Dave Edgar’s Post

RIVER ISLAND v THE REST OF THE HIGH STREET • Zara: Sales increased by 10.4% to €35.9 billion, with gross profit up 11.9%. • Uniqlo: Sales increased by 12.2% to €20 billion, with gross profit rising by 28%. • M&S: Sales grew by 11.5% to €4 billion (including home), with profits of €400 million. • Next: Sales increased by 8.8% to €6 billion, with profits up 5.7%. • River Island: Sales declined by 15% to €850 million, with a pre-tax loss of €38 million. They say that competition, particularly from fast-fashion giant Shein, has been a significant issue for River Island. Additionally, shipping disruptions in the Red Sea and challenges in clearing excess stock have further compounded the problem. However, it’s well documented that M&S invested in a new team of product developers to overhaul its product range—and what a great job they have done! ZARA is often seen as the gold standard of fashion, offering a perfect balance of point-of-view (POV) products alongside a strong range of seasonal essentials. NEXT has consistently focused on its private-label products, with a highly experienced team of buyers and merchandisers driving their success. We all appreciate the easy navigation and well-curated collections from UNIQLO. So, whether it’s: • Excellent color planning, • Strong range-building, • A focus on quality fabrications, • The longevity of essential items, • Having the right quantities in the right place at the right time, • A clear value equation. Are these the factors that differentiate a sustainable business from one that struggles with external threats? #sustainable #productstrategy #colourplanning #rangebuilding #bdalondon #trendhub #bespoke

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Is it a question of impression or intuition, or a question that can be based on facts ? Wondering how they represent the different facets of performance across their ecosystem as a coherent whole, and promote initiative to react/adjut. (my little finger tells me they don't lack data, not do they lack means to crunch data / namely AI, for inventory management especially - could they 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 be blind and not responsive ?)

Albin Paul

Director Innovation- Transforming Retail | eCommerce. Make life easier to adopt Tech Innovations | AI | Composable Commerce | MACH (Microservices-based, API-first, Cloud-native, Headless) | Omnichannel & Unified Commerce

5mo

Shein has overtaken Boohoo and maybe soon ASOS too, both had decreasing revenue

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