Marketplaces are a key part of most fashion brands’ success. Even luxury brands, which were slower to adopt online selling, have been enjoying overwhelming success by selling through marketplaces. In fact, 2016 saw high-end fashion retailers take in over $4 billion dollars through marketplace sales – $200 million more than through department stores.
According to Antonio Achille, the head of luxury at consulting firm McKinsey, the success of marketplaces is largely down to their ability to “offer a curated assortment without the risk of carrying the full inventory needed to fuel their growth.” While some marketplaces – such as ASOS – choose to buy a brand’s full inventory and sell it from their own warehouses, others work by merely curating collections on their site, with the brand handling fulfilment themselves.
As the shift towards online shopping iPaaS Vendors became more apparent, hundreds of new marketplaces started to pop up. From mass-market businesses like Amazon and ASOS to more niche options like Curated Crowd and The RealReal, marketplaces have monopolised a large portion of online fashion sales.
There’s no doubt that buying and selling through marketplaces should be a large part of your 2019 ecommerce strategy. But not all marketplaces will be a good fit for your brand – which is why you won’t see Gucci selling through Etsy. To keep things simple, we’ve laid out four of the best B2C and wholesale marketplaces for fashion retailers, as well as how you can use them to grow your business.
Farfetch
Type: B2C
Best for: Luxury fashion brands.
Farfetch is a global retail marketplace for luxury fashion, connecting brands with retailers and customers around the world. As of 2018, Farfetch is home to over 3000 business, from heritage brands to emerging designers. Stocking everything from women and menswear to vintage clothing and fine jewellery, it’s the home of true luxury.
The Farfetch platform is designed as a single operating system to connect the luxury fashion ecosystem worldwide. Existing purely for the love of fashion, Farfetch has an unrivalled range of products from the world’s most exclusive designers, including Gucci, Chloé, Burberry, Jimmy Choo, Valentino and many, many more. Along with access to some of the world’s most luxurious brands, Farfetch also provides inspiration, unique content and other services to help customers navigate the breadth of products available.
If you’re in the luxury niche, selling through Farfetch is a great move for your brand authority. Because they cater exclusively to the premium market, being associated with Farfetch instantly gives your brand a badge of authority. And with thousands of customers turning to Farfetch as a source of luxury fashion, it also helps raise awareness and increase your sales.
Farfetch also makes it easy to sell globally. With localised websites, multilingual support and shipping to 190 countries, the platform guarantees a great shopping experience for customers worldwide. In 19 major cities, your customers can also enjoy access to the ‘F90 store to door’ delivery service, which delivers items to your customers’ door in under 90 minutes.
By promoting your brand to a huge audience, selling through Farfetch is an easy way to help you grow your luxury brand. And with consumers around the world, it’s a great way to help you improve your brand’s awareness.
Looking to integrate Farfetch with your other software? Get in touch here.