When revamping yourself for the new season, the internet allows you to quickly update on the arrival of spring/summer 2014 collections and select a new wardrobe of chic clothing.
Among the myriad of e-commerce platforms, Zalora Thailand regards itself as an “online fashion High Street”, where one can shop for both international and local brands as well its private label, Ezra.
“This is a new season for us. With our massive reach of 15 million visits per month, we have clearly positioned ourselves as the leading online fashion destination in Asia and major international brands are increasingly excited to partner with us,’’ said Jose Ojeda, Zalora Thailand’s country manager.
The partnership with international brands include Mango, Aldo, American Apparel, River Island and New Look.
Mango’s spring/summer 2014 collection comes with a minimalist theme in a very simple palette of grey, black, white, and touches of fuchsia whereas River Island’s designs centre around a California-beach theme with super-bright tropical accents, candy colours and clashing prints evoking a distinctly 90s feel.
While Los Angeles-based American Apparel operates its own global e-commerce site, the partnership with Zalora will strengthen its presence in this region and allow easier access of men’s cotton hoodies, tanks and T-shirts and women’s fitted jersey dresses, chiffon shirts, camisoles and T-shirts.
“We have a team of expert buyers who scout the market for internationally successful brands that we bring, for the first time, to Thailand, like American Apparel or River Island. To be able to offer our customers convenient access to such a widely-loved and instantly recognisable brand, such as American Apparel, is one of the ways we keep the Zalora experience excellent,’’ he said. “We also work with local/designer brands like Sretsis as well as offer our private label Ezra, which provides the latest and most exciting fashion at an affordable price.’’
Besides the attractiveness of the assortment, Ojeda emphasised service as a key factor in becoming Southeast Asia’s No.1 online fashion house.
“Buying at Zalora is extremely convenient and easy. Not only do we provide payment options like cash on delivery, credit card or paypal, we also offer a fast delivery [within 3 days] and free returns of up to 30 days,’’ he explained. “We have recently partnered with 7-Eleven to provide the option of picking up, and soon-to-launch return, your order in one of its locations.’’
Online shopping also appeals to male customers, he noted, who like to shop mostly for shoes and apparel (65% against 61% for women) and sports items (10% against 4% for women) that are usually more expensive products.
“Male behaviour is also very different from females in terms of brands. Men’s purchases are heavily concentrated while women buy from a much wider group of brands. One can say that men are looking for brands that they know, while women are more focused on the product/price,’’ he said.
Founded in early 2012, Zalora operates in Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Brunei, where localised sites offer collections of over 500 international and local brands and over 15,000 products across apparel, shoes, accessories and beauty categories for men and women.
“At the end of the day, it is the consumer that decides where they want to shop for fashion and Zalora is offering an additional choice,’’ he said. “Given our impressive reach, we want to work together with our brand partners to further strengthen their brand equity and awareness in a still under-penetrated market like Southeast Asia. In general we believe it is important that online and offline go hand-in-hand to offer excellent customer experience in Asian fashion retail.”
