On the Internet, fashion defends itself from the crisis. “Online fashion is a sector that hasn't been particularly affected by the macroeconomic crisis of recent years. And then, as far as the web is concerned, I believe that we are still at the beginning of the story and that there is a lot of potential for development in terms of geography and users", says Federico Marchetti, the young (42 years old) founder and managing director of Yoox, the Bolognese group (of Zola Predosa to be precise) which has become the leading virtual store in the world for fashion, luxury and design products. And which also offers an original choice of art books.
“The fact of being present in over one hundred countries has allowed us to diversify the risk of the economic cycle”, adds Marchetti. Of course, selling and distributing products in so many countries around the world forces you to manage great complexity. Since 2000, when it was founded, the Yoox group has distributed throughout Europe and today almost all over the world, with logistics centers and offices, as well as in Europe, the United States, Japan, China and Hong Kong. “Our approach – continues the managing director – has always been to be global but with a strong local footprint. We work in five different currencies and nine languages, different payment methods for different countries, eight customer care centers and 'personalisation' of shipping services. Everything is studied ad hoc for our customers”.
That more and more people choose to make purchases with the PC. In the first quarter of this year Yoox recorded 664 active customers (i.e. those who placed at least one order in the previous 12 months) compared to 514 in the first quarter of 2010. At the end of March 2011 (latest data available) the number of orders rose to 526 thousand, with an increase of 38,2% and for an average value of 169 euros (excluding VAT).
What drives the consumer to buy on the web? The price, the type of offer, a reluctance to enter luxury shops? “E-commerce – replies Marchetti – is a less institutional way of shopping but more fun and engaging. Furthermore, the web has grown a lot in recent years and has improved a lot in terms of customer service, with fast deliveries thanks to Ups, telephone and e-mail assistance". Even virtual shops have improved, they have become more attractive. “Yes, and their showcase is always changing: it's much easier to renew them with new content. Then there is the advantage of shopping 24 hours a day: you can go shopping in the morning at 24 while waiting for your coffee or in the evening at 7 to relax, all from home”.
Fashion houses, Marchetti admits, “were wary for a long time, but today they have fully understood the importance of being present on the web, not only as a distribution channel but also for communication and contact with end customers, who they are now global”.
This is how Yoox now manages 27 mono-brand online stores: Moncler will also be launched in a few months, the first was Marni, then Armani, Valentino, Dolce&Gabbana and many others. In addition there are the multi-brand stores, which represent just under 76% of the consolidated net revenues of the group, which closed the 2010 financial statements with 214,3 million in revenues (compared to 152,2 million in 2009) and a net result of 9,1 million (they had been 4 million in 2009). And expectations are for further growth this year: in the first quarter revenues had increased by 38,6% compared to the first quarter of 2010, even though net profit had dropped from 2 to 1,7 million.
This is largely due to the heavy investments made also for the landing in China, which started at the end of last year. “A wonderful challenge – Marchetti defines it -. For a global company like ours, it was essential to also be present in Shanghai, where we have opened an office and a logistics centre. We have developed a completely localized technological platform and have already launched emporio Armani, Marni and Bally, Dolce&Gabbana will also arrive shortly".
Is there also the idea of landing on an Asian stock exchange? The CEO of Yoox, a company listed on the Italian Stock Exchange since 2009, he really doesn't think about it: "We are an Italian group and we have never taken into consideration other lists than Piazza Affari". And he adds: “For me, the Stock Exchange represents a fundamental step for a company that wants to acquire international visibility, grow and communicate transparently with the world and the financial community. In 2009 we were the only freshman and the results proved us right: to date we have recorded a share performance that has almost tripled since the first day of listing”.
