I stumbled upon this article in the NY Times concerning health diets of the imaginary kind. A study that showed that people who were told to imagine themselves eating M&M are less likely to actually eat them afterwards. This imaginary diet isn’t a full proof method that will guarantee that you’ll be losing those extra pounds you’ve gained over the holidays, however it rang a bell with me since I’ve been applying the same method towards shopping for clothes.

I often peruse Net-a-Porter, mainly because nearly everything they sell there is mouthwateringly fantastic. Amazing choices, great style suggestions, and cute shoes to boot. It’s an irresistible site to peruse, but what stops me from clicking that “add to cart” button or even the “check out” button is due to two reasons:

1) I often can’t afford most of the items in this store.
2) Before I give into my impulses I actually think about what it would be like to own the item I’m looking at.

If one would stop to think what it would be like to wear that Alexander McQueen dress, or those hot Givenchy or Louboutin shoes, I run through a list of practicalities.

When am I going to wear this dress? How is this going be worn in the dead of Montreal winters? Based on experiences with Louboutin shoes, you know those 4 inch pumps will murder your feet, no matter how cute they are.

I have once said that we should not suffer for fashion. It would be kind of ridiculous like Cinderella’s stepsisters trying to fit that tiny glass slipper onto their gigantic feet.

But what marketers and retailers are aiming for are emotional connections to these clothes. They want you to imagine how fabulous you would look in a drapy Phillip Lim 3.1 crepe de chine top. They want to sell you the fantasy. If your impulses get the best of you (which is what they hope in achieving) you’ll be click your way into the check out line in no less than 5 mins. But nobody really ever stops to think a little longer about it. The longer you think, the less likely you’ll get it (unless it’s an absolute necessity and you’re just in love with the thing).

I’ve been on a shopping “diet” for the past 3 months, I do this on a regular basis, and stopping the urge to shop is like stopping yourself from lighting up that next cigarette. It’s extremely difficult at first, the palpitations, the anxiety, the withdrawals. But after a while, it becomes second nature, and you don’t really think about it at all. While it’s great to surround yourself with things that make you feel good, at the end of the day, they’re just things.

Just to show how restrained I’ve been, I’ve been oogling over Net-a-porter for a few years now but I’ve only bought one thing from them, which was a pair of Christian Louboutin kitten heel slingbacks. Unfortunately the size was slightly too big. However, that first and only experience taught me that gratification in actually receiving the item was far less than imagining it in the fantasized world that the site had projected to me initially. A kind of disappointment on my part.

While shopping has many joys for most, on the bigger picture, it just doesn’t do it for me anymore. When I feel the urge to get something pretty, I just look through a bunch of online sites and start dreaming away. In the process, I’m saving a ton of cash and still get the satisfaction of seeing myself in a Roland Mouret dress.

Image credit: Net-a-porter

Online retailing in Canada has been a slow process. Back in 2007 when I first started this blog, online shops were virtually non-existant and only the typical storefront “About Us” websites were up. While our neighbors in the south were enjoying an explosive growth in online retailing such as Zappos.com, The Gap and its sister brands, Bloomingdale’s, Neiman Marcus, Saks, and the list goes on.

In Canada, our largest high fashion retailer, Holt Renfrew, is still lagging behind in setting up an online shop. I’ve sent an inquiry asking them when (if ever) will they make an online shop available. I received a courteous response that they’re “working on it”, but it’s been a couple of years and still nothing. Holt Renfrew holds a lot of media friendly events, even as far as celebrating bloggers last year and featuring them in their store front. So you would think they could benefit some extra profit by setting up an inexpensive way of shipping their goods directly to consumers who may not have the luxury to step into a physical store. Without this added service, consumers will simply look elsewhere to shop, such as the well curated Net-a-porter and its sister site of outstanding deals on TheOutnet.com.

At least one major Quebec retailer made the jump recently, La Maison Simons offers select pieces from their four main brands of Twik, Icone, Contemporaine and Miiyu. Granted, it’s quite a small selection considering they carry literally hundreds of styles for each brand, but then again, Forever21.com has succeeded in introducing new styles with ease, and Shopbop.com always has something new to show even with models in the picture.

So what exactly is holding Canadian retailers back from setting up an online store? It’s certainly an added expense, especially when the retail landscape is so tough between local designers and their foreign competition. But the benefits outdo far more than the initial risks, especially if their online store is done correctly.

One Montreal-based online shopping site has made surprisingly significant improvements over the last year. Ssense.com was once a website that was trying too hard to be hip, offering a lot of bridge collections and aiming for the clubby 20-something demographic. However in the last year, the site has undergone a complete site makeover, curating a much more refined look and introducing great fashion editorials. Models that once were lively, are now posing straight, nearly expressionless, but nonetheless defined a certain look. The clothes went dark, muted and unusual. I’d say they’re almost the complementary counterpart to Reborn and Trusstclub.

The formula for Ssense.com certainly works and should serve as an example for other Canadian retailers that online shopping can be done and quite fabulously. Holt Renfrew and Ogilvy should perhaps take note, they’re losing precious revenue to other businesses that do ship to Canada.

I never thought of much when I first came across Victoria Beckham (née Adams) as Posh Spice during my very impressionable teenage years. She was a British pop idol with a taste for expensive clothing, really small dresses and high heels. Secretly, I had always wanted to be someone as girly and feminine as her, but in reality during that time, I dressed like Kurt Cobain.

However I did take note of one particular outfit that had left an impression on me, and I’m not talking about the Pepsi outfits they had endorsed  (however I did became an avid Pepsi drinker after their endorsement and have been faithful to the brand ever since), but of this tailored outfit. Skinny pants, with a tailored blazer and – a tiny little bra. I think it was the tiny stringy bra that changed the whole outfit, I can’t remember exactly. Her single skinny strappy heels with dark toe nail polish were a perfect way to finish off the look.

Fast forward to 2010. I never thought in my life I would think of her as a viable fashion designer. I have no doubt in my mind that Victoria Beckham gets a lot of help in designing her line, particularly from a certain well-respected french designer by the name of Mouret. The similarities between her designs and that of Mr. Mouret is uncanny. Down to the fat zipper stripes and occasional origami folds here and there. I have to hand it to her, she did pick among the best as a collaborator. What works with her collection is also the way she’s marketing them. Unlike most celebrity turned designers, she’s not doing it with a lot of fanfare, and her ads are kooky to say the least, and she does a very limited number of designs. Typically, a designer shows about 30-50 outfits each season, I believe she produces about 20 looks a season. And, they’re ridiculously expensive.

I haven’t seen a Victoria Beckham dress up close, they’re so hard to find, so it’s difficult to judge if the price and the quality are up to snuff. But one thing is for certain, whatever lands on Net-a-porter’s page, her designs are always quick to sell.

Admittedly, her dresses are done in great taste and she hits a weak spot that I have: hour-glass tailored dresses. It’s a form that she keeps true to nearly every design, and the majority are obviously perfect for the office.

I don’t care much for Victoria Beckham herself, hence the on-the-fence opinion I had about her foray into fashion design, but eventually, whoever is behind that sewing machine, I’m a bit admirer of their work.

Quality discount clothing from a quality website owner. No loose pieces of lint, no dramatic catfights, no torn dresses, no overcrowded meltdowns, and no bitchy shoppers to deal with.The joys of shopping online. The only frustration I encounter regularly, even if I’m not purchasing, is how lightning fast online shoppers are in clicking those “Add To Cart” buttons.

Calvin Klein dress at 60% off, $646

Even during these massive discount times and that I don’t like discounts in general, I applaud Net-a-porter’s approach in offering only last Spring’s styles instead of this year’s. I’m also assuming last year’s fall collection will end up on the Outnet in a few months. They seem to be sticking to the traditional formula in offering the discount much later rather than only a few weeks online. How that will play to their advantage, however, will remain to be seen. Most physical stores on the retail playground are no longer adhering to traditional sale seasons due to the recession. I’m not quite sure if the same rules apply to online stores in general, such as online counter parts like Banana Republic seem to echo their prices as to what goes on the retail sales floor, so it’s difficult to say if original prices have a longer shelf-life online.

Outnet also offers sort of an Ideeli-like “flash sale” where deep discounts on certain items will only last for 72 hrs. The first of it’s kind is 8 days from now, a bundle of Spring dresses.

Granted, the Outnet is not that much different from other online discount retailers or the high end department stores who have sales of their own on their website. Here, they have to tread carefully. In today’s Wall Street Journal, Death to Discounts? The Designers Rebel, deep discounts are rifting the relationship between department stores and their designers. If retailers are too eager to put items on sale, designers may look for alternative solutions to keep discounts to a minimum and may look to open their own retail corner to control prices and keep some integrity over their products.

So, will The Outnet aggravate the already fragile relationship between consumer and designer? Only time will tell if it will survive this year’s price wars.

Image credit: The Outnet

The Wall Street Journal reports that ever since high end retailers like Neiman Marcus and Saks posted their losses in the last quarter, designers are said to have scaled back on the fantasy and zeroed in wearability to attract customers.

First of all, this seems contradictory of what happens on the sales floor. Given that I’ve cited a while back that runway shows are simply “for show,” the showroom collections differ greatly from runway and are actually designed to be worn yet not glamorous enough to be on the runway. Just take a look at Neiman, Saks, Bergdorf, Barneys and Net-a-porter. They all carry designer labels, yet only a few of them (as pointed out by Net-a-porter) are straight off the runway. The rest has never seen the light of day except by the eyes of retail buyers.

If the runway collections are, dare I say, drab this Fall, then what will buyers expect to see in the showroom? Even more drab clothing? I don’t understand this logic from designers. Buyers should know that runway is just for entertainment (to some end) and that the real business goes down in the showroom. If you can’t impress them on the runway, how can you even make them want to come to your booth at the showroom? Aren’t runway shows supposed to be fantastical anyway? One would think a great runway show will make you even more excited for the showroom just to see what the designer has in stock. Besides, aren’t buyers able to look past the glitzy parade and look for potentials in the clothes? Why would they be offended if there was a display of obvious luxury when they very well know that the real collections are nothing of the sort?

A good example of this is Alexander McQueen. Just take a look at his Spring 09  collection on Style.com, and then go to Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Yoox.com, and Net-a-porter.

What one would expect in the retail stores

Less likely to see this	More likely to see this

Clearly some elements of the runway shows up in the inventory, but you also see pieces that were not on the runway in greater numbers on these sites.

What really interests me is the effect on the clientèle itself. If a runway show is said to be say,  offensive,  in a sense that it displays obvious luxury, how exactly will that affect sales? Shoppers won’t really see these pieces in store, so what difference does it make?

I believe price slashing (other than the recession) was a key move that could set back retailers in attracting clients to paying full price in the future. If a dress sells for $1500 and then sold at $300 (80% off), then what’s that really saying to shoppers? It sends such a negative message (from a retailer’s point of view) that shoppers can save money if they just wait it out. But how is this helping retailers in selling at full price in the future?

Even if designer clothes have suddenly been made “wearable” (eventhough it has always been wearable on the retail floor), it’s really the economy that will determine shopping behavior. The middle market that was once attainable  for high end retailers to attract are no longer biting the bait. Inventory will shrink and refocus on wealthier clientèle, and perhaps a new breed of “accessible luxury” will be created at more affordable prices than before. The question is, are high end designers willing to go that low? Or will a new breed of middle market designers emerge to cater to the now frugal masses? Perhaps bridge collections will have to be priced cheaper than before, or given an extra oomph in order to sell.

Whatever the case, year end results will give us a really good idea of how well the fashion industry has coped with the recession.

Image credits: style.com, net-a-porter, l’oreal fashion week

Are store websites a little too boring to browse to your liking? Do you miss that editorial fashion fantasy that magazines thrive upon and yet website miss upon? Fear no more, there seems to be a new trend emerging on fashion websites.

I’ve been store surfing online looking at the latest holiday collections and came upon Barneys‘ site. Although I seldomly have browsed there, I did noticed that they’ve added a new shoppable editorial magazine. Most websites will have commercial photo shoots of a model wearing the item on sale, however the relationship between viewer and photo is sort of cold and generic in my opinion. Fashion editorials, on the other hand, are highly stylized with different accessories and contain more elaborate backgrounds. They weave a fantasy of eye candy that makes potential shoppers go “oooh…now that’s pretty, and I want it.”

This format of catalogue shopping through editorials is relatively new from what I’ve seen of store websites. Barneys has picked up on the idea and launched their version of it called “Designer Mailer“. This holiday season, Canadian model Coco Rocha is splashed across the catalogue on every page. Whether in Flash or HTML  version, users can mouseover certain items that can be directly purchased online. The slightly disadvantaging point is that most of the items sold are accessories like shoes, bracelets, necklaces and bags. Some of the big ticket items like an L’Wren Scott dress are not available online, and can only be found in certain stores. A shame because for me in an editorial, I’d want to have the chance to purchase everything that I see. Call it online boutique hotel-style shopping.

I’m not sure if many shoppers are like me, but my desire to purchase depends greatly on how great the mannequins or models are dressed. I like being in a store where there are styled mannequins. It’s enough to send me finding the exact thing I see. Montreal, alongside Tokyo, in general has very attractive mannequin displays, especially at Simons. I can be sold on a look in seconds, it really doesn’t take much.

Online beauty stores can also apply this method of shopping by allowing users to mouse over a model’s face and imagine buying the very products that they’re looking at. They usually give credits in magazines as to what exactly a model is wearing, but you’d have to dig through the end of the magazine for that. An online beauty store could ideally benefit from this ease of purchase.

Certainly this is an interesting approach from Barneys, but they would need to work on refining the editorial shop just to make it a little more user-friendly. One advantage over Net-a-porter is having real physical stores in several locations (unfortunately only across America). I think The Gap & co. could use this kind of online business model as they have several brands and they could need the boost. I expect to see similar editorial shops to pop up in the near future.

Image credit: Barneys’ website

Namely, it is a fashion magazine and online store rolled into one. Quite obvious I know, but a deeper contemplation made me realize that online stores in general do not necessarily have the written editorial to tout their new products in a magazine format. Think of reading Vogue and be able to buy exactly what they’re saying is the hottest item of the season on the spot, instead of dragging yourself to the store, hope the store actually carries the item, if not, special order, and go through all the hooplahs one might go through to get the item.

We’re a lazy generation. I admit that many of you probably enjoy the going through the entire “hunting” experience of getting what you want, but I think it’s becoming increasingly difficult to ignore our need for instant gratification.

Online stores like Saks, Neiman, Forever 21, Piperlime and Zappos display their array of products and merely announce new arrivals, not quite hyping them up like Net-a-porter does. It also helps that Net-a-porter suggests looks and combinations, and allows you to really zoom in and analyze in full detail parts of the garment since it isn’t possible to do so in person.

I’m not suggesting all stores should start posting online editorials – however, I wouldn’t find it too shabby as a strategy to get more people to buy the products, especially if the store is selling different brands. Holt Renfrew and Ogilvy could perhaps benefit of such a move, especially when Holts already establishes a relationship with their clients with their aggressive call-to-action weekly newsletter. If both stores could offer online shopping and free shipping delivery (for shoes to start), they could definitely boost sales in these harsh economic times. Shoppers tend to shift to online stores when the market is down, so it would only be natural to take advantage of the online medium to keep sales afloat.

With the right combination of marketing and savvy management of an online store and proper, relevant, editorial content, I think clothing stores should consider this as a Plan B.

Image Credit: Versace from Holt Renfrew

Peculiar behavior or in need of sales?

This season, we’re seeing a lot of double takes of designers choosing to showcase in both Montreal and Toronto’s fashion week. Designers like Andy-The Anh, Denis Gagnon, Lucian Matis, and Evan Bidell will present their collections for the second time next week at L’Oreal Fashion Week. I’ve also noticed a few designers who have jumped ships and decided to only show in Toronto, namely RUDSAK, Bodybag by Jude and Morales.

Could it be that the American buyers I had talked to last season were right? Designers are traveling to several tradeshows often showing the same collection again and again, in desperate need of buyers. Yet showcasing in a coveted Fashion Week is expensive, let alone two. Given that Denis Gagnon has been plagued with financial troubles in the past, I wonder how he was able to bounce back to two Fashion Weeks this season.

What does that say of the state of the Canadian fashion retail business? Are Canadian cities not doing enough to stimulate local sales? That in turn, it is forcing local designers to seek their fortunes elsewhere?  New York Fashion Week, the circus that is has become, also generated a lot of concern this season by nearly squeezing London Fashion Week out of the calendar next Fall, and the city has become a viable target for talented emerging London designers. It would seem that Montreal, like London, is unable to keep its designers at home as they’re vying for the bigger fashion weeks where they know the media and buyers will be abundant.

There’s also the issue that shoppers may not care much for local brands and will often opt for popular international brands which can be found in places like Holt Renfrew and Ogilvy’s.

Is there pride for Canadian labels? I mean, really?

Where are Canadian statistics when you need them! If there was such pride, shouldn’t sales for local designers be skyrocketing and have high demand for it on an international level? Sorry Canada, we’re just not there yet. Say a site like Net-A-Porter were to carry one of our Canadian labels, how well would it fare?

The fact is, Canada doesn’t have as many venture capitalists or moguls who are willing to invest or buy designer labels like they do south of the border. If Canadian designers cannot be funded with proper investments, there is little chance for them to be able to compete on an international level, no matter how talented they are. If they cannot market themselves properly, labels will never fly.

Returning to designers showcasing twice, I’m not sure if it’s a good or bad thing, if it helps the label to generate more sales, then I encourage it. However, if they showcase in too many tradeshows, buyers can sense desperation, and that could be a turn off.

Image credit: Kim Payant for Canoe

Everyone knows the bad economy is driving shoppers away from store retailers and into the arms of the internet to seek the best deals on clothes. As such, wealthy shoppers, who used to have lots of liquid money to play with, are now more guarded than ever and will only choose to splurge on the pieces that are worth the price.

However, every time I grace the pages of Net-a-porter, perhaps the most successful eluxury commerce site today, high end shoes like Christian Louboutin‘s $1500 bootie or a cute Oscar De La Renta sweater, sell out immediately (at least in my size). They’ve also broken ground on pushing the online experience by collaborating with designers to be the first to exclusively sell pieces from runway shows before any other retailer can get their grubby little hands on. Last season it was Halston. This season it’s Alexander McQueen, with a sneak peak look at his collection, behind-the-scenes videos, and yes, be the first to shop 8 exclusive looks from his Pre-Spring 2009 collection right there on the site.

It would seem that designers these days are willing to take a risks in collaborating with non-typical retailers. H&M set the example by having a well-known designer (or at least bleeping on our fashion radars) create a collection exclusively for H&M for November. It’s been a smashing success and the crowds can’t get enough. Target and Gap did the same with Izaac Mizrahi and Roland Mouret. And now, Net-a-porter is boosting its profile as a premiere eluxury commerce site by featuring exclusive pieces from runway collections. Like H&M, I get the impression that perhaps brands like Alexander McQueen and Halston needed some of the publicity to boost up sales, especially with such a current economical meltdown Americans are having. The unique take on this is that neither brand had to resort to designing an affordable collection for the public, they are selling high end collections right off the bat – and they’re flying off the virtual shelves.

Net-a-porter has crafted a great presentation of videos, with an informative and attractive narrative describing the clothes (albeit sometimes a lil too promo for my taste). But it’s great to see the clothes in movement without the “noise” of media people crowding on the benches. There are also bits of slow motion, which is great to really analyze and see how the clothes shift (an option you’ll never get by being at a live show or by watching tv).

Were it not for the fact that money would be an issue, I would’ve definitely snatched up the Column Dress (with removabe shoulder pads!) and the white tuxedo jumpsuit. Hats off to Net-a-porter!

Image credits: Net-a-porter

• Gloss Magazine - which I used to write for (is it too hopeful of me to say that perhaps Mr. Amed or Ms. La Ferla saw my blog and that I wrote for them?)
• Fashion156.com – in which Susie Bubble regularly contributes…on a side note I got contacted by them but had to turn them down.
• Unvogue.com – Well-talked about by Malcolm Sirrah on his blog Cut, Sew & Blog/Change
• Glam.com – I think anyone who owns a fashion blog or site has been contacted by them
• Iconique – my first fashion webzine experience, gorgeous as always
• Net-a-porter - the famed luxury website where you can buy RTW

If you’ve bared with me since the early days of this blog, I’ve rarely plugged myself in other media besides Gloss Magazine, probably because I’m perhaps a little too modest to mention. I’ve been contacted by an array of people including budding new designers (local and national), writing for fashion companies, invited to fashion events and even (heartbreakingly) missed an opportunity to be interviewed by the BBC….THE BBC. Yes, I had to kick my own behind for missing out on that one.

I find this is such an exciting time to write for a fashion webzine or blog as they are gaining more and more media attention from, well, traditional and online media. That somehow, in this huge network of fashion sites, any time one of our “own” is selected to be covered by the big media groups or picked up by major sites, I find it such an honor and happy for others who get to shine and recognized for what they do.

So I just wanted to say a huge congratulations to everyone who really work in keeping the fashion buzz online alive