If you haven’t picked up the January 2023 issue of MR Magazine yet, fear not. I plan to post all articles to MR-mag.com in the next week or so. You can also pick up a copy at most menswear trade shows in January, but fill out the linked form to put your name on his list of mailings for future publications. Please give me. here.
We have been selling menswear online since 2004.
So think of my take on e-commerce the way you would think of how George Washington could discuss American history if he were still alive. Because I’ve been here pretty much since the e-commerce revolution and I’ve seen it all.
There was a time when people like me looked at people like you (the brick and mortar store owners) and thought how you guys were dinosaurs. Outdated. Leaving money on the table without opening your own e-commerce shop.
And we were right. But not so much anymore.
In the early 2000s, the Internet looked a lot like the United States in the early 1800s. Almost undiscovered. Undeveloped. Few people occupy space, either as stores or as consumers.
I was one of the first to launch a menswear brand online. I was one of his first “disruptors”.
At the time, the big department stores didn’t have websites. Or, if selling, was selling a very limited number of his SKUs. Brooks Brothers and Jos. A. Bank were largely absent from e-commerce. By the time they all beefed up their online offerings and started investing in their e-commerce infrastructure (2008-2010), they were several years behind their native online brands and still have a lot to learn. was.
By that time, early online brands like ours already understood ecommerce shoppers. Mastered digital marketing. I found a way to leverage media to drive traffic and customers to my website. It was a glorious time.
But things have changed.
Customer acquisition has never been more difficult and expensive for online brands. This is because digital marketing has become less targeted (due to new privacy standards). Customers became less brand conscious and now everyone (sometimes literally!) can sell their products online.
In fact, it is now believed that opening a brick-and-mortar store and acquiring new customers is less expensive than acquiring new customers through online advertising. This is completely unheard of just five years ago. Most native online brands need to open at least one or two stores in order to expand or survive. Yet few can afford to do so.
It’s been said that customers need to see your ad seven times before they click on your website. Still, the odds of him ordering are only 2%. So you can imagine how much money goes into marketing before you finally get new customers.
And without face-to-face contact, it’s nearly impossible for an online brand to build a true relationship with their customers. Don’t listen to the noise when building an ‘online community’ or ‘customer engagement’. Yes, it doesn’t matter, but it’s nothing compared to what brick-and-mortar merchants have created with curated stores, special events, and excellent customer service.
As 2023 begins and you’re looking to move online, my advice is simple. Enjoy your lawn wherever you are. It may have a darker shade of green than ours.
Greg Shugar is the owner of Beau Ties of Vermont, an American neckwear and accessories company based in Middlebury, Vermont. In 2004, he and his wife founded The Tie Bar, one of his first direct-to-consumer menswear brands. The company was acquired by a private equity firm in 2013. Greg is also an active investor in Florida.He teaches entrepreneurship at the Atlantic University Business School.
