(From left) Jessica de Mesa, head of Zalora Marketplace with sellers, bugsy ancheta of eye Know right; cez ciruela of Soleful by cez; and Queenie Ong of eye Know right
AT the forefront of growing online shopping, Zalora Philippines is seeing huge untapped potential for e-commerce in the country thanks to the 40 million Filipinos who access the Internet. Moreover, the company also notes a stronger local Internet penetration as compared to other Asia Pacific markets.
“E-commerce adoption in the Philippines continues to be fuelled by our customers’ trust for online transactions. Through the years, we’ve seen a lot of Filipino consumers spending a lot of their time online, providing more opportunities for online retailers to get their products to them,” said Paulo Campos, co-founder and chief executive officer of Zalora Philippines.
Rising access to the Internet has undeniably changed the way Filipinos go about their daily life. Students can use their laptops to submit their school requirements without being inside the campus and businessmen can manage their day-to-day work from their phones.
As a fashion brand, Zalora gives Filipinos an avenue to fulfill another daily activity with just a few clicks of the mouse: shopping for the latest fashion trends. Shoppers can now easily find their next “Outfit of the Day” (OOTD) look without ever having to step foot inside a mall.
Simultaneously, fashion retailers don’t need to set up an actual store to reach their customers. This new trend greatly benefits aspiring entrepreneurs looking to make their mark in the competitive fashion industry. With just a click of a button, they too can easily make their products available online, be it through a website or even on social media.
The problem, however, is that with almost every brand in the world already online, there is a challenge for these young designers and retailers to stand out from the crowd and effectively reach the customers they are targeting. Instead of fighting over retail space, they must now fight over online attention and often times, it is a hit-or-miss opportunity.
To address this and give equal opportunity to aspiring online entrepreneurs, Zalora Philippines created the Zalora Marketplace, an exclusive fashion community of selected boutiques where independent retailers and designers are able to sell their own products and styles to the global network of Zalora.
First launched in the Philippines, the platform follows a business-to-consumer model that allows aspiring entrepreneurs a chance to reach their customers easily and grow their brand with Zalora Philippines, which currently registers a total of 110 to 120 thousand visits per day.
“Zalora Marketplace is not simply a buying and selling website, but it is also an avenue for young and aspiring fashion entrepreneurs to make a name for themselves in this tough industry. Together, we also help grow the fashion industry as a whole, providing opportunities for young fashion entrepreneurs to grow their brand with us” head Jessica de Mesa said.
Success stories
Through the years, Zalora Philippines has witnessed many success stories of brands that started knowing very little about online selling, but then utilized the tools provided to them by Zalora, to become full-fledged online fashion retailers.
One example is Cez Ciruela, the owner and head designer of “Soleful by Cez”, a fashion brand specializing in making handmade crafts, accessories, shoes, and bags. Since she started selling in the online store last July 2014, she has seen her gross sales even reach above P200,000 at times.
“When I started with Marketplace, it gave me a wider perspective on what online selling is. It was an entirely new experience for us. My whole family is so grateful for Marketplace because they gave us life,” said Ciruela.
Another proud partner is “Eye Know Right”, an eyewear brand operated by fashion couple Bugsy Ancheta and Queenie Ong. Fresh after graduating from college, Queenie and Bugsy first started their online business by selling their products on Instagram.
Since partnering with the online store, they have seen their sales triple in growth and have already opened 2 physical stores, all before their 1st year anniversary.
“It was a huge opportunity for us to be part of Zalora because it is the number one in online fashion. Since we joined, product awareness became more intense which helped us sell a lot more, and they’ve been very generous with their marketing. They helped set the standards for everything and we couldn’t be any more grateful,” said Ong.
Since starting operations in April 2014, Zalora Marketplace currently houses over 450 homegrown brands that manage their own web shops or fashion boutiques under the platform. The company aims to grow that number to 1,000 by year-end.
For interested parties, contact marketplace@zalora.com.ph or visit www.zalora.com.ph.
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