Zalora launches in-house label

Zalora launches in-house label

SINGAPORE - For Singapore-based online fashion portal Zalora, offering shoppers the chance to buy pieces from more than 500 brands, such as River Island and American Apparel, is not enough, it seems.

The e-tailer, which set up shop in early 2012 , will launch its first eponymous in-house line later this month.

Divided into three sub-collections, the Zalora label consists of a youthful and trend-focused Love Zalora line, a corporate-focused Zalora Collection line and a luxe, runway-inspired Zalora Premium line. Prices range roughly from $18 for a dress to $59 for a jacket.

The label will be available on the Zalora website at the end of this month, with around 500 pieces across womenswear, menswear and accessories. The offerings will be updated monthly across all categories.

Ms Avni Pundir, managing director and head of the Zalora label, says the in-house Zalora label was a logical next step for the brand.

The e-commerce site had launched Ezra, its first in-house line, in October last year. When the company held a pop-up store at Tiong Bahru in February, the response was "overwhelming", she says, with roughly 1,000 customers visiting the space over three days and bringing in about $15,000 in sales.

"Customers were asking about Ezra and it was a great opportunity to show people the quality of the brand in person," says Ms Pundir.

Ezra now accounts for about a quarter of Zalora's total revenue driven by women's sales.

The brand decided to launch the Zalora label and eventually phase out the Ezra label.

When asked whether it would have been easier simply to bring in more labels instead of creating an in-house label from scratch, Ms Pundir says that was a possibility, "but there's a satisfaction to creating something that goes directly to the client".

Also, prices can be kept lower. "We offer reputed international brands but their headquarters would be in Europe. Sometimes there's a gap in price level."

On-Trend Fashion at Attractive Prices

Working directly with factories instead of through agents means the brand can offer the best prices possible for pieces from the Zalora label.

The collection is helmed by a 45-member designing and buying team in Singapore. The label is manufactured in China.

Zalora is not the first e-tailer to create an in-house label to complement offerings from other brands it carries.

In September 2012, for instance, luxury discount site The Outnet launched its own label Iris & Ink. Created in 2009, the outlet arm of luxury e-tailer Net-A-Porter created Iris & Ink to fill a gap in the market, by creating simple, on-trend pieces that go with the designer pieces the site offered.

Even with Zalora's low prices, its head of womenswear design Kimberley Seacombe says the brand is committed to offering high-quality, on-trend pieces. Some of her favourite pieces debuting soon include a retro matching Hawaiian print set of a bustier top and midi skirt, as well as a multi-texture embellished jacket.

When asked what differentiates the Zalora label from other fast-fashion brands such as Forever 21, she says the taste level is older, with a more sophisticated customer in mind.

Ms Pundir says more pop-up shops may be held in the future to help familiarise the public with the brand.

"It's sometimes difficult to express expensive fabrics like jacquard in an online space," she says.

"But after a few buys, customers will understand the quality."

She adds that the goal remains to provide shoppers with on-trend fashion at attractive prices, but the new naming indicates a greater commitment.

As Ms Seacombe puts it: "Essentially, it's more eyes on you."

llim@sph.com.sg


This article was first published on August 15, 2014.
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