Everything but Champagne—Online Couture Goes Haute With Virtual Trunk Shows
Trunk shows cover a lot of territory these days, thanks to the Internet. A variety of artists and artisans, resellers, and even retailers, have been hosting online, or virtual, trunk shows for the last few years. At one end of the spectrum, this kind of show can represent a sort of Tupperware party held in cyberspace:
“You can earn free jewelry by hosting a trunk show in your home. . . . Host a ‘virtual’ trunk show and receive the same benefits of an in-home trunk show. A virtual trunk show involves placing a group order of 10 or more. . . .”
At the other end of the spectrum, until recently, haute couture has been noticeably lacking online. However, after the success in the last few months of virtual trunk shows held by Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Web retailer Net-a-Porter, with customers willing to pay hundreds and even thousands of dollars there’s a small wave of what the Wall Street Journal calls increasing interest. Higher-priced clothes do sell, it turns out, perhaps because the audience of buyers is more sophisticated, perhaps because the retailers that host the shows are showcasing the trunk shows as part of a thorough marketing program and a way to build store loyalty.
Virtual trunk shows offer several opportunities for designers to tap into larger markets: Older customers seem to be more accustomed to buying online; customers get to see an online preview of the complete seasonal line a store will carry; customer interest can alert designers to increase production.
Attendees at virtual trunk shows will not get to sip champagne, try on the clothes and have them individually fitted, listen to the gossip in the room, or feel part of a highly exclusive group. Actually, there’s nothing to stop you from sipping champagne while looking at a trunk show online, but you get the idea.
–
Curt Barry is president of F. Curtis Barry & Co., a fulfillment consulting company assisting multichannel businesses with order management and inventory management systems evaluation and implementation; online at: http://www.fcbco.com.