She’s the woman responsible for bringing everyday designer fashion to life on the internet. Here, My-wardrobe founder Sarah Curran shares how she’s made online shopping a luxurious experience.
She’s the woman responsible for bringing everyday designer fashion to life on the internet. Here, My-wardrobe founder Sarah Curran shares how she’s made online shopping a luxurious experience.
Sarah Curran laughs as she hands me an iPhone photo of her eight-year-old son. And there beaming away in front of me is Jake, decked out in his mother’s finest designer gear. Although it’s no wonder he loves fashion. After all, Curran ran the popular Crouch End boutique 'Powder' in the early 2000s, before going on to create the equally-mighty My-wardrobe.com six years later.
But Curran wasn’t always a fan online shopping. In fact, at the height of Powder, when asked her opinion on whether fashion could sell on the net, she gave it the big thumbs down.
“My focus has always been the customer,” explains Curran, when we meet at My-wardrobe’s trendy white-walled HQ in Camden. “At Powder, I made sure that the salesgirls created strong relationships so that even if a customer walked past the door they would stop and say hello. And then the next time they had a big event, through loyalty, they would come back to shop.
“Powder became a bit of a destination store because of the experience we created. The problem I had with online was how do you create that kind of experience on a website?”
But Curran would soon come up with a solution to make it work. At the time, she had upped sticks to St Emillion, France, to live in an old wine chateau with her husband Andrew (they are now divorced) and Jake. And there in the remote village, the ex-News International sub-editor turned to the internet to shop but was disappointed with the online choices.
“Brands are extremely protective and they also had some preconceptions, like how can a luxury experience be created online? Especially when luxury is emotional and online is virtual.”
“I felt there was a real assumption at the time that customers either wanted super luxe brands like Chloe and Stella McCartney, or they wanted fast fashion,” she recalls. “But actually no one was talking to me directly because I don’t fit into either of those customer groups. And that’s when I got the idea to plant ourselves right in the middle.”
The two big players dominating the fashion space were Net-a-porter, created by Natalie Massenet for the high end luxury market, and ASOS, which stocks high street wares.
“We were in France and so the logistics of opening physical stores in the UK seemed unmanageable. I really saw the time as an opportunity to grow the brand that we had bought into which was Powder, but to grow it within an online space.”
Therein began a long journey for Curran. The chateau was painted white, and the back of the house, where the wine barrels used to be stored was converted in to a warehouse. Andrew created the website and took care of the figures, while she provided the service, styling, editorial and the packaging. Et voila, My-wardrobe was born.
However, the transition from store to online took some getting used to. For a start, the brands that Curran wanted to stock took a great deal of persuasion that the internet was the way forward. “With a lot of the brands because they knew what I did with Powder, they took a leap of faith with us but it wasn’t an easy start. Brands are extremely protective and they also had some preconceptions, like how can a luxury experience be created online? Especially when luxury is emotional and online is virtual.”
Attention to detail was the answer. Curran wanted to make the customer feel like she was treating herself from the time she browsed to when she received her order.
The emotional hook is the biggest part of the online experience because it makes the customer feel good about their purchase. And so, Curran ensured customer service was at the heart her business. While other sites shied away from displaying phone numbers, Curran was very clear that her customer would be able to speak directly to an adviser and not one in a far flung call centre either.
“When you are on a site and you have a question about the size of a dress, you really want that answer straight away – you don’t want someone to call you back because you just want to make that purchase!” she insists.
Returns proved to be another issue. Curran’s initial reaction when the first batch of unwanted garments arrived was that of dismay. “I kept thinking ‘what’s wrong with them?’ but then it dawned on me. This was no different to a woman taking several sizes to the changing room but only one to the checkout, except she was using her bedroom.“When I had Powder, I had quite superficial knowledge but what happens with an online store is that you see the habits and the true patterns of a consumer. So you see what size she really is because you see what size she returns, and you know the time she shops and what trends she likes to read about.”
“Jake suffered a lot in terms of my priorities when I was building My-Wardrobe and now I think it’s only fair that the balance is readdressed.”
This level of detail allows Curran and her team, now 104-strong, to tailor and develop content specific for their customer. A new mobile site launched in December which has seen a 42 per cent increase in page views in the site, and a 19% increase in time browsing. While a new multi-lingual and currency site will roll out later this month, helping Curran achieve her international ambitions. “We don’t stand still for very long,” laughs Curran.
My-wardrobe recently launched in Australia, and has since achieved 140% growth. And it will shortly be available in the Middle East and Scandinavia. And after securing investment from private equity group Balderton Capital, Curran’s task at hand is to increase sales steadily, but there’s another priority that must come first: Jake.
At just two weeks old, Curran took him to his very first London Fashion Week. “He was in his baby carrier and was with me for all my buying appointments. He must have an ‘osmosis’ of fashion – he just loves it!” she chuckles. But then growing serious, she says: “Jake suffered a lot in terms of my priorities when I was building My-wardrobe and now I think it’s only fair that the balance is readdressed.”
Visit My-wardrobe.com, for more information.
