This client project included the development of a digital strategy to enable assessment of the ecommerce opportunity to sell direct to consumer for this b2b cashmere manufacturer.
THE TASK
Assess the current status of the online clearance channel for cashmere accessories and define the commercial opportunity.
BACKGROUND
Glen Isla cashmere is a brand operated by Joshua Ellis, one of the world’s finest manufacturers of cashmere goods. Prior to the appointment of the new Managing Director the business had invested into an ecommerce website with the view to using for clearing end of line and over-make stocks of cashmere accessories – mainly scarves, stoles, throws and baby blankets.
The business had had limited success and sales and were looking for an understanding of the size of the opportunity and how best to exploit it.
RESULTS
An initial plan was presented following an assessment of current performance, discussions with media owners and channel specialists, an audit of current processes and an understanding of the wider business context of the ecommerce website
The resulting report outlined:
- The home-shopping business model and the drivers of value and profitability that need to be present for home shopping success
- The competitive landscape for the business on and offline
- The work that needed to be undertaken at the website – the business had been poorly supported and advised by the agency building their ecommerce site and as such it needed:
- an overhaul of the user experience to add as much best practice as possible for limited further investment
- a reorganisation of the product catalogue structure to make product selection more intuitive and appropriate
- implementation of policies and supporting information such as delivery and returns to aid conversion, minimise drop-out and to ensure the business was compliant and legal
- A channel by channel assessment of the opportunities for customer recruitment through online and offline promotion
- The opportunities of online marketplaces such as Amazon and Ebay
- Some preliminary business models and budgets
- An assessment of the strategic opportunity for the business
- A number of options for next steps dependant on the business’s assessment of the reports findings
The business opted to run an initial test pre-Christmas 2011 which confirmed many of the initial findings. Since Christmas 2011 the business has invested appropriately and has opened up Ebay and Amazon which look like channels through which a limited amount of product can be cleared cost-effectively through Christmas 2012 and beyond.
Following a wider strategic business review we continue to exploit other channels for the clearance of this stock as a primary opportunity.
