3 Rules For Retail Success

Fashion software firm Infor recently partnered with Ragtrader to stage a business lunch featuring retail leaders.

Executives from Mimco, Myer, Trenery, PAS Group and van Laack Australia discussed opportunities and challenges in the market.

For full coverage of the event, pick up Ragtrader's May edition.

In the meantime, here are our top three points from the session.

1. Retail technology transcends demographics

"When Trenery launched about seven years ago, there was the perception that because we were aimed at the slightly older customer, there would be no need to embrace technology," Trenery design director Jane Grimme said.

She confirmed the brand's e-commerce platform is the number one site for the brand and growing exponentially.

PAS Group chief executive Eric Morris backed the statement, reflecting similar feedback for the group's mature age label Black Pepper.

Online sales for the overall group grew 57.1% in fiscal 2015, with Black Pepper leading the charge for digital purchases.

Infor retail industry global strategy director Robert McKee warned against pigeon-holing customers, adding consumer habits and trends are timeless.

"I get bristly when we talk about how fast the retail environment is changing. Retail has changed radically and rapidly since its beginning. It's gone from things that were strictly bespoke, to ready-to-wear, to made-to-measure, to the environment that we're in today."

2. The power of partnerships

Whether its consumers or competitors, the power of harnessing partners in the modern retail landscape can create new opportunities.

For Myer, partnering with online pureplay brand Tigermist last year resulted in value-added extensions.

Myer youthwear manager Vicky Kordatou confirmed the brand has rolled out across all stores.

"The challenge I faced and continue to face is, there's a lot of online-only brands on Instagram now who are doing an amazing job of replicating trends, who are quick to market and doing a beautiful job of curating product.

"Not only has this partnership given us credibility, Tigermist talk to their consumer for us as well."

For Mimco, partnering with customers has enriched its social media footprint.

"User generated content for us tends to bring a higher conversion from customers," Mimco MD Cathryn Wills said.

"If they can see the advocacy from customers than a one-way conversation with us, it increases sales and engagement."

3. It's not all about digital

While the roundtable acknowledged the importance of e-commerce, executives warned against discounting the value of bricks-and-mortar retail.

"I think there's a danger in talking just about the digital space," Wills explained. "If that's the new puppy we want to play with and forget about the 85 - 90% that is still coming from bricks-and-mortar, then that's dangerous."

For Wills, this means investing in unique retail experiences.

Last year, the accessories brand unveiled a cutting-edge flagship store in Sydney, featuring an interactive touchtable, a digital halo and live social feeds.

van Laack Australia MD Gerard Crawford acknowledged the challenge of creating experiential experiences in a market plagued by discounting.

"Recently, 15 weeks out of the season at a department store had an offer period and that's difficult."

Morris echoed these concerns: "Sometimes the department stores we sell to, they think it's all about price. They forget about value. What tends to happen is you lose your value by trying to protect price."