# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
PAT PAT HAUL 2018 | Mummy & Daughter Matching | Zoe Annabelle

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Brands should put a majority of their efforts to create a positive and meaningful presence on various social media platforms. If done correctly, a brand's social media account can give consumers a taste of the brand, and tell whether or not their brand is active and focused on thriving communication with its consumers.

For this assignment, I decided to choose ASOS because of their outstanding social media presence throughout various platfroms. I have also boughten various items from them and I currently follow them since all their apparel is very trendy and cute.

ASOS is a British online fashion store and is one of the most popular retail brands in the industry. ASOS's target audience is aimed toward young adults. They offer styles and brands for every type of consumer. Their website itself attracts 13 million viewers a month. Not only is their website attracting a high number of traffic, their social media platforms generate many likes, shares, comments and have many followers as well.

ASOS has social media platforms on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and Facebook. On their Instagram they have over 6.9 million followers with 6,872 posts. ASOS's has 11 verfifed accounts tailored to different countries, women or men, and styles. All of the Instagram accounts have different posts but they are all edgy, colorful and inspirational. On average, ASOS posts six times a day, at any time of the day, on their main account whether its outfit inspo, a celebrity wearing ASOS, or styling tips.

ASOS has three verified Twitter accounts; their main one, a US account and one specifically for customer care. On their main account, they have over 1 million followers and post 3 times a day. Their posts are mainly fashion updates and insights. I find it very intriguing that they have an account specifically for customer inquires and concerns. This comes to show that ASOS truly cares about their consumer's inputs, concerns and opinions and wants them in the conversation to better their brand. This also allows ASOS to seperate the negative correspondence from unhappy customers to maintain a postive brand image on the other Twitter accounts.

ASOS is also on Facebook and Pintrest. Their Facebook account has over 5.4 million likes and they tend to post daily or every other day. They tend to post once or twice a day with albums on "How to Style", sale announcements and offers, and many "fill in the bank" and meme posts as well.

ASOS's Pintrest account has 600,000 followers and is made up of 14 boards. The photographs that make up these boards make each board unqiue and they are linked to blogs, articles and the ASOS website. ASOS updates or adds to their board every other day or once a week. It is evident that Pinterest is the platform that is used the least and they put more effort in the content of Instagram.

ASOS has a very unique and trendy voice in comparison to their fashion competitors. Even though each platform has different content and posts, they are all edgy, fashionable, and full of color. It is also asthertically pleasing which has become popular among the millennial generation. They do a great job of reaching out to thier consumers in an eye-catching manner.

ASOS specializes in engaging with their customers through various platforms. On some of their Instagram posts, if they are showcasing a product they add the product's serial number in the caption for customers to access it easier. They also encourage customers to tag their OOTD, if they are wearing ASOS, on Instagram by using #AsSeenOnMe. This is a great example of engagment because it allows users to tag themselves and have the opportunity to be featured on ASOS's website and Instagram.

ASOS's Twitter account, @ASOS_HereToHelp, engages with consumers and allows for two-way communication to occur to ensure ultimate customer satisfaction. They take the time to favorite, retweet, and comment and usually do so in a timely manner (within hours).

Overall, I believe ASOS does a great job of maintaining and creating a positive presence on social media platforms. For a customer, it is ensuring that I am supporting a brand that cares about what their customers has to say and that there is a potential to be featured on their accounts.

ASOS's customer engagement helps build relationships and makes customers wanting more. ASOS uses social media as a productive marketing tool which has increased their outreach to others and for customers to interact and follow them. Great job ASOS, you are killing the game!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
ASOS: Strong Presence in Fashion and Social Media

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Brands should put a majority of their efforts to create a positive and meaningful presence on various social media platforms. If done correctly, a brand's social media account can give consumers a taste of the brand, and tell whether or not their brand is active and focused on thriving communication with its consumers.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Etailer Asos will launch branded kidswear section Little Asos next month, with more than 40 brands for babies up to 24 months and kids aged two to six. Brands will include Diesel, Tommy Hilfiger and Toby Tiger (pictured), plus exclusives such as Lee Kidz and Rock Star Baby.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Etailer Asos will launch branded kidswear section Little Asos next month, with more than 40 brands for babies up to 24 months and kids aged two to six. Brands will include Diesel, Tommy Hilfiger and Toby Tiger (pictured), plus exclusives such as Lee Kidz and Rock Star Baby.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Trading Statement three months to 28 February 2019 Final Results for year ended 31 August 2018--> Trading Statement for the four months ended 30 June 2018--> Interim Results for the six months ended 28 February 2018--> Trading Statement for the four months ended 30 June 2017--> Interim Results for the six months ended

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
By Kate Berry and Sally Blaxall, QHQ.

The Childrenswear industry is booming - according to Euromonitor, it's growing 5 percent to $203.4 billion last year. "The rising middle class in emerging markets, coupled with abolition of the one-child policy in China, is resulting in greater per capita expenditure. Furthermore, the shift towards smaller, later families, with high disposable incomes is resulting in lavish spending on children. The category continues to transition from soft dressing to trend-led products, as fashion plays a bigger role in the buying process, and the frequency at which clothing is purchased continues to rise." New Apparel and Footwear Research Category Overview 2017, Euromonitor International.

Celebrity offspring are leading the style stakes, with North West, Harper Beckham, Suri Cruise, Prince George and Princess Charlotte all showcasing designer looks that set the internet alight with orders whenever they are photographed. Designer brands are cashing in on the new wave of celebrity mini-mes, with all key luxury brands offering apparel and accessories for under 12s. You can now buy your toddler a fur-trimmed Moncler snowsuit or how about a pair of Adidas Yeezys for your little darling? The designer kidswear market alone is predicted to reach a massive $5.89 billion in 2017.

And it's not just top price style for little people. Primark, New Look, Next, Missguided and Boohoo.com are just a few of the savvy high street and online brands targeting the instagram and snapchat obsessed 'tween' market. "The growing tween and teen population presents opportunities for the sector, particularly for retailers that offer the latest trends in age-appropriate styles because over half of children aged 10-14 want their clothes to be fashionable. Young fashion retailers are in a good position to target this demographic with specific teen collections as these social media-savvy digital natives are influenced by the same fashion images as older teens." Tamara Sender, Mintel Senior Fashion Analyst.

So with the global kidswear sector growing and more and more brands investing in their childrenswear offering, you would think the industry would have plenty of technical experts to fill the new jobs? In fact, Kate Berry, director QHQ thinks there is a skills gap: "Childrenswear technologists where are you? There seems to be a lack of kids' garment technologists and it's causing issues for retailers and suppliers alike."

Kate, fellow director, Sally Blaxall and her colleagues at QHQ are actively encouraging students and junior garment technologists to think about specialising in kidswear as they start out on their careers. Sally says: "If you love fast fashion and are up for a challenge, then kidswear is the sector for you. It's a very challenging technical role - you really need to be up on current legislation and risk assessment, combined with understanding and predicting fashion trends. Kidswear moves fast, in keeping with adult fashion, and many brands are investing in developing their products leading to more career opportunities in years to come. If your goal is to travel in your career, then kidswear is a great choice - it's an international industry and there are now lots of opportunities in Europe and further afield."

So how do you succeed in applying for a job as a Kidswear garment technologist? QHQ advise that you will need the following:

A degree in Fashion or Clothing Technology.

Some work experience working as a Childrenswear Technologist preferably within retail environment is always appealing for retailers or suppliers.

A sound knowledge of all relevant Childrenswear legislation relating to Childrenswear design safety.

A sound understanding of fabrics and fabric testing procedures.

Garment engineering skills and a good knowledge of garment manufacturing and factory procedures .

Technical skills to deliver fit for purpose clothing.

Excellent communication skills.

The ability to be self-accountable whilst working in a team environment.

So why is there such a big buzz in the kids sector? The internet is playing a strong role - Instagram is awash with mini fashion 'influencers' inspiring consumer fans to purchase the products they model. Multiple online platforms curating designer childrenswear have launched this year and image conscious parents are using social media to share their cute offspring's latest looks... and so the wheel of fashion keeps on turning. Plus the growing popularity of dressing up and sharing images of festivals, such as Halloween and Christmas are boosting the demand for cute novelty costumes, 'mommy and me' dressing and personalisation. It's true to say that small people equals big fashion.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
It's all about the kids! Why the Childrenswear industry has a bright future.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
By Kate Berry and Sally Blaxall, QHQ. The Childrenswear industry is booming - according to Euromonitor, it's growing 5 percent to $203.4 billion last year. "The rising middle class in emerging markets, coupled with abolition of the one-child policy in China, is resulting in greater per capita expenditure.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Organic Baby Clothes | Organic Kids Clothes | Frugi

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Frugi organic clothing; from new-born babies to girls and boys up to 10 years and women's breastfeeding wear for mums everywhere. Shop online.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Time to feel old. If you were just getting your head around marketers' obsession with millennials, get ready for Gen Alpha to take center stage. Here's what you need to know to get ahead, really ahead:

Generation Alpha, also known as the "children of millennials," is the first generation born entirely within the 21 st century. (Gen Z stretches back to the mid-1990s.) Mark McCrindle, a generational researcher and consultant in Australia, coined the term back in 2005. It has stuck with generational forecasters so far.
The Numbers

Gen Alphas have birth dates starting in 2010, so the majority of this cohort are still sporting diapers, teething or have not even made it to the womb yet.

The year 2010 was chosen as this was the year both Instagram and the iPad launched.

McCrindle's consultancy has predicted that 2.5 million Alphas are born around the world every week.

The generation will reach a total of 2 billion people worldwide by the time the youngest people are born in 2025.

The marketer angle
"[Alphas] are going to expect the same interactive, responsive experiences from every brand," said Laura Macdonald, head of consumer of North America at Hotwire. "So if clothing companies start using AR to help people create bespoke experiences - which brands like Nike already are - while shopping, Generation Alpha will expect the same from grocery stores, or even when it comes to buying car insurance."

Hotwire is already working with companies like software company McAfee and robotics company Anki to use its Gen Alphas findings to guide the strategy in their latest campaigns.

The media angle
Fullscreen Media, which runs its entire entertainment business with Gen-Zers' multichannel use in mind, is already researching the young Alphas before they grow into its target audience and is finding that their attention spans are actually showing more promise. Crystal Surrency, vp of strategy and insights at Fullscreen Media, said that when watching content with their millennial parents, Alphas prefer to watch content eight minutes or longer.

What's the same
Some believe a lot of the characteristics found in Gen Zers will become even more prominent in Alphas as they grow up. Victoria Mulligan, assistant of insights and strategy at Carat US, said to expect the same pull toward multiculturalism and even further disintegration of gender norms.

Why Gen Alphas matter
Alphas are already guiding many of the purchasing decisions within their families. In a July study called "Understanding Generation Alpha," OnePoll conducted a survey on behalf of Hotwire, of 8,000 millennial parents around the world with children between 4 and 9 years old, and found that 65 percent of these parents said the habits of their children influenced their last purchase. That number bounced to 81 percent among U.S. millennial parents. About 31 percent of these parents believe tech matters more to their kids than toys, holidays or pets, and around 27 percent of them said they asked their kids' opinions before buying a new TV, laptop, tablet or phone.

Gen Alphas are also expected to be the longest-living generation as well as the wealthiest, according to accounting firm Grant Thornton.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Forget millennials, Gen Alpha is here (mostly)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Time to feel old. If you were just getting your head around marketers' obsession with millennials, get ready for Gen Alpha to take center stage. Here's what you need to know to get ahead, really ahead: Generation Alpha, also known as the "children of millennials," is the first generation born entirely within the 21 st century.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The 'sharent' trap - should ​you ever put your ​children on social media?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
It's more and more usual for people to share pictures of their children online - and some have even turned it into a lucrative business. Is it always wrong to mix kids and social media?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Kids Insights discusses children's growing concerns about the environment and why brands need to take a sustainable approach to packaging, fabrics and product development.
This generation of children is becoming more environmentally aware, which is influencing their approach to packaging, recycled fabrics and sustainability. In fact, Kids Insights' data shows that one in three children now regularly thinks about the effect of their actions on the environment. This is an increase from one in four at the start of 2018.

This increasing importance of eco-friendly credentials will undoubtedly affect kids' buying decisions in 2019. Excessive plastic packaging and production materials are growing concerns for parents and families. In turn, this is leading manufacturers to opt for sustainable product development in a shift towards goods that cause less harm to the environment.

Over the last few years, fast fashion has dominated the spending habits of under 18s. This age group names brands such as ASOS, Boohoo and PrettyLittleThing as their favourite shops. However, that could be about to change; kids are becoming more aware of the environment and, consequently, are looking to end the single-use nature of fast fashion.

Over the last year we've seen mainstream consumers become more concerned about plastic usage, forests and meat alternatives; all of which are causing them to change their buying habits. Fashion is now starting to face the same scrutiny.

Kids Insights' data shows that fast fashion is already falling in popularity

High street fashion chains have already reported a decline in sales. Our data shows that some of the most popular clothing retailers lost momentum in 2018.

New Look has halved in popularity since this time last year, decreasing from 14.4% to 7.2%. The chain suffered a 5.7% decline in like-for-like sales in December and made a debt-for-equity proposal to cut its debt by £1bn.

Whilst clothing and fashion are still generally popular - 13 to 18-year-old girls tell us they are their second and third highest spends - our data shows New Look wasn't the only big name to suffer last year.

Topshop also fell in popularity, with only 5.8% of 13 to 18-year-old girls naming it as their favourite store. This is a fall from 7.2% at the start of 2018. Meanwhile, H&M's popularity almost halved from 5.2% to 2.7%.

Primark, however, managed to defy the trend. Its popularity actually increased from 14.7% this time last year to 18.2%, with 13 to 18-year-old girls naming it as their favourite shop.

Online stores have seen a fall in sales too, with ASOS issuing a profit warning in December. Whilst ASOS remains the second favourite online shop of 13 to 18-year-old girls, with 9.1% telling us it's their favourite store, it has dropped in popularity this year falling from 10% at the start of 2018 to 9.1%.

Fellow fast fashion retailers Boohoo, PrettyLittleThing and Missguided saw even more significant declines in popularity, with the latter more than halving in popularity from 3.2% to 1.4%.

Concerned kids use technology to spread the message

More children than ever are using technology. This is helping them to connect and share their environmental concerns quicker than ever before. The average child in the UK now owns their own mobile phone from the age of 11. Plus, a quarter of children aged 10 to 13 are now on Instagram.

Kids are using this new wave of technology and platforms to connect with like-minded children, spread the message and get organised. An example of this can be seen in the thousands of pupils who walked out of school in February to raise awareness about their growing climate-change concerns.

Technology is being actively used to take action, too, with fashion bloggers using second-hand apps such as Depop as part of their environmental concerns about fast fashion. New app reGAIN, which offers discount codes in exchange for clothes being recycled, is also popular with eco-conscious consumers. According to our data the Depop app is currently most popular with teenage girls.

Equally, upcycling is becoming a popular way of giving new life to old products. H&M has launched workshops and guides to help consumers repair their products and make them last longer. Additionally, brands such as Walkers and Adidas have recently launched high-profile projects to make their core products more environmentally friendly.

Manufacturers who opt for sustainable product development and make a shift towards products that cause less harm to the environment should prove popular with those families that are worried about excess production materials.

Brands face a packaging conundrum

As explored in our Future Forecast report, we are seeing conflicting trends arising with packaging. On the one hand, brands are looking to produce more environmentally-friendly packaging amid growing concerns about plastic and waste; reducing packaging waste would be a logical and easy step. With a third more children shopping online now than 18 months ago, it reduces the need for the attention-grabbing, retail-friendly packaging you see in stores.

On the other hand, our data tells us that the 'unboxing' phenomenon is showing no signs of slowing down. In fact unboxing continues to grow in popularity with seven-to-nine-year-old boys, rising from 9% last quarter to 15% this quarter.

This means that manufacturers and retailers have an interesting decision to make. They can either reduce packaging and win over consumers with their environmental credentials. Or, they can develop a more experiential relationship with packaging that utilises it as part of the product experience.

Businesses have the power to influence the next generation. They can strategically benefit from the awareness of serious issues that are building in younger age groups by gaining consumer trust and all-important brand advocacy.

Listening to young people is important. Kids Insights has the most comprehensive and dynamic data, insights and answers about the buying habits and mindset of the next generation of consumer. To download a report and explore this topic further, click here.

About Kids Insight UK

Kids Insights specialises in research and insights on kids and their ecosystems. It surveys 400 kids, tweens and teens every single week. It continually updates its real-time portal to allow clients to spot the latest trends before their competitors.

For more information on Kids Insights, a sample report and a demo of its award-winning portal, click here. Alternatively call the team on 0330 159 6631.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Kids Insights: The Importance Of Sustainability | CWB Magazine

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Kids Insights discusses children's growing concerns about the environment and why brands need to take a sustainable approach to packaging, fabrics and product development. This generation of children is becoming more environmentally aware, which is influencing their approach to packaging, recycled fabrics and sustainability.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Britain now has 7 social classes - and working class is a dwindling

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines email

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
With its online rails bursting with cool children's wear brands such as Joules, Yumi and Gap Kids to name a few, ASOS became a one-stop shop for style-savvy mums and dads after launching in 2008. Sadly, it's the end of the road for Little ASOS!

Marking the end of its 'mini me' clothing ranges and cute, affordable attire, ASOS has decided to axe the kidswear in order to concentrate on the core end of the young fashion market, according to Drapers. The line will carry on until the end of 2010.

While we'll be sad to say goodbye, we've got our fingers crossed there could be some slashed prices and bargain finds nearer the closing date...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Sad news for mini fashionistas - ASOS Kids being axed

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
With its online rails bursting with cool children's wear brands such as Joules, Yumi and Gap Kids to name a few, ASOS became a one-stop shop for style-savvy mums and dads after launching in 2008. Sadly, it's the end of the road for Little ASOS!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
CHENNAI, India (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - A southern Indian state is inspecting more than 7,000 garment factories and spinning mills after the national human rights watchdog raised concerns over "miserable" working conditions.

India's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) ordered authorities in Tamil Nadu to act after a report by the Thomson Reuters Foundation about female garment workers airing their grievances on radio stations and demanding better conditions.

Checks for basic facilities such as toilets and creches for the more than 500,000 mostly female workers in Tamil Nadu, the largest hub in India's $40 billion-a-year textile and garment industry, began in March.

"We have found violations and have served notices to more than 200 factories spinning mills so far," said Kaveri Manoharan, head of the state's Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health.

"In most cases, there were too few toilets and hygiene was an issue. Also, creches had not been set up even though hundreds of women were employed. We have given managements one month to fix the problem, document it and get back to us."

Manoharan said there should be one toilet for every 20 employees and a creche where there are 30 women employed.

Three radio stations set up a year ago for garment workers and broadcast through mobile phones have been flooded with complaints since they went on air a year ago.

Callers discuss harassment, long working hours, poor wages and other challenges.

In February, the NHRC directed the Tamil Nadu government to respond to the complaints, stating that workers were working in "miserable conditions".

It said denial of basic facilities by factory owners was "a serious violation of human rights".

The Commission highlighted the complaint of a worker who was unable to access a toilet in her factory and had to use a corner of the mill where waste cotton was dumped.

"Toilets, drinking water, first aid and special provisions for female workers are the most crucial and primary requirements at the workplaces," the NHRC said in its statement.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Thousands of Indian factories under scrutiny over 'miserable'...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
CHENNAI, India (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - A southern Indian state is inspecting more than 7,000 garment factories and spinning mills after the national human rights watchdog raised concerns over "miserable" working conditions. India's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) ordered authorities in Tamil Nadu to act after a report by the Thomson Reuters Foundation about female garment workers airing their grievances on radio stations and demanding better conditions.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Nick Beighton may be a chartered accountant but his typical work attire is more smart casual than beancounters' suit. Which is highly appropriate since he is the chief executive of online fashion juggernaut Asos, which specialises in supplying the latest trends at the click of a mouse or tap on a phone screen.

Despite being listed on the London stock exchange's junior market, Aim, Asos is valued more highly than the likes of Marks & Spencer as well as supermarket groups Sainsbury's and Morrisons. It seems to have no desire to jump up to a full listing, with all the costs and management time that involves. But its plans elsewhere are ambitious, with a target of 25-30% revenue growth this year.

Part of this will come from expanding rapidly, both in the UK and overseas, with total investment this year expected to reach £200m.

In the past, the company has had problems with warehouse fires and reports of poor working conditions. Now it is beefing up its sites, including its London headquarters - a building in Camden known for its black Egyptian cat statues. A new European hub is being built in Germany, and by next year millennials in the US will receive their Asos goods from a dedicated £30m warehouse in Atlanta rather than having them shipped from the UK, which the company believes should give a big boost to its business there.

It is also moving into new product areas, including make-up and so-called activewear, and analysts at City broker Stifel believe this could just be the start: "Asos maintains a fashion focus, although it recently expanded into beauty. What could be next? We speculate homeware, supported by the 3D printing technology revolution. From there, the sky is the limit."

Historically the group has suffered from growing pains, as increasing sales outstripped its ability to fulfil them

Nicholas Hyatt, Hargreaves Lansdown

It has also introduced a try-before-you-buy option and same-day delivery, and is increasing its advertising. JP Morgan analysts point to the fact that it has been splashing out on billboard advertising associated with the beauty launch and the activewear campaign, adding: "We also note that Asos is launching a TV advertising campaign in France (perhaps highlighting the success of the UK billboard advertising efforts)."

But there are challenges. Competition is intense and increasing, not least from the fashion ambitions of Amazon (which was once said to be interested in buying Asos).

And every time it is praised for an initiative - using plus-size models on its website, for example - it seems there is also a fashion misstep which is instantly seized upon by a sarcastic media. There is even an Instagram page devoted to ridiculing its creations.

There is also the question of finding a new finance director after Helen Ashton announced last month she was stepping down. The search for a replacement is under way, but meanwhile Beighton will take on that role as well. So he will be front and centre when Asos releases half-year results on Wednesday. Analysts are expecting profits to rise from £27.3m to just over £30m, although growth could be slowed by the bad weather that hit all retailers earlier this year.

And its investment plans could also knock back profits, says analyst Nicholas Hyatt at Hargreaves Lansdown. But he adds: "Historically the group has suffered from growing pains, as increasing sales outstripped its ability to fulfil them ... In the longer term, building scale is key to driving profitability. Asos deserves to trade at a premium [to traditional high street retailers] but it also increases the pressure to continue delivering knockout sales growth. The market will punish a slip harshly."
Topics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Fashion forward - Asos has ambitions for big expansion

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Nick Beighton may be a chartered accountant but his typical work attire is more smart casual than beancounters' suit. Which is highly appropriate since he is the chief executive of online fashion juggernaut Asos, which specialises in supplying the latest trends at the click of a mouse or tap on a phone screen.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
After last week's profit warning-inspired plunge, Morgan Stanley believes ASOS is now fairly valued

Morgan Stanley had been an ASOS bear since the end of 2017

ASOS PLC ( LON:ASC) got a much-needed boost on Wednesday as an upgrade from analysts at Morgan Stanley lifted the fast fashion retailer's share price.

Shares plunged last week after the AIM-listed company warned teething troubles at its US warehouse would lead to a 70% drop in profits this year.

But they recovered some of those losses today, rallying 7.5% to 2,397.1p after Morgan Stanley moved the stock to 'equal weight' rating, up from 'underweight' previously.

The heavyweight investment bank had been bearish on ASOS for the past 18 months, but after the recent share price fall, it reckons the risk-reward is now more balanced.

"ASOS shares are now down nearly 65% over the last year and, in our view, the current levels more fairly reflect our views of the business," said the analysts in a note to clients.

"We update forecasts for last week's profit warning and lower our price target from 2,200p to 2,100p.

"Although we now sit 40% below consensus EBIT by FY21, we think the current level is reflective of our more conservative estimates (and sell-side consensus does not yet fully reflect last week's announcement). With only 3% downside to our price target, we upgrade to 'equal weight'."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
ASOS shares lifted by Morgan Stanley upgrade

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
After last week's profit warning-inspired plunge, Morgan Stanley believes ASOS is now fairly valued Morgan Stanley had been an ASOS bear since the end of 2017 ASOS PLC ( LON:ASC) got a much-needed boost on Wednesday as an upgrade from analysts at Morgan Stanley lifted the fast fashion retailer's share price.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
LONDON (Reuters) - British online fashion retailer ASOS () beat expectations for sales growth over Christmas and said it sees potential for e-commerce to expand to as much as 40 percent of all clothing sales in developed markets.

After ASOS posted a 30 percent rise in retail sales for the last four months of 2017, Chief Executive Nick Beighton told reporters the retailer was ideally placed to tap in to a generation of consumers who increasingly shop on mobile phones and communicate via social media.

"The highest penetrated market for fashion on e-commerce is South Korea at over 35 percent, the UK is around 25 percent and the United States is 24 percent," he said.

"I'm expecting e-commerce penetration to at least get to around 40 percent in the major developed markets for fashion."

The performance of ASOS and online peer Boohoo () shows how the internet is reshaping the British retail landscape and the clothing sector in particular.

The pure internet players are outflanking and taking market share from traditional rivals burdened with big store estates.

In contrast to their stellar numbers, Marks & Spencer (), Britain's biggest clothing retailer by sales value, this month reported another fall in underlying revenue for the Christmas quarter, while rival Next () managed only a small rise.

RAPID EXPANSION

Established in 2000 for fashion-conscious twenty-somethings, ASOS is Britain's biggest e-commerce success story.

Its retail sales were 790.4 million pounds in the four months to Dec. 31 - ahead of analysts' average forecast of growth of 27.4 percent. Retail gross margin was up 80 basis points year-on-year, despite a backdrop of heavy discounting across the wider market.

ASOS shares, which listed at 20 pence in 2001, have increased by a third over the last year, making it one of the most expensive stocks in the sector with a price/earnings (PE) ratio of 90.

It has a market capitalisation of 5.76 billion pounds, some 860 million pounds more than the 134-year old Marks & Spencer.

The stock was up 2.4 percent at 7,036 pence at 1215 GMT, with enthusiasm tempered only by the fact it did not combine the sales beat with an upgrade to full 2017-18 year guidance.

SPEED OF CHANGE

ASOS maintained guidance for total sales growth of 25-30 percent, with UK growth of around 16 percent.

"Top-line outperformance looks likely, not just for (2017-18) but on a two-three year view, given the pace of innovation and continual improvements to the customer experience," said analysts at Peel Hunt, who have a "buy" rating on the stock.

ASOS said UK sales increased 23 percent to 300.9 million pounds "in a challenging market", while international sales were up 35 percent to 489.5 million pounds.

"The velocity of change throughout our business is now breathtaking, particularly within technology," said Beighton, noting that 80 percent of ASOS's UK traffic over the four month period was through a mobile device.

Company trading updates, surveys and data this month have shown Britons are under pressure from slow wage growth and higher inflation.

Beighton said it was inevitable UK sales growth would slow. "You can't continue to have growth of 23 percent ad infinitum, the maths just don't work," he said.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
food distribution and convenience stores (trbc)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
ASOS hits fashion sweet spot of rising online demand

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
LONDON (Reuters) - British online fashion retailer ASOS () beat expectations for sales growth over Christmas and said it sees potential for e-commerce to expand to as much as 40 percent of all clothing sales in developed markets.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
I SPENT £450 ON CLOTHES FOR ME AND THIS BABY. WHY DID I THINK THIS WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Country Overview
For businesses looking to join eCommerce with a competitive advantage, one of the best things to do is find a manufacturing sector that isn't saturated with international businesses. In India, the manufacturing sector has evolved from its earlier stages of industrialization to its current phase of global competitiveness, making it a great location for newer, smaller businesses to manufacture.

Before it becomes overrun by foreign brands, now is the time to connect with manufacturers, gain access to the advancing production capabilities, and start creating relationships with the suppliers for better rates down the road.

Want to Learn How to Launch a Six Figure Product?

The manufacturing sector in India is progressing largely due its location nearby the export giant, China. China remains the largest exporter of goods to India, sending textile materials, plastics and rubber precious metals to suppliers. The trade reliance on China for raw materials continues to impact the growth of India's textile industry, but the nation is also becoming less dependent as production of raw materials starts to rise. For example, cotton production is forecasted to increase by 9.3 percent YoY.

The Indian textile industry is only second in size to China. More than 50 percent of India's textile exports are cotton based, but suppliers also manufacture synthetic fabrics, wool, and silk. The textile sector is one of the oldest industries in India, so Indian suppliers differentiate by implementing antiquated, quality-focused techniques in the production of goods like knitted custom clothing garments.

Over 45 million people work in the Indian textile industry, making it one of the largest sources of employment generation in the country. With so many workers in the industry, suppliers will likely expand and create more opportunities for foreign brands to manufacture. There's untapped potential in the manufacturing sector for smaller eCommerce retailers.
Specializations
The top 3 manufacturing industries in India most relevant to eCommerce sellers are leather, electronics, and the largest, textiles.

Ready to find your factory?

We've helped 100s of companies find the best overseas manufacturers for their products. Get started with a free quote today.

The leather industry has transformed from a mere raw material supplier to a large value-added product exporter. Hundreds of leather manufacturers are located in 7 different cities in India. Leather suppliers specialize in footwear, garments, accessories, and furniture. India is the second largest producer of footwear and leather garments in the world.

Electronics and electronic accessories are also a major industry because India is home to the third largest pool of scientists and technicians in the world. Skilled manpower, strong design, and R&D capabilities are advanced and abundant. The workforce is not just skilled, but cost-effective as well.

India's large textile industry specializes in a number of different textile products, including t-shirts, knitwear, handicraft textiles, scarves, sportswear, canvas bags, backpacks, coated fabrics, curtains, towels, organic cotton, and bedding sets. Along with specializing in the production of one of these categories, India textile suppliers also offer unique production capabilities like technical design development, material and trim sourcing, printing, fabric dyeing, laser cutting, embroidery and pleating, and private label tags.

Textile suppliers are not only diversified in specializations, but also in reputation. The Arvind Mill factory is known for manufacturing high-quality knits and denim and has won a variety of certifications and awards for sustainability. Organic & More is known for producing 100 percent organic products. As an eCommerce retailer, you are sure to find a supplier that can meet your production needs and quality demands.
Country Costs
The cost to manufacture in India is often lower compared to other Asian manufacturing industries due to largely lower worker wages.

India's factory wages are the lowest among Mexico, Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, and China. These kinds of wages can lead to 10-15 percent increase in savings for your eCommerce business, which in turn increases your profit margin.

High import duties are placed on steel and aluminum from India, but if you're in the consumer goods sector you don't have to worry about high import duties. However, once you start shipping large orders from India into the US, your shipments will increase in value and become subject to a higher duty rate. Customs duties are the import taxes charged by the government on all products imported for resale. You can use a FBAforward calculator to multiply the total amount on your commercial invoice by the duty rate for your product. The end number is the amount of customs duty you will pay.

Shipping from India is less costly compared to shipping from other countries in Asia. However, the total shipping cost includes the base rate as well as a CGST and SGST, which are both part of a Goods and Service Tax. These taxes are unique to India's exports. The major share of revenue under CGST is meant for the central government and SGST tax revenue is meant for the state government.

Production Capabilities
On the whole, what makes India a competitive manufacturing location is the low cost of manpower and strong technical and engineering capabilities contributing to higher quality production runs.

India also poses a language advantage since English is an official language of India. It may be easier to communicate with Indian suppliers compared to suppliers in China or Vietnam, which will simplify negotiations.

Most Indian suppliers require a minimum order quantity (MOQ) that ranges between 500-1000 pcs. However, many suppliers are willing to negotiate a lower MOQ in order to work with you. That being said, if you're looking to manufacture in the textile industry, you may run into factories that are working with big buyers like adidas or Ralph Lauren. In this case, it will be harder to negotiate since your small business won't add as much value to their factory.

Competing with big brands is something to expect no matter where you manufacture. In India, many of the factories work like conglomerates, where one big company owns several different factories for spinning, garmenting, knitting, etc. While there may not be enough capacity at the main factory to add your production run, it's possible to manufacture out of one of the subsidiary factories and still remain under the qualified management and quality control of the overarching factory.

When it comes to the textile industry, India boasts loads of advantages: low cost of labor, centuries of experience, countless specializations, domestic production of raw materials, and reliable suppliers with large production capacities.

It's important for smaller businesses to also be made aware of the two different segments in the textile industry: the unorganized sector and organized sector.

The unorganized sector consists of handloom and handicrafts, operated on a small scale and through traditional tools and methods. This sector is best for eCommerce retailers looking to manufacture intricate, artisan goods from hand-spun and hand-woven production techniques.

The organized sector consists of spinning, apparel, and garments where suppliers apply modern machinery and techniques for mass production. This segment has the capacity to produce a wide variety of products suitable to different market segments. While suppliers in this segment are focused on larger production runs, the finished goods still reflect the ancient culture and traditions of the country in terms of textiles.

Working Legally
There's always risk inherent in sourcing from a foreign country. You can search through sites like Global Sources and find countless suppliers while never knowing for certain which ones are reliable. It can be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Some of the best suppliers in India won't even market their services on these kinds of sourcing websites because they don't want to be associated with fraudulence.

Sourcify's sourcing concept eliminates the risk of connecting with illegitimate suppliers because it only sends quotes to buyers from pre vetted factories. As the buyer, you can submit your product specifications onto Sourcify's software platform and receive fast quotes from several different suppliers. Instead of looking for the needle in the haystack, you get the ball in your court. You can pick the quote that meets your budget and product demands.

Want to Learn How to Launch a Six Figure Product?

Finding an overseas manufacturer can take months, with Sourcify it takes on average less than a week to get your first set of bids. Stop wasting time and money when you could have already started production.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What You Need to Know about Manufacturing in India | Sourcify

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Country Overview For businesses looking to join eCommerce with a competitive advantage, one of the best things to do is find a manufacturing sector that isn't saturated with international businesses. In India, the manufacturing sector has evolved from its earlier stages of industrialization to its current phase of global competitiveness, making it a great location for newer, smaller businesses to manufacture.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Benefits and Challenges of Manufacturing in India

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
As India aims to become a top manufacturing hub, India is on the threshold of major reform. India is poised to rank among the top three manufacturing locations by 2020. If you are considering locating or moving your manufacturing operations to India, there are many good reasons to do so.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
As our dependence on social media grows, and it becomes more integrated into our lives, we're becoming more influenced by what we see online than ever before - especially when it comes to fashion.

In years gone by, fashion was presented to us through glossy magazines and catwalk shows. Through these controlled channels, fashion was kept exclusive, determined by designers and magazine editors. Fast-forward to 2018 and it's a very different story.

With platforms like Instagram, we can essentially become our own magazine editors, sharing our personal style with potentially millions of users. While catwalks and glossies still remain a part of today's fashion sphere, fashion is more fluid and interactive than ever before - changing the way fashion brands connect with their core audience.
A new market
No longer do fashionistas rely on the latest issue of Vogue to tell them what's hot this season. It's all about social media - what products are online retailers pushing this season? What going out dresses are all your friends wearing in their latest tagged photos? And, what're the bloggers and influencers on your news feed into this month?

On a whole, millennials are thought to be less trusting of traditional forms of advertising - often perceived to be over-planned and misleading. In the world of fashion, this means that magazines and advertising campaigns don't have the influence that they once did - they're now seen as quite distant from the reader as many are aware of the editing that goes on behind one shot. Instead, peer recommendations are more valuable and accessible than they once used to be. Of course, we've all heard of the power of word-of-mouth, but with social media and its ability to spread at a rapid speed across countries, it's more important than ever before. Of Instagram's total audience, 200 million users follow at least one fashion account. 45% of Instagram users in Britain say they follow these fashion accounts to gain inspiration for looks they can buy or create themselves. Sharing their own looks is a part of this process too, with #fashion mentioned a huge 13 million times a month and #ootd (outfit of the day) featuring in 140 million posts to date.

The need for peer validation most likely stems from a rise in online 'likes' and 'followers' that many social media users strive for. Many of us are used to reading user-generated reviews about an experience or product before making a purchase now. In fact, research found that 71% of people are more likely to make an online purchase if the product or service has been recommended by others. In addition to this, 84% of millennials are likely to be influenced into making a purchase based on the user-generated content by strangers who have experienced the product or service.

With this in mind, it's no surprise that so many fashion brands are centring much of their marketing strategy around Instagram - and indeed digital avenues more widely. Even luxury brands - that once shunned social media for fear of it cheapening their image - are jumping on the digital bandwagon. While 72% of luxury fashion brands' marketing spend is still attributed to print marketing, digital is quickly gaining pace - reaching a total digital ad spend of $100 billion in 2016.

If fashion brands can make their way onto the news feeds of users, they become exposed to a demographic that has already expressed interest in them.
Increased brand involvement
Social media allows fashion companies to interact with their customers on a level that they could never do previously. Founder and editor in chief of independent publication, the Business of Fashion, Imran Amed, says: "The one thing that has changed dramatically in recent years is the direct relationship brands now have with their consumers. In this new hierarchy, the consumer has the ability to amplify or negatively impact on business, through sharing positive or negative responses."

One example of this is fashion shows. Once an exclusive event for the elite and top names in fashion, many shows on the catwalk can now be viewed live by millions. Access to the designers' latest fashion lines was often something that we could only hear about through magazines and the press. Now however, we can keep up with the latest through monitoring the content attached to a hashtag.

When social media first became a global phenomenon, it was mostly about Facebook and Twitter. But, now there's a new player on the scene - and it's taking over. Instagram reached 800 million monthly active users in September 2017 and these users have the highest level of engagement (time spent using the app) compared to other social media sites.

Instagram has become a platform for fashion brands to connect with their audience directly, rather than through a catwalk show or print advertising campaign. This encourages brands to think more about 'real' people, with different bodies, skin tones and fashion preferences - it's opened a whole new world for fashion marketers.

Now, Instagram users can shop directly through the channel. Brands are able to tag products in their posts which can then lead users to a point-of-sale. Early adopters of this, such as Natori and Magnolia Boutique, have already found that traffic and sales from Instagram have increased after implementing the shopping service.
Another successful tactic used by fashion brands that are active on social media is encouraging people to post photos of themselves wearing the clothes. This is another form of user-generated content and it allows others to see what the outfit looks like on real people. In some cases, users are given the chance to feature on the main social media page.
The role of the influencer
Generating a wider conversation around your brand is important and one reason why many fashion brands have incorporated influencer marketing into their digital strategies. The influencer economy of Instagram alone is valued at $1 billion and 94% of businesses said influencer marketing was an effective campaign strategy.

Influencer marketing involves working with influential personas - for example, a blogger or user with a high social following - to increase awareness of a brand or influence the purchasing patterns of a target audience.

For example, Adidas recently unveiled supermodel Kendall Jenner as its new Adidas Ambassador. With a total Instagram following of 89.2 million compared to Adidas' 19.2 million, the partnership will significantly increase Adidas' social reach and position the brand in front of Jenner's younger fashion following.

From a consumer perspective, influencer content is almost like a recommendation from a friend. Seeing the people we admire or look up to wearing a particular outfit or using a certain product is a vote of confidence in a brand that makes us more likely to purchase the particular product or interact with the brand in the future. This sense of community is something that brand accounts struggle to deliver; a third-party is needed to validate the products for consumers.

Influencer marketing does not have to involve a celebrity partnership, although their high exposure levels and number of followers will naturally help. It can involve any profile that can add value to a brand but generally, this value is measured in terms of volume of followers.

However, for maximum benefit, an influencer's followers should be closely linked with a brand's target demographic. Influencer relationships can be expensive, so the associated spend needs to be justifiable - yet doing so can be problematic for fashion brands, when you consider the difficulty surrounding success measurement.

Whether brands are able to gain a clear-cut measure of influencer marketing success or not, there's no denying that building these relationships does ultimately benefit fashion brands, through either increased exposure or sales.

Research found that 5% of the influencers that were offering product recommendations were driving 45% of social influence.

As we can see, social media has changed the face of fashion as we know it. We're now more connected with our brands than ever before and are proud to publicly post about the names we love. With the implementation of Instagram shopping already changing the process of fashion retailing, who knows what the future holds?

By Autumn Wilberg, senior copywriter at﻿ Quiz Clothing

PrivSec Conferences will bring together leading speakers and experts from privacy and security to deliver compelling content via solo presentations, panel discussions, debates, roundtables and workshops.
For more information on upcoming events, visit the website.

Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. comments powered by

© Digital Marketing Magazine 2018 | Privacy Policy | Twitter | YouTube

Amplified Business Content is a limited company registered in England and Wales.
Registered Number: 07953063
Registered Office: 9-11 Castle Street, Cardiff, Wales, CF10 1BS

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How Social Media and its Influencers are Driving Fashion

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
As our dependence on social media grows, and it becomes more integrated into our lives, we're becoming more influenced by what we see online than ever before - especially when it comes to fashion. In years gone by, fashion was presented to us through glossy magazines and catwalk shows.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The online retailer is hoping an increase in the "velocity of conversations with customers" through an uptick in digital marketing and influencer activity will help turn round a slowdown in customer acquisition and website traffic.

Asos plans to increase its investment in digital marketing and influencer marketing after a "challenging" six months that saw a slowdown in customer acquisition and website traffic that hit its performance.

The online retailer says exceptional levels of discounting in the first quarter and ongoing economic uncertainty has "undermined" consumer confidence but admits "we didn't put our best foot forward". In particular, the strength of the Asos proposition weakened, with CEO Nick Beighton admitting it wasn't doing as good a job of promoting the "width" of its producing offering or product newness.

That has hit its performance. Overall sales were up 14% year on year and 16% in the UK as conversion among loyal customers increased. But discounting and investment in areas such as automation hit profit levels, with pre-tax profits falling 87% in the six months to 28 February to £4m.

While Asos maintains it has a "great brand" with impressive engagement stats, organic customer acquisition and traffic have "stepped back significantly" and there has been a reduction in awareness and buying consideration, especially in France and Germany.

To redress this, Beighton says Asos will "upweight" its digital marketing while keeping overall marketing spend relatively flat - it accounted for 6.4% of sales in the first half. Asos is also increasing the "velocity of conversations with customers" - a step change he says has been especially notable on Instagram over the last few weeks.

"Our propositions are still market leading or as good as local, our main issue has been a slowdown in customer acquisition, particularly among the younger demographic around [issues with] presentation, product width and product newness," he said on an analyst call this morning (10 April).

"Mission critical is growing new customers at an increasingly young rate."
READ MORE: Asos A-List's failure shows you don't need a loyalty scheme to drive loyalty
Asos is also doubling its investment in influencer activity year on year. That includes a "summer of festivals programme" that will see influencers appear at top music festivals in the US, including the 'Life is Beautiful' festival in Las Vegas.

This is part of Asos's strategy to significantly increase its US footprint, where it sees a huge opportunity to tap into the $400bn apparel market and target around 70 million 20- to 34-year-olds.

Up until now, Beighton says Asos has treated the US as one country and disregarded the fact that there are dramatically different cultures, interests and expectations. This is something it "would never do" for its European customers, Beighton said, and Asos is increasingly investing in clustering tech that will allow it to serve up content to US customers depending on time zone, climate and region.

Elsewhere, Beighton said sustainability is becoming increasingly important to its customers and is an area of focus for the business. He pointed to the fact that Asos has a modern slavery commitment that ensures garment workers are paid the right wages and have access to the right working conditions.

Asos has also invested in its packaging, with 100% of its plastic bags now recyclable, although currently just 35% of it is recycled. The company is also looking at how it can reduce its environmental footprint in terms of the clothes it sells, with a range of jeans made from 100% recycled material about to launch.

"[Is sustainability] dominating demand? No, but there will be a tipping point. With the advent of social media and younger customers being more connected and aware of things than before, it will become a defining feature. We are ready on that," explained Beighton.

"Customer know we are on it but we will weave it into our narrative far more. It will become a defining feature but it isn't yet."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Asos 'upweights' digital spend as it puts focus on acquisition

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The online retailer is hoping an increase in the "velocity of conversations with customers" through an uptick in digital marketing and influencer activity will help turn round a slowdown in customer acquisition and website traffic.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
Influencer Marketing Blog for Professionals

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
There are plenty types of different influencers on Instagram. You might know about the most popular beauty bloggers, food influencers or even about successful pet influencers. But how about kid influencers? Yes, you heard right, kid influencers are a thing. And they are just as good as their grown-up counterparts!
With 3.2m followers, Emma and Mila Stauffer are by far two of the most successful kid influencers on Instagram. The account is run by their mom, Katie Stauffer, who uses the platform as a medium to get creative with her kids.

As a mother of five (two boys, three girls), all kids are featured on the account. But the 3-year-old twins, who are the youngest of the siblings, are definitely the stars of the account. The twin-sisters had numerous cooperations with brands for kid supplies, food and clothes (e.g. Pampers, KIND Snacks, Amazon, Sago Mini).

Laerta might be young, but that kid definitely is a pro! The 6-year-old girl is posing like a real fashion blogger on her account, which is run by her mom.

In her posts, Laerta presents herself in stylish outfits and cool poses. She really seems to be a born fashionista. In September, she reached an earned media value of 27,803 US Dollars, as she was featured on accounts like @kidzootd and @kids_fashion_blogger.

Coco is probably the coolest 7-year-old on the block. Based in Tokyo, this little girl has already developed her very own individual and distinctive style.

Her most characteristic trade mark are probably her extravagant sunglasses which she is wearing in almost every picture. Surprisingly, the Japanese girl is most popular in the United States. Only 3.7% of her followers are actually from her home country, Japan.

The account of @ministylehacker consists of the three brothers Ryker, Grey and baby Wyatt.

Based in Los Angeles, the account is run by their mom Colette who posts about topics such as parenting, fashion and travel. She created the account originally with her oldest son Ryker, to "hack" the style of celebrity men such as Ryan Gosling or Pharrell, but instead of letting Ryker wear designer clothes, she aimed for more budget-friendly options such as H&M and Target.

Are you ready for some cuteness overload? Then the account of @milliebellediamond is the right thing for you. With only 3 years, Millie-Belle is one of the youngest kids in our top list of kid influencers. The Australian toddler captivates her followers with her love of princess dresses and the colour pink.

Other than for example Laerta, her account is less professional when it comes to the fashion shots but rather includes some funny or silly shots as well, which makes it more authentic and fun to look at.

Nevertheless, Millie-Belle has already made her first appearance on the red carpet at the age of 2 in cooperation with the children's brand Little Miss Aoki. We guarantee you, this little girl will steal your heart.

Haileigh Vasquez is not only a star on Instagram - the 8-year-old is also a fashion designer, model and actress.

The little fashionista from New York has appeared in some commercials (for example for Nickelodeon) and has even walked the runway for several well-known brands such as Converse or Nike. In Addition to that, she designed her own pieces in a collaboration with Target's Class of 2017 "ART CLASS" collection. In January 2017 her account on Instagram reached an earned media value of 16.494 $ after she was named by dancer Kendall Vertes in her Instagram post about the Target collection.

Get ready for @ryansecret - your heart will melt as soon as you check out his Instagram account.

As with most kid accounts, this one is run by Ryan's mom, who also appears in many of the posts alongside her son.

Ryan really knows how to play cool while posing in his stylish outfits. The little fashion boy already had some successful collaborations, for example with the children's clothing brand The Children's Place or with Toys"R"Us.

Cissifio is the Instagram Account of Amelia Fioriniello and her mom Cissi. This little Swedish girl, located in Gothenburg, might be the best dressed kid that you have ever come across, with a wardrobe that could almost make you jealous.

Amelia and her mom already had cooperations with the Swedish car dealer Holmgrens Bil and currently with the fashion label Lindex. The account has a positive follower growth (+1.59 %) and a quite high like follower ratio (4.3 %).

While mother and daughter can be often seen together on the images, it is noticeable that pictures with Amelia alone perform much better. But this is no big surprise, that little girl is simply adorable.

Kingandkaui is the account of the siblings Kingston and his younger sister Kaui.

Both have an extraordinary sense for fashion which they love to present in front of the camera. While most of the pictures show both kids together, the images of little Kaui are especially adorable.

On Kaui's 4 th birthday, Kim Kardashian shared a picture of the little girl with her friends, saying #happybirthdaykaui.

So make sure to check out the profile of those two cutie pies.

Prepare for another Instagram account full of twin cuteness. Sheriandsheri is the account of the two little twin girls Ol'ka and Esenia from Russia who will fill your heart with joy.

Although their Instagram account is still quite small, they have great potential and have already been featured on the account @fashionkids which has 3.7m followers.

The twin's style is very girly and playful, combining pink and white colours with cozy knitwear.

So, if you need some winter inspiration for your kid's wardrobe (or even for your own) you're definitely right on this account.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Top 10 Kid Influencers on Instagram | Influencer Marketing Blog for Professionals

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
There are plenty types of different influencers on Instagram. You might know about the most popular beauty bloggers, food influencers or even about successful pet influencers. But how about kid influencers? Yes, you heard right, kid influencers are a thing. And they are just as good as their grown-up counterparts!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Online fashion retailer Asos has seen its profits plunge, after a difficult year caused by heavy discounting and website traffic issues.

Asos' pre-tax profits fell 87% to £4m for the six months to 28 February against the same period in 2018.

The firm said it had managed to stabilise sales, which rose 14% to £1.3bn for the period.

Asos said marketing changes meant a fall in visits to its websites and a drop in its search engine rankings.

Asos shares are up 13% in morning trading.

What has gone wrong at Asos?

Chief executive Nick Beighton said that Asos had identified a number of things it "can do better", and that heavy investment in its platforms gave the retailer "increased confidence" that its performance would improve in the second half of the year.

He added that the global fashion industry was growing and now worth more than £220bn.

"We now have the tech platform, the infrastructure, a constant conversation with our growing customer base who love our own great product and the constantly evolving edit of brands we present to them," said Mr Beighton.

Asos said its financial guidance for the year remained the same.

In December, Asos warned on profits, saying that cutting prices to match rivals had not led to a significant increase in sales, sparking a 40% fall in the share price.

The profit warning came as a shock to many, as Asos was seen as an online disrupter to the High Street fashion market.

"The company's current predicament shows people are simply spending less on goods, be it in physical or virtual shops," said Hargreaves Lansdown equity analyst Sophie Lund-Yates.

Despite the heavy discounting, she feels that Asos is now on the right track, particularly if spending stabilises over the next year.

"Asos is still very much a growth story, and its vast customer base, and growing international proposition, mean it should be able to prosper from here on in," said Ms Lund-Yates.

Why has Asos changed its returns policy?

In early April, Asos announced that it was changing its returns policy.

The time allowed for returns of unwanted items has been lengthened from 28 days to 45 days.

However, the retailer warned customers that if it suspected that individuals were actually wearing goods and then returning them, or ordering and returning "loads", it might deactivate the account.

A popular rising trend has seen customers post pictures on social media of themselves in new outfits.

Certain users do not like being seen in the same outfit twice, making it tempting to use an outfit once and return it.

How is Asos trying to transform its business?

Asos said that initiatives designed to improve its business had hit profits, from decisions on short-term pricing and inventory, to new marketing strategies.

To stay competitive, the retailer launched 200 versions of its website depending on which country the customer is in, which had a negative effect on Asos' search engine rankings.

Asos also made changes to the way customers navigate around its main website, particularly in how new products were displayed.

Asos said that the changes resulted in a slowdown in the growth of younger customers, but UK sales rose 16% due to orders from existing customers.

Although US sales growth was below expectations, the retailer said that demand far exceeded its expectations in February, once its new warehouse in Atlanta went online.

Sales rose by 80% in the first three days after the warehouse went into operation, to the extent that Asos did not have enough staff to cope with demand, and there was a delay in sending out packages to customers.

Why is Asos' share price going up?

According to Neil Wilson, chief market analyst for Markets.com, the price of Asos shares is rising because investors are willing to "take a bet on the future".

Although the share price hasn't returned to the heights it reached prior to the December profit warning, Asos actually isn't doing that badly. "Asos is still flying, it's still outperforming the market. It set itself a very high bar previously," Mr Wilson told the BBC.

"Asos has a lot going for it - if you look at the US, there's huge, huge growth about to happen, I think we saw that with the warehouse problem they had.

"That's a great problem to have."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Asos profits slump 87% after difficult year

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Online fashion retailer Asos has seen its profits plunge, after a difficult year caused by heavy discounting and website traffic issues. Asos' pre-tax profits fell 87% to £4m for the six months to 28 February against the same period in 2018. The firm said it had managed to stabilise sales, which rose 14% to £1.3bn for the period.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The latest lifestyle, fashion and travel trends

The latest lifestyle, fashion and travel trends

Don't Buy Her Flowers
@Steph_dontbuyherflowers
Founded by entrepreneur Steph Douglas, this gifting website is about giving mothers what they really want. Think packages with everything from Pantherella cashmere socks and COOK meal delivery vouchers to Cartwright & Butler shortbread and Bloom & Fentiman's gin. dontbuyherflowers.com

Selfish Mother
@selfishmother
Founded by journalist Molly Gunn, this does what it says on the tin. What's more, it tackles everything from pregnancy discrimination to the breastfeeding debate and sells cool

T-shirts emblazoned with "mother", "sista" and "human". Profits go to Women for Women and the Calais refugee crisis.selfishmother.com

Little Prints Clothing
@littleprintskidsclothing
With prints sourced from Nigeria, this accessible collection of bright and beautiful children's items (including truly covetable cats' ears) is shaking up mini wardrobes. Founded by prop maker Madeleine Famurewa, it's hard to choose from baggy trousers (think pint-sized Run DMC) or personalised bunting or drawstring bags that have where-did-you-get-that-from appeal. etsy.com/shop/littleprintsclothing

The Yes Mum
@theyesmummum

Instamums: meet the Londoners turning parenting into social media gold

Launched by hypnobirthing expert Hollie de Cruz - she's most recently worked with Fearne Cotton - this is a forum for parental positivity but without the tie-dyed trousers. Hollie's YESMUM affirmation cards have made waves across Instagram.

Tiba + Marl
@tibaandmarl
"Changing bags finally got cool": that's the sentiment weaved throughout the unisex Tiba + Marl collection. Founded by Anna Tizard and Lydia Barron, it's full of leopard print, bold floral patterns and high-tech, luxe finishes that make you wonder why someone didn't come up with this sooner. These are the sort of changing bags (and clutches, with requisite changing mat) you don't even need a baby as an excuse to buy. tibaandmarl.com

Follow Anna Whitehouse on Instagram: @mother_pukka

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Instamums: the best mother and baby Instagram accounts to follow

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The latest lifestyle, fashion and travel trends The latest lifestyle, fashion and travel trends @Steph_dontbuyherflowers Founded by entrepreneur Steph Douglas, this gifting website is about giving mothers what they really want. Think packages with everything from Pantherella cashmere socks and COOK meal delivery vouchers to Cartwright & Butler shortbread and Bloom & Fentiman's gin.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
7 famous toddlers on Instagram with over 1 million followers | Young Parents

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Meet these seven toddlers (that's right!) who have over a million followers each on Instagram. Yes, social media fame can start from a really young age!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
When you've changed more nappies than you thought was humanly possible where do you head to for some light relief? We think Instagram might be the perfect place to find mum-influencers who will make you feel like you're not alone!

Forget pristine and curated Instagram feeds full of kale smoothies and bedtime routines, we are talking honest and frank discussions about motherhood, fashion inspo to fight the badly dressed mum stereotype and tips on post-baby body confidence.

Whether you need an inspiring quote to spur you on or advice on hair trends these accounts are wonderfully varied and funny.

Check out our definitive list of the best UK mum-influencers to follow.

The best mum-influencers to follow:
Now read: The Mum List 2019 winners!
Any missing from the list? Let us know on Facebook or Twitter!
Make sure you're following Mother & Baby on Instagram for relatable memes, inspiring stories and parenting hacks.
Join the club! Introducing our brand, spankin' new Facebook group called #mumtribe. Simply search '#mumtribe' into the search bar and meet like-minded mums, win gorgeous goodies and have some fun!

Have approx 60 seconds to spare? Why not join thousands of mums-to-be and start your very own Amazon baby wish list! They're absolutely free to create and perfect to send to the friends, aunties and your mum to make sure you're getting the baby products you really need... Click here!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The best mum-influencers to follow on Instagram

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
When you've changed more nappies than you thought was humanly possible where do you head to for some light relief? We think Instagram might be the perfect place to find mum-influencers who will make you feel like you're not alone!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Recent Matalan campaign

Five Key Trends

Babyboom. UK births boomed between 2006 and 2008, boosting sales of babywear and children's clothing. Strong projected growth of 5-9 year old children will help sales.

Pricing. Six in ten parents think price is the most important factor when shopping for their children's clothes with more than half thinking kids' clothes are overpriced.

Replacement purchases. These will continue to be the biggest driver of new purchases as children rapidly grow out of their clothes.

Designer brands. Still a small area but more luxury brands have extended into childrenswear with labels such as Stella McCartney, Dior and Tommy Hilfiger all getting in on the act.

Supermarkets. As the supermarkets have extended into clothing, competition has become fierce and prices have been pushed down. Grocery chains now dominate sales.

Stylish children. The obsession with looks is getting younger: two thirds of 7-12 year olds think it's important to look good.
Source: Mintel
Retailers at which children buy clothes by gender, October 2011 (%)

Share of UK retail value sales of childrenswear by outlet type (%)

The Industrys Main Players
Sean McGinty, head of marketing, George at Asda
McGinty was promoted to the top marketer slot for the George brand in 2012. He drives both the fashion and family focused campaigns, including the recent Back to School and Easter £5 or less campaigns. He has also worked for Wal-Mart international as global marketing manager.
Steven Sharp, executive director, marketing, Marks and Spencer
Marks joined Marks & Spencer in May 2004 and became executive director, marketing in November 2005. His career began at Bejam, moving onto the Argyll Group and in 1987 he was marketing director for Asda. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, The Marketing Society and The Royal Society of Arts, as well as a visiting Professor of Glasgow Caledonian University and non-executive director of Adnams.
Alison Lancaster, chief marketing officer, Kiddicare.com

Lancaster's remit also covers marketing director for Morrisons.com non food business. Before joining Morrisons she worked at fashion retailer White Stuff as well as working as a consultant for brands including Feather & Black and Gant UK.

Winners and Losers in the childrenswear sector

Kiddicare. Morrisons-owned etailer Kiddicare offers clothes among its wider range of goods and is looking at adding bricks-and-mortar stores nationwide.

Asda. Is the first-choice destination (almost six in ten people go there for childrenswear).

Primark. Top choice for children aged 10 - 14 years old buying their own clothes and girls twice as likely as boys to shop there.

Next. Its popularity among childrenswear shoppers has diminished - down 9% between 2009 and 2011.

Mothercare. Despite its brand heritage, especially in the babywear market, it has struggled with profits falling and consequent store closures and job losses.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Babyboom. UK births boomed between 2006 and 2008, boosting sales of babywear and children's clothing. Strong projected growth of 5-9 year old children will help sales. Pricing. Six in ten parents think price is the most important factor when shopping for their children's clothes with more than half thinking kids' clothes are overpriced.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Are you ready? The magical Harry Potter inspired range designed by Boden is here - and, you can see it all now...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
By Kate Abnett June 21, 2016 16:02

Sponsored by:

LONDON, United Kingdom - Children's fashion is on the rise. "Back-to-school is not just a time to stock up, but also a time for kids to express themselves. Back-to-school has become their red carpet," says Andres Dorronsoro, vice president and general manager for Kids, which has the third-largest market share of childrenswear brands worldwide. "Kids are more aware of trends than ever before."

Boosted by the "infiltration of fashion into children's clothing," the global children's market racked up sales of €135.6 billion in 2015, up from €122.1 billion in 2010, according to Bernadette Kissane, an analyst at Euromonitor. And while kid's clothing only accounts for 12 percent of the overall apparel market, in the last five years, growth in childrenswear has outpaced that of both menswear and womenswear. In 2015, childrenswear sales grew 6 percent, while the men's and women's markets each grew 4 percent.

Demographic shifts are one major driver of this growth. In 2014, the birth rate in the United States began to rise again, after dropping every year since 2007. Parents in the US and UK are also having children later in life, when they have more disposable income to spend on bigger wardrobes for their children, or trade up their purchases to higher-end brands.

What we see trending is less about practicality and more about replicas of what is being sold for adults - the little jackets, the D&G swimsuits.

Meanwhile in Asia Pacific, thanks to aspirational consumption among the booming middle classes and the rapid expansion of international brands like Uniqlo, Adidas, Nike and H&M - all of which are top ten childrenswear brands for market share in the region - the region is now the fastest-growing market for childrenswear worldwide. In 2015, the Asia Pacific childrenswear market was worth €44.1 billion and is projected to reach €65.1 billion by 2020.

The middle of the market is hollowing out, however. "Similarly to adult clothing, the market is experiencing a level of polarisation that favours both value and designer, leaving mid-tier players - in particular, childrenswear specialists - struggling to regain lost market share," says Kissane. At the high-street level, children's clothing has begun to imitate adult clothing, as parents' desire for their children to be "on-trend" has increased and their consumption habits have shifted towards more frequent purchases.

Meanwhile, the luxury end of the childrenswear market is growing, fuelled by older parents in Western markets - who are further along in their careers and thus likely to have a higher disposable income - and increased demand from emerging markets, "where aspirational consumption lends itself well to lavishly spending on children," says Kissane. Indeed, in China, the government's one-child policy, coupled with increased spending power within households and parents' desire to give their children benefits the previous generation lacked, has given rise to "Little Emperor syndrome", a term coined to describe the tendency of Chinese households to spend heavily on only children.

In the late 2000s and early 2010s, a flurry of designer brands, including Marc Jacobs, Stella McCartney, Lanvin, , Fendi, Dolce & Gabbana and Roksanda, jumped to tap this trend, launching their first forays into the childrenswear market. While some brands - such as Vince and Tommy Hilfiger - operate children's labels via licensing agreements, many are made in-house and correspond closely to a designer's women's and men's collections, playing into the desire for "mini me" outfits where parents and children dress the same.

"I realised how much moms enjoy buying dresses for their daughters. It's a different perception in buying for your daughter than buying for yourself - you would indulge in her much more than you would yourself," says London-based designer Roksanda Ilincic,who launched Blossom, a line of girls' clothing which features many of the fabrics, bright colours and motifs used in her women's collections in 2012. "I also felt the market was lacking a bit of fun... that things for kids were either too pink or too perfect," she continues.

According to Candice Fragis, buying & merchandising director at , which launched its childrenswear division in March, , Moncler and Dolce & Gabbana are amongst the top-selling labels in both women's and children's. "We've seen that kidswear has been an add-on to a lot of the purchasing that's done by both men and women," she says. "What we see trending is less about practicality and more about replicas of what is being sold for adults - the little Moncler jackets, the D&G swimsuits."

Increasingly, children's fashion also has a place on social media, giving rise to influencers like Farouk James, a four-year-old childrenswear model. Indeed, Burberry has had success with the "mini me" approach and offers children's versions of the trench coats, checked scarves and dresses from its main collections. The brand transitioned its childrenswear business in Europe from a license to a direct operation at the end of 2015, in which year childrenswear grew 15 percent to make up 4 percent of overall revenue, or £91 million - the company's fastest-growing product division that year.

"Our customers gravitate towards brands for their kids that they personally might wear," adds Tom Kalenderian, executive vice president and general merchandising manager of Men's and Chelsea Passage at Barneys New York, where Stella McCartney, Dolce & Gabbana, Sonia Rykiel and Moncler are among the top-selling children's labels.

Children's clothing has also followed recent trends in men's and women's fashion, which prioritise comfort and performance. "Athleisure is important," says Kalenderian. "Most kids probably are not going to the gym or yoga, but mirror the parents' way of dressing." He also attributes an uptick in comfy, on-trend knit bottoms in drop crotch and harem silhouettes for boys, to parents wanting their kids to look as hip as them.

"Activewear is particularly relevant for kids. Kids need clothes that are both fashionable and functional to hold up to their active lifestyle," agrees Andres Dorronsoro of Old Navy Kids. The increased use of stretch denim and "jeggings" among women has also trickled down to childrenswear, by enabling children to wear more comfortable, softer denim styles.

"With kids it's all about comfort," concurs Roksanda Ilincic. "You can't have a that is itchy or a dress with a lining that isn't nice enough, it just doesn't work to mix natural fabrics with man made fabrics," she says.

Increasingly, children's fashion also has a place on social media, giving rise to influencers like Farouk James, a four-year-old childrenswear model known for his large afro, whose Instagram account (run by him mum) has racked up 119,000 followers, as well as childrenswear bloggers and brands like Courtney Adamo (176,000 followers) and Julia Restoin Roitfeld (255,000 followers), daughter of Carine Roitfeld and founder of childrenswear brand Romy and the Bunnies.

And with children joining social media at an earlier age than ever before, pre-teens are themselves more aware of trends. Fitness brand is betting on this, and this summer will launch Athleta Girl, a new line of about 60 styles for girls aged six to 14, comprising performancewear which can be worn for sport, school or play. "A girls' line is something our customers have been asking for - girls today want to dress sporty. They are living more active lives," says Nancy Green, president and general manager of Athleta, which is a division of Inc.

Another key driver of trends in children's fashion is celebrity offspring, who are increasingly becoming fashion icons at an early age - from North West to Prince George, Princess Charlotte to Blue Ivy. "Children are important influencers today," says Tom Kalenderian at Barneys. When Shiloh Jolie-Pitt was born, Barneys sold out of the t-shirt she wore on the cover of People magazine.

"We try not to chase our tails with the item of the moment, but we are impacted by celebrity babies," adds Mary Elise McGowan, divisional merchandise manager for intimate, hosiery and kids at Neiman Marcus. "We have definitely seen an increase in demand for classic looks since Prince George and Princess Charlotte have been photographed wearing very traditional looks."

John Lewis, too, is experiencing a royal baby sales boost. Last year, the retailer reported that Prince George's traditional outfits had led to increased sales of boy's navy knitted jumpers by 69 percent, and a 447 percent uptick in enquiries for similar items when he was picture wearing a quilted jacket for his first day at school.

Meanwhile, the e-commerce market for childrenswear is heating up - especially in the premium segment. Last year, Swedish e-commerce retailer Babyshop acquired its competitor AlexandAlexa to form The Luxury Kids Group, a premium children's etailer expected to turnover €40 million next year.

Leading luxury e-tailers are also making strides into the market. Since launching in March, Farfetch's childrenswear division has grown from 9 brands and 19 boutiques to nearly 70 brands and 30 boutiques. "The goal is to attract the same level of boutiques we always have [for adultswear] - but for kidswear," says Candice Fragis, buying & merchandising director at the company. Additionally, in2013, Net-A-Porter's Alison Loehnis confirmed the company had registered the domain petite-a-porter.com and "will explore kids."

Cécile Roederer founded Smallable, a French concept e-tailer for childrenswear, toys and home décor (which also operates a physical concept store in Paris), which sells almost 500 brands including Stella McCartney Kids, Munsterkids and Milk on the Rocks seven years ago. Last year, the business turned over €20 million with 60 percent of sales from international markets.

"When I started, there were not so many brands for children. It was a few, and we really needed to search for them, it was frustrating," she recalls. E-commerce, as well as working well for time-poor parents, by enabling them to get everything they need in one place, without leaving the house, has also prompted a great desire for discovery among parents shopping for childrenswear brands, and sparked a shift in purchasing habits. "During the past few years, there has been a decrease of brands with big logos - big multinational brands. Especially because emerging countries like China, Russia, don't want logo luxury any more. They want the product more than the brand. For us, there has been a move towards emerging designers' products.
To coincide with the 83 Edition of Pitti Bimbo (Thursday 23rd - Saturday 25th June, 2016), The Business of Fashion presents a Special Report on the Childrenswear Market, sponsored by Pitti Immagine. Look out for in depth market analysis and global coverage of the brands and the retailers innovating in the childrenswear space each day of the fair.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
By Kate Abnett June 21, 2016 16:02 Sponsored by: LONDON, United Kingdom - Children's fashion is on the rise. "Back-to-school is not just a time to stock up, but also a time for kids to express themselves. Back-to-school has become their red carpet," says Andres Dorronsoro, vice president and general manager for Kids, which has the third-largest market share of childrenswear brands worldwide.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Online fashion retailer ASOS has entered the childrenswear market with the launch of branded kidswear from the likes of Tommy Hilfiger and Cath Kidston today (February 20).

The new range will be appear under the brand 'Little asos' and will offer 40 brands for babies up to 24 months and girls and boys age 2-6, with prices ranging from £6 to £120 for clothing and £4 to £120 for accessories.

Lee Kidz, the US denim label tots' range, will be available exclusively in the UK via the site, and Bon Jovi's Tico Torres rock and roll inspired designs will be available as an online exclusive. Catalogue brands Boden baby and mini collections will also be available.

The retailer says it currently has no plans to launch its own-brand kidswear.

The move will see Childrenswear shoppers have even greater access to choice and competitive prices this year following Shop Direct's decision to revive the Ladybird brand at Woolworths.co.uk site.

The eight year old retailer, which has so far focused on clothing for 16-34 year old "fashion-forward" women, recently reported its sales were up 108% year on year in the 42 weeks to January 16, although it admitted it was not immune to the downturn and its margins had been slightly hit by promotional activity in the run up to Christmas.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Online fashion retailer ASOS has entered the childrenswear market with the launch of branded kidswear from the likes of Tommy Hilfiger and Cath Kidston today (February 20). The new range will be appear under the brand 'Little asos' and will offer 40 brands for babies up to 24 months and girls and boys age 2-6, [...]