Future of retail lies in clicks, not bricks
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Yoox.com: Yoox Group launched the Chinese e-commerce sites of seven fashion brands, including Armani, in 2010. Over the next two years, the company opened the Chinese versions of thecorner.com and yoox.com. Photos Provided to China Daily |
But in other areas, the company is turning international practices local. It offers Chinese customers a "butler service", which allows them to try on purchases while a courier waits for 10 minutes to see if the person wishes to return any items.
The Outnet, run by the same group behind the online fashion retailers Net-a-Porter and Mr Porter, last year unveiled its Chinese website - its first non-English site. And among its three international teams of buyers, which watch out for market trends and demands, one is based in Shanghai; the others are in New York and London.
The company, which has headquarters in England, isn't surprised e-commerce has grown so quickly in a country of China's size.
The Internet "provides amazing access", Stephanie Phair, The Outnet's global managing director, says by e-mail. "Women living in second- or third-tier cities can access great fashion just like those living in Shanghai or Beijing."
Shopbop, a fashion retailer owned by Amazon.com, introduced its Chinese site in 2011. On it, the company has maintained its English website's layout, general product offerings, as well as prices - when imported goods are normally more expensive in China due to the country's tax regulations.
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