Looking ahead, DTC brands start scenario planning for store re-openings Right now, direct-to-consumer startups have to hope for the best but prepare for the worst, and nowhere is that more evident than within their brick-and-mortar divisions. Most of the executives I spoke with this week said that they don't anticipate being able to re-open their stores until the summer. "I...
- For DTC brands, this was meant to be the year of profitability
A month ago, I was talking to the founder of a one-year-old direct-to-consumer startup who was out fundraising. The founder told me it was a weird time to be fundraising. The coronavirus outbreak was just starting in the U.S, and some investors were already starting to get hesitant about deploying...
- As the DTC reckoning accelerates, founders turn to each other for advice and sanity
The reckoning was a while in coming. It just wasn't expected to come like this.
‘It lost its consumer’: 4 takeaways from Forever 21’s bankruptcy filing Many malls in the U.S. are about to lose yet another brick-and-mortar tenant, as Forever 21 filed for bankruptcy earlier this week.
How Steve Madden built up its e-commerce business More than 80% of Steve Madden's revenue still comes from wholesale. But that doesn't mean that the footwear retailer can totally ignore its e-commerce business. "If someone discovers your brand at Nordstrom, the odds are very good that they will [eventually] come to your site," said. Jeff Silverman, president of...
How DTC brands are navigating multi-touch attribution, explained As direct-to-consumer brands grow up and spend more money on traditional marketing channels, figuring out how effective each of these marketing channels are becomes a much more challenging process.
Beyond shelf space: As DTC brands grow up, multi-brand retailers are shifting strategies As a number of startups are now competing to build more modern stores for direct-to-consumer brands, they are starting to think about how they can help these brands grow beyond just giving them a space to sell their product.
Forever 21’s problems indicate a bigger crunch for traditional fast-fashion retailers As a retailer targeted teens, Forever 21 faces stiff competition as bankruptcy has rattled the category. Stores like Aeropostale, Rue21, Charlotte Russe and American Apparel have filed for bankruptcy in the last five years, while stores like Abercrombie & Fitch continue to struggle. But Forever 21's specialty -- fast, disposable...
Foot Locker is launching a new incubator program to build brands After investing in a handful of startups over the past year, Foot Locker is launching a new incubator program to build relationships with emerging brands earlier on than it has in the past.