selling via wholesale, you will be shipping your goods internationally as one large container, as opposed to sending hundreds of individual retail packages. For a small business looking to grow, this can be a cheaper way of selling internationally.

Potential Pitfalls

A wholesaler is not able to be as responsive to the changing needs and desires of the end-user. Whereas a retailer is at the front line of building a relationship with the consumer, a wholesaler is at least one step away and relies heavily on market research and feedback from retailers to stay ahead of the game.

1. Retaining Brand Identity

By trusting your product to a retailer, you're putting faith in their ability to retain the brand identity of your product. You don't want to supply something to Walmart, and have consumers think of it as Walmart's own product!

It may not always be possible to have control over how your product is merchandised, any discounted prices they choose, or what competitive products it's displayed alongside.

2. Marketing Your Product

As a wholesaler, you still have responsibility for marketing your product to consumers. You cannot expect the retailer to do all of the work for two reasons:

1. You need consistency of message regarding product placement and brand identity of your product. You cannot expect each retailer to market the product as they choose while still retaining any consistency in message.

2. Retailers need to be able to find you. With so many online stores offering their products to trade customers, you need to stand out. Having a better price than your competitors, simple distribution channels, and great product lines is no good if no-one knows about it.

3. Warehouse Space

Selling wholesale means that you will likely be selling your products in large quantities to many different retailers and distributors. This means you need to ensure you have plenty of warehouse storage space to facilitate those sales.

Whilst we're on the subject, it's also important to ensure your warehouse processes are streamlined and efficient to help minimize any packing errors or wasted time locating goods in your warehouse. Handling bulk quantities can be tricky, and it's important everything makes its way to the end consumer in a timely fashion.

The inventory in your warehouse should integrate seamlessly with your wholesale management platform, so that you always know how many of each item is in your warehouse, ready for those large wholesale orders you're going to be fulfilling.

Why Retail Might Suit You

Operating as a retailer is ideal if you want to retain complete control of your product lines and you enjoy having a hands on relationship with your customers. There is a lot to think about if you're in this position, but you are able to be responsive to the demands of your customers and their potentially changing needs and desires.

1. Targeted Consumer Base

You're able to specifically target a tailored consumer base. By being the retailer, you can personally select the marketing channels that are most likely to reach customers who need and want your product. You can also choose the best type of store for your needs - a brick and mortar shop, an online store, or both.

The important thing here is to ensure you're reporting on these sales channels, so that you can make changes quickly if needed. Maybe there are a particular brand of products that are selling well on Amazon, whereas your website is the go-to place for every other brand? Or is there a particular type of product selling well on eBay versus your own brick and mortar store? However you decide to slice and dice your reporting, use the analysis to your benefit, get your products on the best channels and go where your shoppers are.

2. Personal Connection

Without a middleman, you can get to know your customer base in great detail. One of the key differences to wholesaling is that you get to deal with them directly. This means you can get a sense of their preferences and their habits, and your business can respond quickly to that.

Reporting in your business system is also very handy here - with various customer, sales and product reports, you can very quickly see what are your best sellers versus no sellers. This lets you order large quantities of what works, and get rid of what doesn't.

By tracking retail sales, you'll also be able to see who your best customers are, so perhaps you could target them with a personalized offer? On the other hand, you can also see which customers haven't bought from you in say 3 months; you may want to send them a personalized email in order to get them buying from you again. Knowing your customers based on their buying habits allows you to personalize your service, which your customers will notice and appreciate!

3. Control Over Brand Identity

Having control allows you to ensure that your brand identity isn't diluted and isn't damaged. You're in control of the retail price, where your product is seen, how it's presented and what other products it's displayed alongside. You are in control of the marketing of the product, so can ensure that the messages being put out to the world are consistent with how you want your product to be viewed.

4. Price and Profit Margin

When developing your retail strategy, you can decide for yourself what price you are going to sell goods for and at what profit margin. All of that profit will sit directly with you and won't be shared with a wholesaler. Use the margin reports in your system to ensure your products are making you the best margins possible and make changes if needed.

You should also keep an eye on your margins across your sales channels as each platform will incur different costs, such as eBay or Amazon fees. And don't forget your landed costs such as insurance, shipping and taxes! You'll need to be on top of all of these to ensure your profits are accurate and growing.

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See the Benefits
Can Wholesalers Sell Retail and
Vice Versa?

Why not have the best of both worlds? It could be the perfect answer to both keep control of the business from start to finish, maintain your own virtual or brick and mortar shop and to grow the business quickly, all at the same time.

In theory, it sounds like an ideal answer for many companies who are able to handle the sale of goods over multiple channels at once, and that want to retain direct contact with the consumer. However, there are a number of issues, both positive and negative, to bear in mind before going down this path.

1. Competing Against Yourself

By being both retailer and wholesaler, you're at risk of directly competing against your own resellers, therefore you're competing against your own product. It's essential that you don't undercut the resale price, as this would damage your wholesale relationship with them and retailers would be reluctant to take your inventory in the future.

Keep an eye on those all important reports! You should have separate price lists based on either vendor, sales channel, or both. This will ensure you're not setting such a low price you end up undercutting your competition, or damaging your own profits.

2. Different Ranges of Products

One way to avoid directly competing against your resellers would be to offer one line of products in your own outlets, and to offer a different range of products for wholesale. This could be completely different items, or the same product in different designs, colors or sizes. This is easy to do through effective product and SKU tracking so that you know which outlet has which items and how well they're selling.

3. Profit Margins

If choosing to sell via wholesale as well as retail, you need to be sure that your wholesale prices cover your costs and still make a profit. This is where understanding your true inventory costs comes in.

For instance, landed costs are often those hidden costs that you may not always think about, such as insurance, fees and taxes. You should always take these into account when pricing products, as well as the usual costs for shipping goods out to your customers, and receiving goods into your warehouse.

Having a grip on all of these inventory costs before pricing your products will ensure you are making the most profit, in line with the items you sell and who your target market is.

Choosing the Right Channel for Your Business

When choosing the most appropriate avenue to market, you must consider which model fits best with:

1. Your strengths and personality as a business owner

2. The brand identity of your business and its product or products

3. How best to reach your target market

Remember to evaluate the strengths of your product and your employees and assess the avenues open to you. Also take into account how much control of the product you want to retain, and how much face-to-face contact with the consumer you need or want to have.

Here are a few other starting points:

If choosing to become a wholesaler, prioritize selling to retailers by providing your resellers with the best service to allow them to grow their business and trust you as a repeat supplier.

If choosing to focus on retail, prioritize the channels that will grow your business to reduce the need to rely on resellers to provide you with turnover.

If you feel able to manage both wholesale and retail together, think about strategies that will allow you to grow the retail side of your business while being able to sell to retailers without competing against yourself.

Conclusion: Wholesaling or Retail?

By successfully supporting all of our customers, we have developed extensive experience in meeting the diverse needs of both types of seller. We hope that now you feel a little more prepared to make the right decision for your business. By picking the model that suits you best, your business will thrive.

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Retail vs Wholesale: Understanding the Differences of Each

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Many businesses wonder what really sets wholesale business and retail companies apart from one another, so we've dedicated an entire chapter in this article to take you through the pros and cons of each business model in more detail. You have a product, and it's a good one.

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Advantages and Disadvantages of sourcing from overseas.

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Advantages and Disadvantages of sourcing from overseas.

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I found this article on the advantages and disadvantages of sourcing overseas, which I thought was quite interesting to know how retail brands weigh up the pros and cons.

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Advantages and disadvantages of using an overseas distributor | nibusinessinfo.co.uk

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Distributors take on many of the risks and burdens of trading overseas, but they expect heavy discounts in return.

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Another article on the pros and cons of manufacturing in China which seemed more balanced with weighing out the good and bad. I will be using more of the pros in my souring strategy.

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Co-Founder of Thread Experiment

9 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

With all the volatility and uncertainty surrounding the Chinese economy right now, some companies who manufacture their products in China are starting to worry how it may affect their business. So now's a good time to revisit the pros and cons of manufacturing your goods there.*

* Before you start writing "USA! USA!" in the comment section below, please read the entire article and realize this column is written from a pure business-decision perspective.

Pros

1. Lower costs

Yep. We all know this one.

And, yep, there are probably some instances where, when you factor in shipping and duties, the costs of manufacturing domestically are possbily competitive. But, generally speaking, it's cheaper to manufacture in China (and for a variety of reasons). Not much more needs to be said.

Before you dismiss the importance of manufacturing your product for less, I would recommend speaking to anyone who has ever worked a day in retail. He or she will undoubtedly tell you that lower cost almost ALWAYS results in better sales. (And please don't give me the "What about Burberry? What about Louis Vittuon?" because those companies have spent hundreds of millions of dollars in marketing to help boost the brand as a luxury product. And you won't.)

So, the point is, the lower cost of manufacturing in China is an enormous "pro" as to why you should manufacture there.

2. Better Service

Admittedly, I'm writing this column as the opinion of ONE person with experience. And, in MY experience, Chinese manufacturers are far more likely to give you better service from the outset as a small startup than domestic manufacturers.

In the two retail businesses I've started, I reached out to domestic manufacturers first. In both situations, I either never received a phone call back from the person I spoke with or I was simply told that I was too small of a business for them to work with. This was my experience with each of the five to seven American factories that I spoke with. Who knows? Maybe yours will be different.

On the other hand, I never had difficulty finding a Chinese factory that was willing to work with me as a smaller company ("smaller company" = I'm not Walmart). The only time a factory refused my business was because I couldn't meet their high minimum requirements (more on this later in the 'Cons' section.) But if I could meet their requirements, then they wanted to do business.

Trust me, you can't take for granted that just because you're willing to pay for goods, someone is willing to make them for you.
Related: Your Brand Is Not Too Good For That
3. Higher Output/Quicker Time

I never experienced a factory in China that was unable to produce a large order for me. Most times, when a Chinese factory tells you they can produce your order in four weeks, they produce your order if four weeks.

Based on andecdotes from colleagues of mine (since I've never manufactured in the U.S.), I've heard this isn't necessarily the case in the U.S. On several occasions, I've heard the common complaint that domestic manufacturing capacity was limited in capacity or time or, at the very least, not nearly as robust as Chinese factories.

When I've worked with factories in China, I haven't run into this issue. In fact, their quick and aggressive turnaround times are impressive. I know some of you may claim unfair labor treatment as the reason for this, but if you have ever actually done business in China before, you know that many (but not all) of the factories indeed operate properly and pay their laborers a fair Chinese wage.

4. Duplication Capabilities

I'm not here advocating that you copy anyone. In fact, depending on what you're doing, you're more than likely going to find yourself in litigation if you do.

But for whatever it is that you're manufacturing, you don't always need to reinvent the wheel, at least for some of it. For example, if you're manufacturing shirts and you like the fit of Shirt Brand ABC, then buying Shirt Brand ABC and asking your Chinese factory to duplicate its dimensions and fit is an easy way to begin your product-building process.
Quite frankly, no one does that better than the Chinese.

Cons

1. Finding a Factory

The #1 reason why people don't manufacture overseas seems to be that it's just not easy to find a factory. But it's also not that hard. There are several ways to find a factory and I go into detail on how right here. Sorry. I'm too tired to type it all again.

2. Language/Communication

For years, I've told people I'm bilingual.

I speak English and I speak Chenglish.

Chenglish is that hybrid language that you'll have to learn to communicate with your factory. Don't get me wrong. My hat's off to the Chinese who have done an incredible job learning our language. But they certainly haven't yet mastered it, and, as a result, you'll have to try to deduce what they're talking about at times. But you will. Just remember to use the same words to refer to something as they do.

Communication goes beyond language. The Chinese are very precise. They are very literal. They will take very seriously every word you say. So be careful with the words you choose. Use photos to help illustrate your points. Use webcams for meetings when necessary. Make sure you approve each step along the manufacturing process to ensure they are making your products properly. Especially at first.

3. Stigma

Let's face it: consumers have a lower opinion of products made in China. Ironically, they are almost always willing to pay less for something even if it's manufactured in China. (Don't believe the surveys you read about from time to time. People shop with their wallets before they shop with their patriotism.)

So expect some negative comments and feedback from time to time about the fact that your products are made in China. And learn to ignore them.

4. Higher Minimums

Chinese factories work are far lower profit margins than those in the U.S. As a result, they are almost never able to accommodate one-offs and, generally speaking, their minimums are often higher than other countries. If the number is so high that you cannot sustain your business manufacturing in China, then you need to consider manufacturing elsewhere. It's that simple.
Related: Why the Second Time Isn't So Easy Either
5. Shipping (Expense and Time)

The cost of shipping from a remote city in China (where most factories are) versus the cost of shipping from somewhere in the U.S. will be drastically different. So you'll have to do the math on the "landed cost" (i.e., the final cost of your goods once they have arrived at your front door plus the duty cost you'll pay to the U.S. government) to determine the final price. Then compare it to the final costs (after paying shipping) of your domestic factory and you'll have an apples-to-apples analysis on how much money you're saving manufacturing in China.

Then there's the time difference. Shipping by sea takes at least 30 days. Naturally, shipping domestically can literally be one day. So depending on what you're selling, this may make a big deal. And consider the lost sales you'll have during that possible 29-day period when you don't have your goods in stock.

Depending on the size of your goods, you may opt to have them shipped by air from China. It's more expensive, but you can get your products at your front door in two to three days. And sometimes, the cost of shipping by air is still less than the lost sales you'd have if you waited the 30-day ocean shipment time.

Again, it's all about the math.

6. Quality of Work (Sometimes)

China gets quite a bad rap for poor quality in manufacturing. In my experience, their manufacturing quality is not necessarily any worse (or better) than that in the U.S. But that all depends on the goods, too.

Again, from anecdotes and conversations, my understanding is that manufacturing more highly sophisticated goods (e.g., electronics) can be riskier than something simpler such as textiles (e.g., clothing). For the goods I've worked with (textiles), it's a big reason why China made sense for me.

Yet, with any factory -- overseas or domestic -- it will be important to stay on top of quality control because mistakes happen and shortcuts are made no matter where the factory is located. I used an agent when manufacturing in China who was reponsible for ensuring the quality and accuracy of the manufacturing of our goods along the process. You may want to do the same. The cost is minimal and the benefits are priceless.

7. Unpredictability (Economic and Political)

I remember reading a book 15 years ago about the risks of working with factories in China and they listed "Unpredictability." I thought to myself, "Oh come on. What are the odds?"

Well...the odds are that economic or political factors may indeed play a role. I remember through the years of the Great Recession, we got unexpected price hikes that were caused by anything from currency exchange to the cost of oil. In fact, one year, the Chinese government actually mandated that prices be raised by factories! I remember talking to colleagues and, yes, we all got unexepctedly nailed for these increases.

So expect some of the same if you decide to work with Chinese factories. And while many of the price hikes can be palatable, they'll still throw you off and you may feel blind-sided.

Pros vs. Cons

Remember that when balancing the pros and cons, it's not an equal-weighting system. Depending on your business and your products, some factors weigh more heavily than others.

But please do not EVER let the intimidation of working with a factory of China be the reason you don't do business there. That seems to be a barrier to entry for many and it should never be.
Related: Get Your Product Figured Out First

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The Pros and Cons of Manufacturing in China

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Co-Founder of Thread Experiment 9 min read Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. With all the volatility and uncertainty surrounding the Chinese economy right now, some companies who manufacture their products in China are starting to worry how it may affect their business.

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I found this article going through the pros and cons of having a supplier in China, I will be using some of this info in my sourcing strategy however I found this article had more cons than pros.

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Cad Crowd | CAD design services, 3D modeling, 3D animation, CAD drafting, engineering & 3D printing design

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The Pros and Cons of Manufacturing in China | Cad Crowd

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If you’re considering manufacturing in china, you need to consider if it’s worth it. Here are the pros and cons you need to know.

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I found this website which gives information on lead time if your supplier is in China. I am using this information for my garment journey.

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Click Here to Get the
Asia Import Platform: General Products
Lead times, when outsourcing production to Asia, involves much more than assembly, packing and shipment. Yet, many importers are far too optimistic about the time it actually takes to get from deposit payment to delivered produce.

In this blog post, we guide you through the four phases of production, quality assurance and delivery. We also explain how you by simple measures can reduce the risks for serious delays, and why you need to consider the risk of quality issues.

1. Tooling Production

Custom designed products, and components, often require additional tooling, such as injection molds. Prints, for example logos, may also require additional tooling, which by most manufacturers must be ordered from a subcontractor. Making, and adjusting, a new mold may take anything between 14 to 60 days, depending on its complexity. However, the tooling is usually good for more than one order, sometimes hundreds of thousands of units. In other words, this lead time can be deducted from all future orders.

2. General Production Time

When a manufacturer states a certain production time, they are not only referring to the time it takes to assemble the items. For some products, the assembly process is very brief, and is counted in days, sometimes even hours, for small quantities. However, production cannot begin the day after you've paid the initial deposit.

As Chinese manufacturers maintain a minimum amount of materials and components, purchases must be made from the subcontractors - which in turn may need to start production on their end. This is why manufacturers in most industries hesitate to set a production time shorter than 30 days. Then again, the production time varies greatly depending on the industry, and the volume ordered. However, in most cases, the production time is set somewhere between 30 to 60 days.

3. Quality Assurance and Compliance Testing

Upon completion of mass production, a wise importer assigns a Quality Inspector to check up on the goods, prior to delivery. While an inspection can be scheduled with short notice, often within 72 hours, the QC report and its photos may not be available until a day or two after the occasion. Delivery of reference samples, if required, may take up to a week, sometimes more, to arrive. All in all, it adds up.

Buyers in the United States, Europe and Australia may also be required to submit product samples for compliance testing, which is even more time consuming. In my experience, it can take days before testing companies even issue their invoice, and then another 10 to 14 days before the results are back.

4. Shipping and Logistics

This is the part is what most importers worry about. However, this is the only lead time where you can actually be quite certain to avoid delays. First, the cargo must be transported from the factory to the nearest Port of Loading. This doesn't take much longer than a few hours, but include scheduling and waiting time, and you're looking at one to three days.

Upon arrival in the Port of Loading, the cargo is then placed in temporary storage in a warehouse. Depending on the arrival timing, the cargo can usually be loaded on the next container vessel within 2 to 4 days. Obviously, the transit time varies entirely depending on location. Below follows an overview for a a few routes:

Shenzhen - London: 29 days

Shenzhen - Hamburg: 30 days

Shenzhen - Los Angeles: 19 days

Shenzhen - New York: 33 days

Shenzhen - Vancouver: 17 days

Shenzhen - Sydney: 13 days

Shenzhen - Melbourne: 15 days

Shenzhen - Singapore: 7 days

As the cargo lands in the Port of Destination, the cargo must first be unloaded and go through customs clearance, all of which adds on another two to three days, before the cargo can be forwarded to the final destination.

Lead Time Summary

Managing Delays

As if what you just read wasn't bad enough, it does get worse. Many Chinese manufacturers are all but masters of time management. Delays during the production is anything but unheard of. Yet, it is possible to at least make sure that its not your order that's put on hold.

Chinese suppliers rarely hesitate to take accept new orders, even if their production plan is already filled to the brim. After all, once a buyer has wired the deposit payment, they are stuck, and will think twice before taking their business elsewhere. Yet, what you can do is to make sure that it's the other sucker that gets his or hers patio furniture delivered in late October, rather than you. The solution is something as simple as a late delivery clause in the sales contract, written as follows:
If the entire batch of products is not completely manufactured, packed and made ready for inspection, within XX days (counting from the date of the deposit payment), a deduction of US$XXX shall be made from the balance payment, for each consecutive day, until this requirement is fulfilled.
In all honesty, it is still not an easy task to enforce a breach of the late delivery clause. That said, this has saved our clients from delays for years, and I cannot remember a serious reported delay for at least the last 3 years. Considering the number of clients, and orders, we've managed since then, I dare to say that it works quite well. Still, it does make sense, even from the supplier's perspective.

Imagine that you, as a factory owner, can't keep your production schedule and must choose between two buyers. The first has no late delivery clause, perhaps not even a sales contract, while the other requires a daily deduction of US$500. I dare to bet you'd prioritize the latter.

Quality Issues

A Late delivery clause is likely to make the supplier think a few times before putting your order on hold. However, the more serious delays are often caused by factors, outside of the suppliers (direct) control. A statement I often make while writing for Chinaimportal.com, is that quality issues are certain. The question is not if, but how severe they'll be.

Serious quality issues, both cosmetic and functional, may sometimes not be discovered until the later stages of production, or even after the entire batch is packed. In a situation where a high number of defects are discovered during the pre-shipment quality inspection, the only wise decision is to start over from scratch and order a remake. Same goes for compliance issues, in case your product fails such testing.

Do you want to launch your own private label or custom designed product?

We know how hard it can be to go from an idea, to a mass produced and profitable product. The Starter Package is the only all-in-one solution that includes everything you need to get through every step of the process:

a. Private Label & OEM Product Manufacturer Lists

b. Product Specification Templates

c. Product Label Samples

d. Compliance Document Samples

e. Tutorials, Video Walkthroughs and Task Lists that guide you step-by-step through the entire process

In addition, you can also book quality inspections, lab testing and shipping directly from the platform. Click here to learn more.

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Production & Lead Time in Asia: A Complete Guide

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Click Here to Get the Asia Import Platform: General Products Lead times, when outsourcing production to Asia, involves much more than assembly, packing and shipment. Yet, many importers are far too optimistic about the time it actually takes to get from deposit payment to delivered produce.

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Researching best place that produces denim.

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With the recent announcement of closures of two denim mills in the United States, Robert Antoshak, managing director at Olah Inc, finds it timely to review the key sources of denim fabrics in the world.
Some suggest that the closures merely reflect the changing nature of the denim business. But if the business is changing are there any new developments in the global trade of denim evident in reported statistics? In particular, which countries play a major role in the trade of this essential fabric? What are the trends? And do global trade flows not only describe the current business but do they also help to suggest possible future trends?

This analysis will only focus on the global trade of denim fabric. Indeed, when considered in the context of the trade of yarn and finished jeans - the raw material and end product of denim fabric - denim fabric statistics get lost in all of the data crunching. For sure, many sourcing executives look first to track the trade of jeans. And rightfully so: the jeans trade is an essential element of the garment business. But by analysing the denim fabric trade separately, it's possible to discern where global capacity exists - and where it exists as a competitive product.

These days, denim is a lot more than simply a 100% cotton fabric. Stretch, bi- and tri-blends have helped to alter the denim business in significant ways, as performance has become ever more important to consumers of jeans and other garment made with denim. Fortunately, the Harmonized Tariff Classification system tracks two product codes at the six-digit level of detail that capture the global trade of denim fabrics.

The first code tracks denim made of 100% cotton or predominantly cotton blended with man-made fibres (including stretch) where cotton makes up more than 85% of the fabric by weight (HS# 520942), while the second code (HS# 521142) measures denim fabric containing less than 85% cotton by weight blended with synthetic/artificial fibres (many tri-blended fabrics are recorded here).

Let's begin with identifying the top ten exporters and importers of denim fabric in the world based upon the sum of two aforementioned HS commodity codes. For many countries, the last full year of trade statistics available are through 2016, which is not a problem as the broader trends in the trade are still quite evident.

One last point before we look at the statistics: seldom does it happen that exports equal imports in a given year. Inventories, shipping delivery times, and vagaries of supply chain distribution all conspire to seemingly skew import and export data series. Additionally, the quality of import statistics tends to be better than that of export statistics as governments collect tariffs of imports; seldom do countries impose tariffs of exports. So, please keep these issues in mind when comparing import and export statistics.

Export summary

In terms of exports, not surprisingly, China is the world's largest exporter of denim fabric; in fact, when the pass-through trade out of Hong Kong is included with the mainland China data, China accounted for the largest portion of global exports. But what is surprising is that China's share of the global export business (combined with Hong Kong) has fallen from nearly 60% of global exports to about 50% in 2016, with the balance of global trade picked up by Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt and Brazil.

What is also surprising is that the global trade of denim fabric bounced around as much as it has since 2012. From 2012-2015, when measured by weight, denim exports took a real tumble, only to recover in 2016. However, the total value of denim fabric exports to the world has declined steadily from 2013-2016, falling from about $5 billion in 2013 to just over $4.5 billion in 2016.

Import summary

Now let's turn to import situation for denim fabric. Global imports of denim fabric have declined in recent years, which makes sense when one considers the amount of full package jeans production these days, and the fact that more fabric is produced closer to finished product regions than was the case in earlier years.

As was the case with global exports, aggregate global import demand for denim fabrics has also fallen in recent years both in terms of value and weight. When reviewing the top ten importers of denim fabric in the world, it is surprising that China imports some denim, although it's not surprising that Hong Kong imports denim fabric, most of which comes from mainland China for re-export.

In terms of other top importers, Turkey and Mexico are at the top of the list, followed by Cambodia, Egypt and Italy.

Concluding commentary

So, we have seen that China, although still the dominant global exporter of denim, has become less of a force in the global market. Pakistan, Turkey, India and Egypt have expanded their exports of denim fabric to the world.

In terms of major importers, it seems Turkey, Cambodia, and Mexico are growing markets for imported denim fabric, which is not surprising as these countries, in turn, export large quantities of jeans to the world.

The denim business is cyclical. After reviewing the trade statistics, it is clear that from 2012-2016, trade of denim fabrics weakened - indicating that the jeans business was weaker in some parts of the world leading into 2017. Moreover, cotton consumption in recent years has waned in part due to the weakening of the denim business. In fact, improved denim sales may result in greater consumption of cotton globally. As has been widely reported, cotton consumption rose in 2017, which may be a leader indicator of future demand for denim.

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Where are the world's key sources of denim fabrics?

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With the recent announcement of closures of two denim mills in the United States, Robert Antoshak, managing director at Olah Inc, finds it timely to review the key sources of denim fabrics in the world. related to Fibres & fabrics, Sourcing, Trade,

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Researching trickle down theory by seeing what brands hold stock of similar items in my range from previous seasons.

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Search: cropped trouser - page 1 of 10 | ASOS

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Search for cropped trouser at ASOS. Shop from over 70,000 styles, including cropped trouser. Discover the latest women's and men's fashion online

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Checking Topman prices to get an idea of how much to price each item on my range.

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Topman Trousers & Chinos | Casual & Cargo Trousers | ASOS

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Discover Topman trousers and chinos with ASOS. Shop men's casual styles including cargo and check trousers, plus slim and skinny fit chinos at ASOS.

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Zara is another one of Topman's competitors so using their website to find similar items to get an idea of fabric compositions.

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Regular fit collared shirt featuring long sleeves with buttoned cuffs and a button-up front.

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Asos is one of Topman's main competitor so I am researching similar items to my range to get an idea of the fabric composition.

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ASOS DESIGN smart co-ord in pique cobalt blue | ASOS

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Shop ASOS DESIGN smart co-ord in pique cobalt blue at ASOS. Order now with multiple payment and delivery options, including free and unlimited next day delivery (Ts&Cs apply).

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Using Asos to get an idea of fabric compositions for my trousers and shorts in my range plan.

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Discover our range of men's cropped trousers & jeans at ASOS. Kit yourself out in our slim & skinny cuts so you can hit leg day on trend.

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From research found, I and other people I had asked had not received an email from Asos in a while, only when purchasing an item we would receive a confirmation email. After some research I found this on the customer care page on Asos that it had happened to a few customers, you have to consent into receiving email marketing from Asos.

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When signing up to ASOS you'll be requested to consent to receive marketing subscriptions after placing your first order. If you don't confirm when registering your account, then the only emails you will receive are Order and Return Confirmation emails, any responses from our Customer Care team and any emails we feel contain important information that you should hear about.

If you did consent to receive emails after placing your first order and you're not receiving any from us, follow the steps below:

1. Check your junk mail

Your email software may be marking our emails as junk mail. To stop this from happening, please add asos@fashion.asos.com to your email address book.

2. Update your marketing preferences

Check that you've agreed to receive our marketing emails by logging into your account and clicking 'Contact preferences'. If you aren't signed up to receive our marketing communications, then a notice will appear to inform you that we've stopped sending you emails and texts. To change this, click 'Confirm Preferences' to start receiving all emails from us, including marketing subscriptions.

3. Check your notifications are switched on

If you're shopping on the App, it's worth checking to see if you're opted into receiving push notifications from us.

To do this, simply go to 'My Account' and select 'Notifications'. Once there, you'll be able to opt into receiving stock notifications, delivery updates and exclusive discount codes straight to your phone.

4. Check your email address

Make sure you typed in the correct email address when you signed up with us. Just sign in to your account (if you can remember which email address you used) to check this.

If after this you're still having trouble, contact our Customer Care Team giving as much detail as you can about the issue and we will try our best to help.

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When signing up to ASOS you'll be requested to consent to receive marketing subscriptions after placing your first order. If you don't confirm when registering your account, then the only emails you will receive are Order and Return Confirmation emails, any responses from our Customer Care team and any emails we feel contain important information that you should hear about.

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Using Pinterest to find see who would fit the Asos customer profile, I believe this lady suits Asos well as she looks on trend and up to date with fashion.

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Our Favorite Looks From The Streets Of London Fashion Week | Fashion, London fashion, London fashion week

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Feb 23, 2018 - Never underestimate the power of a good statement coat

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Found my trend 'Elevated Work-wear' which I thought I could easily develop for my range which I believe would suit Topman and their customer.

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Using WGSN for street style pictures as they tell you where the picture is from so it helps for reference and the range of different countries this trend is reaching out to.

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Comfort trousers/shorts for my trend which I could merge with the short sets, mixes style with comfort which works well with my trend for casual work-wear look.

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Short sets came up for SS21 which I thought would work well with my trend, co-ords are Topman's style so I know it would work well.

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More inspo to go with my boxy trucker trend, I can merge these two trends together to get a boxy trucker jacket with large statement pockets.

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Inspo on my range development which I thought would suit well with Topman's brand, and the boxed shaped jacket I could develop with larger pockets.

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Using the Photoshop step by step tutorial as a guide to start my range plan as my knowledge on Photoshop is very basic.

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I used Vogue to get catwalk inspo for my range plan and product development page, this helped me figure out what designers were most relevant to my trend.

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All the Spring 2021 Menswear fashion show coverage in one place. Designer collections, reviews, photos, videos, and more.

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Found this article on what gave Asos its edge, I found out that the brand previously had a brand magazine using celebrities on the front page to promote. However the magazine stopped running, which could be one recommendation as to how it could improve its social media and marketing strategy.

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Article on how Asos markets their brand. I found it interesting how they use millennial influencers to promote the brand by them just posting outfit photos on all social media platforms and tagging Asos.

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Word-of-Mouth and Referral Marketing Blog

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Ask any marketer to name an online retail business they admire and the response will always include: ASOS.

ASOS is an online fashion destination for 20-year old millennials. Its online platform works by choosing the best fashion items from a variety of brands and grouping these items with the company's products.

This strategy has not only helped ASOS sell their own products, but it has also led them to become the best online fashion destination. In fact, the company has amassed over 80,000 branded and own-brand products.

How did ASOS become a fashion empire in just a few years? In part, through marketing strategies that focused on brand awareness and popularity.

1. Fast Fashion - provides trend-led collections with an emphasis on diversity

For the uninitiated, ASOS stands for As Seen on Screen.

The name can trace its origins back to 1999 when founders Quentin Griffith and Nick Robertson envisioned a company that sold the outfits worn by celebrities.

In its first year, the founders started the As Seen on Screen campaign to spread the word on their celebrity-inspired fashion business.

The campaign was an undeniable success. The company won the Best Trendsetter Award from The Sunday Times.

From here, there was nowhere to go but up.

ASOS became an online fashion editor, with an emphasis on diversity. The brand expanded from celebrity styles and catered to all forms of fashion.

From nightwear to maternity clothes, tall and petite to jumpers and cardigans, ASOS offered a selection where anyone could choose from.

Fast forward to 2017, the company now sells 80,000 products with 3,000 new lines each week! Individual designers can even set up their own boutiques on the site and sell their products.
The Takeaway
Everyone loves to talk about celebrity style.

To state the obvious, celebrities are always a hot topic. This is probably why word on the As Seen on Screen campaign spread fast.

But here's what ASOS did absolutely right- selling products that could accommodate anyone. People have various styles, and making these styles available in one platform is the perfect way to become an ideal ecommerce site.

By sharing their platform with hundreds of brands and designers, ASOS became an all-in-one fashion empire.

2. ASOS Publishes High-Quality Content in the ASOS Brand Magazine

If you think magazines are dead, chances are you've never seen the ASOS Brand Magazine.

The magazine isn't just filled with glossy images that readers love, but it also has a strong lineup of editorial content. In fact, 486,000 readers and 820,000 online subscribers, check it out regularly to read about celebrity style, shopping tips, outfit ideas and how-to articles.

The company releases online and print versions of the magazine. When we say it's available online, we're not referring to downloadable PDF files. Rather, think of a clickable magazine that allows you to shop right from the page!
The Takeaway
Fashion readers fall in love with irresistible clothes that they see from magazines. This is one of the reasons why magazines are an ideal tool for advertisements. What ASOS has done here is to create content that allows readers to buy the products right after they see it from the page.

By creating an enjoyable way for readers to consume product information and advertisements, ASOS can turn readers into buyers.

3. Use of Brilliant Influencer Marketing Initiative

ASOS didn't want to start a generic marketing campaign, instead they wanted to develop an authentic way to communicate with their customers. They knew that influencers were key to communicating their ideal messages, and that is why they created the ASOS Insiders Community.

ASOS Insiders is a group of 20-year old millennials who post their fashionable outfits on social media. Not only have these i nfluencers curated irresistible OOTDs (Outfit of the Day), but they also have distinct styles. From full tomboy to 90's looks, street style to maternity wear, all insiders offer fashion inspiration for every type of ASOS customer.

What makes these posts a stroke of genius, is that they're more than just for viewing pleasure. In fact, interested customers can buy the featured outfits straight from their social media accounts.

At Instagram, users can see the code for the product in the image caption. They can also visit the influencers curated page on the ASOS website through a tracked link. Meanwhile, at Pinterest, images are directly linked to the product's page.
The Takeaway
With the help of social media influencers, the company releases content that their consumers can appreciate.

( Pro-Tip: Supercharge influencer marketing by incorporating a referral program. Try ReferralCandy free.)

4. Remarkable focus on corporate responsibility- started the ASOS foundation

ASOS definitely wants to make an impact. This is why the fashion brand has placed an emphasis on advocacy, particularly on providing opportunities for disadvantaged youth.

"We have always been committed to creating opportunities for young people to fulfil their potential." Nick Robertson, ASOS Founder said in an interview.

Its emphasis on its corporate responsibility has led the company to create the ASOS Foundation, which builds infrastructures and educational initiatives.

Through the foundation, ASOS has implemented training programs that aimed to provide opportunities to children interested in technology and fashion.

At the same time, ASOS continues to partner with charity organizations such as Prince's Trust and SOKO Community Trust to fulfil its corporate responsibility.
The Takeaway
Everyone loves a brand with a good advocacy.

By placing its emphasis on corporate responsibility, and letting its consumers know who they're helping, ASOS creates a brand with a positive image.

More importantly, since ASOS provides the links and codes necessary to purchase the product, customers are more likely to take action. Because it is easy to buy, the company seamlessly turns an interest into an actual purchase.

Here's a few lessons from ASOS' success:

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Read next: How H&M Became The World's 2nd Largest Fashion Retailer

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How ASOS Built A Popular Brand Through These Brilliant Marketing Strategies - Word-of-Mouth and Referral Marketing Blog

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Ask any marketer to name an online retail business they admire and the response will always include: ASOS. ASOS is an online fashion destination for 20-year old millennials. Its online platform works by choosing the best fashion items from a variety of brands and grouping these items with the company's products.

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Finding out the social media strategy for Asos from their Instagram, i know this will help with my research to find out how well they promote themselves and the engagement they have with their customers.

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This graph shows the amount of tops are in each retailer, with Asos having only 209 tops available.

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This graph shows the variety of colour ranges in tops, I found that Asos had the least amount of colour options, with Boohoo having the most.

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We used Edited to help with research and stats on specific items for our compshop.

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We chose Asos to be our main brand in the comp shop, because we believed as a group that it had a lot of variety and many competitors online and bricks and mortar. That is  why we chose Topshop, Zara and Boohoo for our comp-shop.

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Product Details

Jumper by ASOS DESIGN

Your MVL (most valuable layer)

Crew neck

Sleeveless style

Padded shoulders

Ribbed trims

Cropped length

Slim fit

Close-fitting cut

T-shirt sold separately

Brand

This is ASOS DESIGN - your go-to for all the latest trends, no matter who you are, where you're from and what you're up to. Exclusive to ASOS, our universal brand is here for you, and comes in all our fit ranges: ASOS Curve, Tall, Petite and Maternity. Created by us, styled by you.

SIZE & FIT

Model wears: UK 8/ EU 36/ US 4Model's height: 173cm/5'8"

LOOK AFTER ME

Machine wash according to instructions on care label

ABOUT ME

Main: 85% Acrylic, 9% Polyamide, 6% Polyester.

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ASOS DESIGN knitted cable tank with shoulder pads in navy | ASOS

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Jumper by ASOS DESIGN Your MVL (most valuable layer) Crew neck Sleeveless style Padded shoulders Ribbed trims Cropped length Slim fit Close-fitting cut T-shirt sold separately This is ASOS DESIGN - your go-to for all the latest trends, no matter who you are, where you're from and what you're up to.

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Comp shop on cable knitted tanks.

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boohoo UK returns are free and easy!

We hope you are satisfied with all of your purchases but if you ever need to return an item, you can do so within 28 days from the date your parcel arrived.

For hygiene reason, once the seal has been opened on fashion face masks, cosmetics or pierced jewellery, these items can no longer be returned. We please ask you try on swimwear and lingerie over your own underwear and ensure to keep the seal intact.
Great news! We now offer a FREE Collect+ returns service via over 5,500 local stores nationwide.
Click here to view our full Returns Policy.

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Nail new season knitwear in the jumpers and cardigans that are cosy yet cool Go back to nature with your knits this season and add animal motifs to your must-haves. When you're not wrapping up in woodland warmers, nod to chunky Nordic knits and polo neck jumpers in peppered marl for your laidback layering pieces.

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Comp shop on cable knitted tanks.

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This season we have fallen in love with the sleeveless knitwear trend. It adds that of-the-moment modern appeal that will stick around season after season. Our black V neck cropped knitted tank complements shirts, blouses, tees and anything else you choose to style. 92% Acrylic, 8% Polyester. Machine wash.

Colour: BLACK

Product Code: 23E23UBLK

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This season we have fallen in love with the sleeveless knitwear trend. It adds that of-the-moment modern appeal that will stick around season after season. Our black V neck cropped knitted tank complements shirts, blouses, tees and anything else you choose to style. 92% Acrylic, 8% Polyester. Machine wash.

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Comp shop on cable knitted tanks.

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Sleeveless top with a V-neckline. Soft-touch fabric.

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Learning the cost benefit of sourcing.

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Six Steps To Create Strategic Sourcing Plan

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A good step by step on sourcing with suppliers, really interesting to find the suppliers chain to see how long and what processes you have to go through.

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Lesson 6 - SCM Sourcing 101- Learn sourcing of materials in procurement, purchasing management

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The Arcadia boss, Sir Philip Green, has come under pressure from MPs and unions to use his private fortune to "make good" the huge shortfall in his retail empire's pension scheme ahead of the company's expected collapse into administration.

The owner of household names including Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge, Dorothy Perkins and Burton is expected to enter administration in coming hours after the weekend failed to bring a last-minute rescue deal for Green' s retail businesses.

The appointment of administrators would make Arcadia the biggest corporate failure of the pandemic and in effect end the career of one of the most colourful and controversial British businessmen of the last three decades.

Amid concerns about the impact of possible job cuts from the 13,000 workforce, there were fears that thousands of staff would suffer cuts in their retirement income should the pension scheme fall into the lifeboat Pension Protection Scheme.

Stephen Timms, the chair of parliament's work and pensions select committee, called on Green and his family to plug an estimated £350m funding shortfall. He said he would write to the Pensions Regulator on Monday to "underline the importance of securing the interests of pension scheme members", adding: "Whatever happens to the group, the Green family must make good the deficit in the Arcadia pension fund."

The former Labour MP Frank Field, who clashed with Green when his BHS department store chain went bust leaving a huge hole in its pension fund, said Green should honour previous promises that he would look after his "family" of workers.

The Pension Protection Fund, which is supported by other occupational schemes, is expected to accept the Arcadia pension schemes, but will apply a 10% cut to staff pension payouts. The company's collapse was also expected to jeopardise a takeover by JD Sports of the department store chain Debenhams, which rents out space to dozens of Arcadia-owned outlets.

Questions about the immediate future of Green's fashion empire surfaced on Friday after it became known that talks he had been holding with potential lenders for a £30m loan had failed. The group had been seeking extra funding to help it plug the gap from lost sales during coronavirus restrictions and the closure of nonessential shops including clothing stores.

It is understood that Green and Arcadia would favour a so-called light-touch trading administration, to protect the business from creditors while the administrators seek a buyer for all or parts of the company.

This process, which is currently being used by Debenhams, would allow Arcadia's management to keep control of the day-to-day running of the business during the sale. Crucially, it would also allow Arcadia's shops in England to reopen on 2 December when the lockdown lifts, to try to capture some essential pre-Christmas trade.

Arcadia's fall into administration would have wider repercussions for the retail sector in the UK. JD Sports has been holding exclusive talks over a purchase of Debenhams and had been expected to make a decision by the end of last week about whether to proceed. But the company is thought to be reconsidering the deal, given the anticipated collapse of Arcadia, which is one of the biggest concession holders at Debenhams.

JD Sports declined to comment. However, the potential departure of brands such as Dorothy Perkins and Burton from Debenhams branches would leave a potential buyer with a lot of empty space.

Mike Ashley, the chief executive of Frasers Group, formerly known as Sports Direct, has been named as potential rescuer of both Arcadia and Debenhams. However, it is understood that Ashley, a billionaire who bought the House of Fraser department store chain out of administration in 2018, has not submitted any offer to Arcadia's board.

Arcadia Group was in difficulty long before the pandemic and narrowly avoided administration last year, when Green managed to get creditors to back a rescue plan that involved closing 50 stores and cutting 1,000 jobs.

Green was widely criticised following the collapse of BHS in 2016, a year after he sold it to a former bankrupt, Dominic Chappell, when it had a £571m pensions deficit. Green ended up paying £353m to support the BHS scheme after pressure from the regulator.

Arcadia's pension scheme is in a better positionthan that of BHS, although Green's wife, Tina, who is the ultimate owner of Arcadia, has previously pledged to pay an extra £100m into the Arcadia scheme over three years. She has already paid £50m of the promised additional cash, and the rest is guaranteed to be paid next year.

Arcadia's latest troubles highlight the plight of the British high street, which has accelerated during the pandemic, according to the Unite union, which represents about 50 staff working at the group's head office.

The Unite regional officer Debbie McSweeney said: "We call on the government to redouble its efforts to formulate a radical post-Covid-19 blueprint to revive the country's ailing town centres and high streets. Such a strategy is desperately needed as high streets underpin the social fabric of our communities."

She added: "Unite is strongly committed to ensuring that our members receive their full notice and redundancy pay, should the next step be administration."

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Philip Green urged to plug pension gap before Arcadia administration

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The Arcadia boss, Sir Philip Green, has come under pressure from MPs and unions to use his private fortune to "make good" the huge shortfall in his retail empire's pension scheme ahead of the company's expected collapse into administration.

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Sir Philip Green's Arcadia fashion group has performed a U-turn and agreed to pay full salaries for head office staff facing redundancy.

It comes after reports that Arcadia - whose high street brands include Topman, Topshop and Dorothy Perkins - was only going to pay some of its staff as little as 50% of their notice pay.

An Arcadia spokesman said its actions related to around 300 redundancies in head office and that the company was "extremely sorry to all those individuals impacted for the distress that we have caused and apologise unreservedly".

A statement said: "We recently implemented a policy for those employees who are working their notice on furlough to receive their furlough pay instead of their full pay.

"We got this decision wrong and the board has today amended this policy to ensure all affected employees will receive their full pay. They will be notified of this decision immediately.

"We are extremely sorry to all those individuals impacted for the distress that we have caused and apologise unreservedly."

The Unite union said it had threatened to take legal action for illegal deduction of earnings on behalf of more than 40 head office staff.

It has hailed the promise to pay head office staff full pay during their notice period as a welcome U-turn and an "amazing victory".

Arcadia Group became part of Taveta Investments, owned by Green and his family, in 2002.

The statement said it had been forced to make "many tough decisions" during the coronavirus pandemic, including the restructuring of its offices. It had looked to protect the welfare of staff and customers, and observed all the guidelines and legislation, it added.

Unite regional officer Debbie McSweeney said: "We understand that it is almost without precedent for Arcadia to apologise for such behaviour towards employees - but this situation should have never been allowed to happen in the first place by Sir Philip Green, one of the country's richest men.

"Unite would like to sincerely thank our members for the solidarity and personal courage they have shown in standing up to Arcadia's management and playing their part in righting a flagrant pay injustice. It is an amazing victory."

She claimed it may also serve as a warning for employers who use the government's furlough scheme, which aims to help protect job during the pandemic.

She said: "This puts down a strong marker to other employers who may be thinking of taking advantage of the government's furlough scheme. Unite is on high alert for such cases and how they may adversely affect our members.

"Unite will want to examine the Arcadia statement in detail before finally deciding to withdraw our legal action."

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Arcadia redundancies: retail group announces full payouts in reversal

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Sir Philip Green's Arcadia fashion group has performed a U-turn and agreed to pay full salaries for head office staff facing redundancy. It comes after reports that Arcadia - whose high street brands include Topman, Topshop and Dorothy Perkins - was only going to pay some of its staff as little as 50% of their notice pay.

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"As 57% of 16-24 year old's are purchasing menswear online" ( Globaldata.2017)
(page 20 on my brand report)

"Over 70% of all shoppers over 25's spend as little time shopping for clothing as possible and 58.2% of 16-24's" (Globaldata,2017)
(Page 17 on my brand report)

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"Topman Oxford Circus stocks over 40 brands and introduces hundreds of new pieces every week to make sure each visit feels completely fresh." (Topman.2020)
(Page 17 on my brand report)

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It's hard to pin down the definitive Topman customer. We love the early adopters who want to buy-in to trends before they hit the mainstream; we proudly serve the fashion-forward who want to top up their wardrobes with essential basics, classic staples and sharp tailoring; and we adore the indie kids looking for streetwear and skate-inspired items. Our customers are diverse because our clothes are diverse - our range of in-house designers proudly create the looks that make it easy for anyone to build their style effortlessly.

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"We are an active member of a number of industry groups that aim to improve the environmental impacts associated with the fashion industry" (Arcadia.2020).
"Through our Ethical Trade Programme, we work to ensure that suppliers meet the standards set out in our Code of Conduct." (Arcadia.2020)
(Page 15 on my brand report)

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Through our Ethical Trade Programme, we work to ensure that suppliers meet the standards set out in our Code of Conduct. This covers 44 countries worldwide, though focuses on China, Turkey, Romania, Bangladesh and Vietnam, where the majority of our goods are made.

Over half of the goods we sell in store come from just 20 suppliers. In total, we work with 551 suppliers who in turn work with 864 factories. Despite rarely being the predominant brand in any of these factories - we are proud of our long-standing relationships with our network of international suppliers - 55% of whom have worked with us for three years or more.

Our Ethical Trade programme consists of:

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Through our Ethical Trade Programme, we work to ensure that suppliers meet the standards set out in our Code of Conduct. This covers 44 countries worldwide, though focuses on China, Turkey, Romania, Bangladesh and Vietnam, where the majority of our goods are made. Over half of the goods we sell in store come from just 20 suppliers.

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"marking the brand’s commitment to ensuring its offering is increasingly inclusive" (Arcadia.2020)
(Both from page 7 from my brand report)

"Topman not only drives trends, we’ve changed the way men shop. We earn our sartorial stripes by creating brilliant, affordable and authoritative men’s fashion focused around fit, detail and fabric." (Arcadia.2020)

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It's hard to pin down the definitive Topman customer. We love the early adopters who want to buy-in to trends before they hit the mainstream; we proudly serve the fashion-forward who want to top up their wardrobes with essential basics, classic staples and sharp tailoring; and we adore the indie kids looking for streetwear and skate-inspired items. Our customers are diverse because our clothes are diverse - our range of in-house designers proudly create the looks that make it easy for anyone to build their style effortlessly.

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OUR PEOPLE & OUR PROCESS

LOCALLY MADE

OUR COLLECTION IS MADE ENTIRELY IN OUR FAMILY-OWNED AND OPERATED ATELIER BY A 16-MEMBER TEAM, DEDICATED TO PERFECTION AND ATTENTION TO DETAIL. THE ATELIER IS BASED IN VIDIN, BULGARIA – A TOWN WITH RICH HISTORY IN CLOTHES MANUFACTURING AND MANY TALENTED AND SKILLED PEOPLE WORKING IN THE INDUSTRY. OUR OPERATION HAS HELPED THE ECONOMY OF THE POOREST REGION IN THE EU AND HIRED WORKERS LAID OFF WHEN FACTORIES IN TOWN HAD TO CLOSE DOWN, GIVING BACK TO THE COMMUNITY THAT WE WANT TO BE A PART OF.

WE VALUE THE ART OF FASHION BUT NEVER PUT IT ABOVE THE PEOPLE WE WORK WITH AND THE WORLD WE LIVE IN. THIS IS WHY WE STRIVE FOR SUSTAINABILITY IN EVERY PART OF OUR CLOTHES’ JOURNEY AND WHY WE HAVE ALWAYS GIVEN DUE IMPORTANCE TO OUR TEAM’S GREAT SKILL AND DEDICATION.

MADE-TO-ORDER

WE HAVE SWITCHED TO A MADE-TO-ORDER BUSINESS MODEL. THANKS TO OUR IN-HOUSE MANUFACTURING, WE CAN QUICKLY TURN AROUND AND FULFILL ALL OF OUR ORDERS AND THUS RESPOND TO THE ACTUAL DEMAND FOR EACH PIECE AND SIZE. ON-DEMAND MANUFACTURING ALLOWS US TO DRAMATICALLY REDUCING WASTE AND ELIMINATING OVERPRODUCTION AND DEADSTOCK.

CERTIFICATIONS AND PRACTICIES

OUR PRODUCTION EXCEEDS STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE IN WORKING CONDITIONS, FAIR WAGES, AND ECO-FRIENDLY PRACTICES AND HAS ACHIEVED THE STEP BY OEKO-TEX AS WELL AS ISO 9000 AND 14001 CERTIFICATIONS.

OUR COOLING SYSTEM UTILIZES CIRCULATING COLD WATER FROM OUR OWN PURPOSE-DUG WELL AND WE HAVE REDUCED THE PARKING OPTIONS ON-SITE IN ORDER TO PROMOTE THE USE OF THE FREE BUS SERVICES THAT IS PROVIDED.

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Stella McCartney speaks on stage during #BoFVOICES

By BoF Team January 22, 2019 05:20

OXFORDSHIRE, United Kingdom - A lifelong vegetarian who founded her cruelty-free namesake brand in 2001, Stella McCartney has been in the game of ethical fashion long before it was trending.

Now, she is using her platform as a designer and businesswoman to implore others to follow in her footsteps. At VOICES 2018 she revealed the launch of a UN charter for climate action within the fashion industry, which delineates 16 commitments for lessening fashion's impact on the environment.

McCartney also revealed her latest charitable initiative "Stella McCartney Cares Green," which aims to empower students, professionals and businesses to embrace sustainable and ethical practices. It will work towards influencing change among policymakers too.

This call to action was underscored by an appeal to the collective responsibility of those in fashion. "It's really about bringing everyone together as an industry," she said. "Actually taking responsibility, putting our money where our mouth is and making an amazing change together."
To subscribe to the BoF Podcast please follow this link. Subscribe to BoF Professional for unlimited access to BoF articles, plus exclusive benefits for members. To contact The Business of Fashion with comments, questions, or speaker ideas please e-mail podcast@businessoffashion.com.

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The BoF Podcast: Stella McCartney: 'Everything Is at Stake'

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Stella McCartney speaks on stage during #BoFVOICES By BoF Team January 22, 2019 05:20 OXFORDSHIRE, United Kingdom - A lifelong vegetarian who founded her cruelty-free namesake brand in 2001, Stella McCartney has been in the game of ethical fashion long before it was trending.

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The Best Fashion & Style Guide for Men and Women

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Get the latest men's and women's fashion and style advice. Updated daily featuring fashion guides, grooming tips, hairstyles, watches, beauty and more!

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"I'm trying to cut the habit of wanting new stuff," says influencer Camille Charrière, totally aware that when she posts on Instagram, her one million followers flock to purchase the products featured. In recent years, she has ended her links with certain fast fashion brands, promoted rental and resale as more sustainable ways of shopping and swapped trend-chasing for timeless classics she regularly rewears.

Charrière has a high-profile platform, but she feels increasingly uncomfortable using it to sell products. "The jargon we've created around sustainability allows consumers to shop in a more guilt-free way. If you're really trying to be sustainable, you need to produce and buy less."

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How can fashion make marketing more sustainable?

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Sustainable marketing may sound like an oxymoron, but that doesn't mean brands should stop trying. These sustainable PR experts are leading the way.

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This is the second story in a two-part series exploring the voices that fashion needs to incorporate into its sustainability strategies in order for them to be more effective. You can read part one, which examines the effects of a voiceless workforce, here.

Are fashion's sustainability efforts missing the forest for the trees?

The industry, proclaiming sustainability as a top priority, is using recycled and organic materials, issuing climate targets and committing to reducing water use. But experts say fashion brands' initiatives, too focused on incremental progress at the expense of the bigger picture, may be missing the mark. Carbon neutrality pledges, for example, are popular in fashion, but can be misleading, lack critical oversight and take up efforts that could otherwise go to tackling more fundamental problems like overproduction and low wages. Meanwhile, industry-wide measures including the UN Fashion Charter and the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, largely brand-led, have little outside input from scientists or communities in the Global South and are coming up short as a result.

"None of [fashion's sustainability] measures are based on real-time capacities for the earth," says Lynda Grose, chair of fashion design at California College of the Arts and co-founder of the Union of Concerned Researchers in Fashion, a group that was formed in 2018 to establish a "robust knowledge base" about sustainability in fashion from researchers and other independent sources. "Companies measure where they are, what their impacts are and then improve upon those impacts. But where they are is so far beyond the carrying capacity of the biosphere."

Fashion's sustainability efforts need to align with the needs of the planet to be effective, instead of centring on a brand's own year-over-year progress, observers say. To achieve that, brands' sustainability teams and the industry's sustainability coalitions need to seek out and integrate more diverse perspectives every step along the way, including those of scientists and voices from the Global South where most manufacturing is located.

A UN analysis indicates global emissions need to be cut by more than 50 per cent by 2030 to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Gary Cook, global climate campaigns director for the environmental advocacy group Stand.earth, points out that the UN Fashion Charter only commits companies to 30 per cent. H&M, Kering, Levi's and Chanel are among signatories. "Climate change is where it is fairly easy to see how the sector's voluntary initiatives are inadequate," he says. "Based on the level of ambition alone, these initiatives are not aiming for ecological limits scientists have identified."

The overarching need is to lower production volumes, says Cook, and that needs to be accompanied by longer-lasting products and circular business models, which some brands are working towards, but few have committed to decreasing production. Critics argue they've managed to avoid the issue of overproduction because those on the frontlines are not part of the priority-setting conversations. Even a full transition to renewable energy or to more sustainable materials cannot achieve the emissions reductions we need, Cook says. "It will require significantly less production."

"It's fascinating to me that all the circularity conversations don't have representatives of people who are dealing with fashion's waste problems," says Remake founder Ayesha Barenblat. "If you're not talking about overproduction and overconsumption, the circular fairy is not going to fix these things."

Sustainability plans built on brand success

Most brands that have set sustainability goals have done so within their own frameworks by assessing what they can measure and improve. There's no regulatory system to evaluate those goals, and often no involvement from impacted communities in designing the strategies or determining whether they target the right issues. When brands do work with partner organisations, such as the Global Fashion Agenda and the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, they still hold the decision-making power. Voluntary coalitions can be expensive to join, which perpetuates the lack of representation from smaller brands, advocacy groups and communities in the Global South. And with growing pressure on fashion to be more sustainable, brands - and the industry - often focus more on communicating their progress than on ensuring it.

If a company reduces the water used in manufacturing by 80 per cent, for example, "It's important to ask 80 per cent of what?" says Grose. "Specific litres saved are not stated. Specific water used is not stated. In a growth business model, when units produced increases every year, the volume of all resources also increases."

Morten Lehmann, chief sustainability officer at the Global Fashion Agenda, acknowledges the limits of the industry policing itself - but without regulation, sees no better option. "The problem is, if we have the best set of standards that is vetted by all the scientists in the world but doesn't have any uptake by the industry, it doesn't work," he says.

He has recognised that the Global Fashion Agenda has room to improve on adding more diverse voices to the conversation and that the industry is not addressing environmental issues quickly enough. "Even the [brands] doing enough should have done it five years ago," he says. That's why the organisation designated "redesigning value" as the theme of this year's Copenhagen Fashion Summit, which took place earlier this week. "Even if we pull all the existing levers we will not have a sustainable industry. We need to tackle bigger issues, in terms of volume, growth, but we also need to look at the system." The Sustainable Apparel Coalition did not respond to a request for comment.

The strategies that brands decide to focus on may also not be the best fix for the planet or most urgent for people; Barenblat points to the growth in companies pledging carbon neutrality, for example, without a focus on communities already struggling with climate change impacts or the make-or-break specifics of how they'll achieve it.

"When the fashion industry talks about environmental sustainability, it's from the lens of cost savings and not justice for the communities where they are extracting the natural resources," says Barenblat. "They're not thinking about restoring Bangladesh's environment. There's that lens of 'not in my backyard', or somehow we will plant trees and fix it."

Rewiring fashion's approach to sustainability

Only legislation can get the industry to act fast enough, according to Roger Anglin, who founded fashion supply chain consultancy Arra and Partners after 20 years in sourcing and product development at brands including Burberry, Kate Spade and Ralph Lauren.

"How can [large] companies be trusted to police themselves? That's what the sustainability argument is built on," he says - lamenting that 20 or 30 years of such efforts haven't amounted to any meaningful change. "It's going to take legislative action, and it has to come from the governments in these countries."

Ngozi Okaro, founder of the nonprofit Custom Collaborative, adds that better working conditions in manufacturing countries can be a direct line to addressing overproduction as well. "If you're still only paying the equivalent of $2 to make a garment, there's no incentive to make fewer garments. You're just going to slap a label on it so people can feel good about buying organic," she says. "It's easy to make a lot of stuff and see what sells. The companies don't have to be intentional."

Ultimately, fashion's sustainability goals are a reflection of internal ambition, not of the needs of the planet. Gary Cook hopes the industry, as it recovers from the pandemic, charts a path that will put it in line with both planetary boundaries and regional ecological capacities.

That will require major shifts in business models, supply chain operations and infrastructure, he says. The industry may have brushed those concepts aside as unrealistic in the past, but Grose rejects that premise.

"It's aspirational, but not idealistic," she says. "In fact, I find 'business as normal' to be idealistic. It's not based on real ecological capacities."

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The science missing from fashion's sustainability goals

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This is the second story in a two-part series exploring the voices that fashion needs to incorporate into its sustainability strategies in order for them to be more effective. You can read part one, which examines the effects of a voiceless workforce, here . Are fashion's sustainability efforts missing the forest for the trees?

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NEW YORK, United States - Topper Luciani got into resale 12 years ago selling used ties on eBay under the username "Emperor of Tieland." Then in 2010, he raised venture capital for Nifty Thrifty, an online vintage marketplace.

Nifty Thrifty struggled with the cost of collecting and cataloguing individual items for sale, and Luciani shut down the company five years ago. Today he's trying again with Goodfair, an online shop that offers mystery bundles of "preloved" items, such as five printed T-shirts for or two "Granny" sweatshirts for $15.

Launched in April 2019, Goodfair makes a profit on every item sold, though the business operates in the red after accounting for marketing and other costs. Investors include Natalie Massanet and from Imaginary Ventures.

Resale's prospects have never been brighter. The pandemic and global economic downturn have created plenty of new customers looking to score deals on secondhand clothes. The stigma around online thrifting was already on the wane, thanks to the emergence of big players like The RealReal, Poshmark and ThredUp. Many consumers today see resale as savvy rather cheap.

For now, market share in resale is not a zero-sum game.

"We're at the very beginning of resale and what we're finding is that there are a lot of ways to do it," said Simeon Siegel, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets who covers resale. "For now, market share in resale is not a zero-sum game."

But resale is facing some big unknowns. Poshmark and ThredUp are planning initial public offerings. Public listings are often a signal that a hot new category is maturing into a stable, long-term retail channel. Yet no major player has figured out how to consistently turn a profit, even as they measure annual turnover on their platforms in billions of dollars (shares in The RealReal, which went public last year, are trading well below their IPO price). A host of smaller sites have carved out lucrative niches but have no obvious path to scale. Luxury resale platforms have an uneasy relationship with the brands listed on their apps, while sneaker resellers are in some respects at the mercy of Nike and Adidas.

Below, BoF outlines some of the biggest challenges that the resale category will have to address in order to keep growing.
Can resale sites be both big and profitable?
For most resellers, authenticating and documenting each item remains one of the biggest costs of operation. The RealReal, for instance, generated $318 million in revenue last year, but spent $143 million, or about 45 percent of that, on operations and technology, which includes the collection, authentication and documentation of its products.

Some resellers are automating aspects of this process. uses an algorithm to set prices on handbags, while Tradesy's online user algorithm authenticates some products without physical inspection. One of the benefits of Goodfair's mystery bundle concept is that the company doesn't have to photograph every item.

"My previous venture was a victim of this poison and that was what had me motivated to switch the model," said Luciani.

Resellers broadly split into two camps, each with their own theories on how to turn a profit moving secondhand goods. Poshmark is a peer-to-peer platform, acting as a space where buyers and sellers find each other and negotiate deals (Tradesy is an example of this model in the luxury space). ThredUp and The RealReal are consignment shops, buying and storing products until they are sold.

Peer-to-peer platforms are betting their leaner model - no warehouses full of unsold inventory - will make it possible to operate in the black. However, consignment platforms can claim a bigger share of each sale - The RealReal takes an average of about 36 percent, compared with Poshmark's 20 percent and eBay's 9 percent. Consignment services often claim to have better, more curated inventory as they are taking physical possession of each item sold on their sites.

The key to getting profitability is driving leverage through strong growth.

This is all theoretical, however. The RealReal, which went public in 2019, has never turned a profit. Rebag Chief Executive Charles Gorra, meanwhile, said he expects his platform to reach profitability 2021, and Poshmark and ThredUp will offer their own plans operate in the black when they file documentation ahead of their IPOs later this year.

For now, investors want to see strong growth, said Rick Patel, an analyst with Needham.

"The key to getting profitability is driving leverage through strong growth - growing 20, 30 or even 40 percent," he said.
Is eBay the fashion resale dark horse?
The hype around fast-growing, money-losing resale start-ups ignores one inconvenient fact: there's a giant, profitable company that's been selling secondhand clothing online for decades.

Ebay, founded in 1995, is better known for used textbooks and collectables. But it's started making moves to boost its status in fashion, particularly in the luxury space.

The company put together a new team this year to monitor and generate sales in the sneaker and jewellery space, said Tirath Kamdar, GM of luxury at eBay. In October, the website launched a sneaker authentication program, in which every pair of sneakers sold for over $100 will be vetted before being shipped to the buyer. It established a similar program for jewellery pieces priced at $2,000 or above in September.

"Our number one goal [for 2021] is to expand on the luxury market," said Kamdar, who founded secondhand jewellery marketplace TrueFacet and served as the chief growth officer of an investment firm prior to joining eBay this summer. He added that eBay is actively adding to its luxury team, and is currently seeking a director of handbags.

A lot of the time people ignore eBay when we talk about this category but they have a huge fashion category.

Ebay's size makes it a serious contender: its 2019 revenue totalled $10.8 billion and current market capitalisation is about $33 billion - or more than 10 times that of The RealReal. But without a fashion brand identity, eBay will face challenges attracting the young consumers going to or StockX today.Ebay Chief Executive Jamie Iannone underscored the company's commitment to growing its sneaker resale category in an earnings call last week, adding that the website was losing share in the category last year but is now seeing over 50 percent growth.

"A lot of the time people ignore eBay when we talk about this category but they have a huge fashion category and a lot of potential to own more of the fashion category if they put focus on that area which they appear to be doing now," said Tracy DiNunzio, chief executive and founder of Tradesy.
When will the market consolidate?
Last week, Lithuanian fashion reseller Vinted acquired its Dutch competitor, United Wardrobe, forming one of the largest resale plays in Europe with a combined 34 million users.

Conversations about potential mergers such as this are commonplace, industry sources say, and as brands and department stores too are finally taking resale seriously, the category is ripe for M&A.

At the same time, the number of resale sites continues to proliferate. In addition to new start-ups like Goodfair, retailers, including and Selfridges, are getting into the market. Levi's, one of the most popular brands on resale sites, may launch its own secondhand business. Third-party platforms like Trove (formerly known as Yerdle) help these retailers set up their own resale services.

The retailers watching pieces of their pie go out the window, looking to protect their market share - they will look at this channel.

The most likely type of acquisition, according to Seigel, are strategic players looking to get into the resale game. Neiman Marcus was among the first to do so, acquiring Fashionphile in April of 2019.

"The retailers watching pieces of their pie go out the window, looking to protect their market share - they will look at this channel," Seigel said. "And the question is whether to build internally or buy externally."
Will sneaker resale peak?
According to StockX, sneakers sold on the platform are on average 48 percent more expensive than their retail price tags. A pair of Nike SBs, for instance, could retail for $200 and sell for as high as $390 in the resale market.

But this math is dependent on the artificial scarcity of supply created by the brands. If Nike or Yeezy decides to shift their supply model, prices on sites like StockX and GOAT will be directly affected. There's already an indication that brands are experimenting with increasing the production of coveted products, said Matt Powell, an analyst at NPD Group who covers the sneaker resale industry.

"The danger of this category is that if the brands start to make and sell more of the primary product, it will ultimately drive down the resale value," he said. "And if people can't make a high multiple, will they continue to play in this space?"

Powell added that brands are already experimenting with producing just the right amount of products to capture more of that profit themselves while keeping supply just underneath demand. Adidas, for instance, released a million pairs of Yeezys into the market at the end of 2018, and subsequently, "resale prices started to collapse," he said.

The market will contract but it won't go away.

In response to the possibility of stagnating growth, sneaker platforms like StockX and Stadium Goods are venturing into new categories such as streetwear, watches and trading cards, as well as vying for international expansion.

"There always will be people trading sneakers, but what I think is going to happen is that platforms won't see the multiples of pricing they're used to seeing," Powell said. "The market will contract but it won't go away."
Can resale go global?
For now, the most promising market for resale in the United States, according to DiNunzio. That's why you're seeing European players like Depop and Vestiaire Collective expanding into the US, while The RealReal has also reiterated its focus on the US market.

For sneaker platforms, however, international expansion may be one way to diversify its revenue stream. It opened an authentication centre in the UK in 2018 and has since seen sales triple in the region.

Asia, for now, remains the least viable market because consumers are culturally less accepting of secondhand products, according to DiNunzio. "I think in 2021, what we'll see is the biggest European players try to expand in the US," she said.

Still, many in the industry say it's too early to speculate on global dominance as resale is still in its infancy.

"I believe the biggest players are probably not even conceived yet, or just in the garage," said Luciani.
Editor's Note: This article was revised on 4th November 2020. An earlier version of this article stated Goodfair launched last April. This is not correct. It launched April 2019. Related Articles: What's Next for Resale? Why Gucci Is Getting Into Resale Rental and Resale Were Supposed to Be the Future. Could Coronavirus Change That?

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NEW YORK, United States - Topper Luciani got into resale 12 years ago selling used ties on eBay under the username "Emperor of Tieland." Then in 2010, he raised venture capital for Nifty Thrifty, an online vintage marketplace. Nifty Thrifty struggled with the cost of collecting and cataloguing individual items for sale, and Luciani shut down the company five years ago.

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Harper's Bazaar top sustainability brands.

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