Compared to travel, FMCG and electronics the bulk of the UK fashion industry stumbled out of the ecommerce starting blocks back in the early noughties. Today however, the sector is in rude health with a growing market and many thriving online brands. With ecommerce set to grow in the UK by 36% in the next 18 months and increasing online competition, the spoils are there for the retailers that get it right.

Shopping Mall, Kuala Lumpur by NeilsPhotography

The internet, of course, is not the high street and there are many new things to learn. There are many good companies helping retailers but stories of egregious claims and inflated fees from unscrupulous SEO agencies persist even today.  Here then, are 4 of the biggest challenges a fashion retailer must consider when launching their business online.

1.      Communicating your offering – Having a website that successfully translates the brand and clothes to the visitor. Placing visitors as close to the clothes as possible is vital but so is showing them the reason to buy into your brand in the first place (or reminding your loyal fans why they love you). The website can’t just look good either. It’s got to convert and be easy to use for you and your visitors.

2.      Stock management – Having items in stock seems obvious but the website is often treated by retailers as secondary to the shop. As such, a vicious circle is created where website sales are held back by unavailable stock and it never gets the chance to grow and exceed the offline presence.

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