Bonobos to Disrupt Fahion Industry

"Digitally-built brands" have the potential to disrupt the online and offline retail sectors by taking control of the entire customer experience, the chief executive of Bonobos, the apparel group, has argued.

Andy Dunn, the ceo/co-founder/chairman of Bonobos, discussed the evolution of the retail category at a recent conference. One major shift, he suggested, is how operators with digital roots are now changing the game.

"The future is not only digital, but it is digitally-built brands," he said. (For more, including details of the other trends outlined by Dunn, read Warc's exclusive report: Three trends reshaping retail: insights from Bonobos.)

"And it is going to be a massive disruption to traditionally-built brands, and it's going to be a massive disruption to traditionally-built, third-party branded sellers."

Drilling down further into this proposition, he predicted that more online companies will become merchants, designers and "vertically-integrated firms" all in one – repeating a pattern previously seen in physical retail.

"We had seen this movie before," said Dunn. "Third-party branded selling moves to vertically-integrated selling in the same way that it did in the offline world."

As a demonstration, he pointed to chains like Gap, which in the 1980s kickstarted a transformation in retail by making clothes and selling them in its stores, giving it complete control over the customer experience.

This form of "vertical integration" also gave rise to fast-fashion experts Zara, Uniqlo and H&M, as well as furniture groups IKEA and West Elm, and Trader Joe's in the grocery sector.

"It occurred to me that the same thing that happened in brick-and-mortar retail was going to happen on the internet," Dunn said.

Zappos served as a forerunner of this shift in the digital arena by building a service-led online business for shoes, and has since been joined by players like eyewear specialist Warby Parker and male-grooming brand Harry's.

The success of these companies, Dunn maintained, helps support his views about the potential impact of digital-first enterprises.

"I feel more confident in this, because I see it happening," he said. "Everywhere I look … people are building brands with digital at the core. So I think this is the future."

Via WARC

New Gallery in Portfolio

Greetings everyone!

I wanted to share that I opened a new gallery in the portfolio section entitled "Nature," I hope you enjoy it!

My best,

Chris 

The Future of Marketing, as Seen at Cannes Lions - Harvard Business Review

This article from the Harvard Business Review is a great review of what the advertising industry is dealing with as it attempts to disrupt itself and remain relevant and engaged with potential consumers.  That said, there is far more subjectivity, these days, to what is considered a "quality" campaign.  This years Cannes Lions proved that point.

That said, what Cannes did show us is that even the most irreverent advertising can be successful.  HBR points out how:

There are a few things that brands can do to take advantage of the emergence of these new open-system species.

1. Adapt your business models to exploit new opportunities rather than try to apply your existing one. As discussed, open-system species are agile in part because they see opportunities and create new models to go after them.

2. Take more control. It used to be that brands needed an agency to communicate with customers. Today, with the falling price of media and the real time nature of the two-way conversation with consumers, brands can do more of this themselves. Some of the best-known brands including Patagonia and Apple are building their own in-house strategic agencies, taking control of strategic and creative leadership while using an open system to collaborate with great outside talent. Those brands realize that one of their most important assets is their relationship with consumers. There will still be a place in the ecosystem for lots of players and collaboration, including agencies, but brands increasingly can take the lead.

3. Seek out great ideas wherever they are. Companies and their brands need to get away from idea myopia, the notion that one outside organization, usually an agency, must be the sole creator of marketing ideas. Not only do your most passionate fans have great ideas and the tools to communicate them but there are ideas to be found from retailers, distributors and other outside partners. Likewise, internal team members have some of the best creative ideas but are sometimes afraid to participate.