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Distinguished Member
- Joined
- Jan 4, 2007
- Messages
- 2,503
- Reaction score
- 2
I've long toyed with the idea of opening a brick-and-mortar menswear store in my neighborhood, which is gentrifying, evolving, diverse, and also underserved. I know that I can buy the right merchandise to meet the neighborhood's needs, maintain an inviting atmosphere that welcomes customers, think strategically to leverage the storefront and the name on the sign for auxiliary business ventures, and run the business intelligently. PR is simple; there are a thousand menswear blogs that will cover your launch.
But we're in the age of online retail, where East Dane can undercut your price by 25% in a minute's notice and Revolve offers coupon codes that their sales volume affords. I could obviously sell my wares online as well as B&M (e-commerce setups have become dead-ass simple), but I'd be a drop in a large pond. I can style products and take gorgeous photos so that consumers aren’t looking at t-shirts on mannequins (as Fok said, TOJ’s biggest strength is their product styling), but I've been a StyleForum member for long enough to know that informed consumers know their product and first and foremost shop on price.
I’d like to get StyleForum’s take on the state of retail menswear boutiques. Here are a few thought-starters:
Thanks. I look forward to the discussion.
But we're in the age of online retail, where East Dane can undercut your price by 25% in a minute's notice and Revolve offers coupon codes that their sales volume affords. I could obviously sell my wares online as well as B&M (e-commerce setups have become dead-ass simple), but I'd be a drop in a large pond. I can style products and take gorgeous photos so that consumers aren’t looking at t-shirts on mannequins (as Fok said, TOJ’s biggest strength is their product styling), but I've been a StyleForum member for long enough to know that informed consumers know their product and first and foremost shop on price.
I’d like to get StyleForum’s take on the state of retail menswear boutiques. Here are a few thought-starters:
- your personal experience with the market (maybe we can hear from some of the proprietors on the forum?)
- reasons to enter or avoid the market
- gaps in the overall market that are worth exploring/exploiting
- examples of young stores doing it right (don’t say American Rag or another store that’s been around for decades)
Thanks. I look forward to the discussion.