COVID-19 has caused huge disruption to retail; while many categories online have seen a major sales boost, fashion found itself on the wrong side of the demand divide. At the same time, the economy is suffering and spending habits are changing, meaning that for some the luxury of buying fashion items is under greater pressure.
Overall growth was suppressed in 2020, with demand for formalwear falling away completely while lounge and sportswear boomed. Fashion Connect will look to unravel what 2021 holds for the industry and how retailers should restructure their propositions to emerge from the pandemic on solid foundations.
The agenda features data-led presentations from IMRG on the latest trends we are tracking, plus engaging retailer keynotes from some of the biggest brands.
Fashion Connect aims to rebuild the fashion industry with knowledge sharing, best practice, thought leadership and virtual networking.
IMRG and special guests will host a series of Fashion Connect Virtual Networking events, incorporating face-to-face open discussion with expert advice and insight into key topics facing retailers in 2021.
Theatre Sponsor: ChannelAdvisor
09:00 - 09:10: What’s wrong with fashion pt I? Andy Mulcahy, Strategy and Insight Director, IMRGFashion was the most prominent category to be negatively impacted by COVID, but even before the outbreak problems were very evident. As we start to rebuild in 2021, what are these issues and how can they be overcome?
09:10 - 09:20: Insight on developing online strategies with headline sponsor Remarkable Commerce
09:20 - 09:40: Retail Q&A with Jennifer Stephens, Chief Customer Officer at Ted Baker
09:40 - 09:50: Insight on developing online strategies with headline sponsor Avalara
09:50 - 10:00: What’s wrong with fashion pt II? Andy Mulcahy, Strategy and Insight Director, IMRG
Fashion was the most prominent category to be negatively impacted by COVID, but even before the outbreak problems were very evident. As we start to rebuild in 2021, what are these issues and how can they be overcome?
10:00 - 10:20: Panel Discussion - Where are the opportunities for growth? with eShopworld, ChannelAdvisor, ParcelLab and Mirakl
This session will look in detail at the trading patterns during Black Friday and Christmas for the online clothing categories IMRG track. Revealing ‘what good looks like’ for 2020 Black Friday performance
10:40 - 10:50: Insight on developing online strategies
10:50 - 11:00: Deep-dive analysis of clothing performance over peak pt II – Matthew Walsh, Director of Data and Retail, IMRG
11:00 - 11:10: Insight from Capgemini
11:10 - 11:35: Panel Discussion - How is customer behaviour evolving? with Camilla Tress, Connected Commerce Lead, Oliver Bonas, Chargebacks 911 and Openpay
09:00 - 09:10: Getting the smartphone experience right - The impact of smartphones on Fashion retailers pt I - Matthew Walsh, Director of Data and Retail, IMRG
What are the clothing industry benchmarks for shoppers using smartphones and where is the trend heading? This session will also look at the proposition techniques of fashion retailers with the highest smartphone conversion
09:10 - 09:20: Insight on customer delight (TBC)
09:20 - 09:40: Retail keynote - Recreating what’s special about the in-store shopping experience for digital customers - Kate Parkinson, Head of Digital Customer Experience, The White CompanyFind out how White Company are approaching their strategy for connecting the online and physical experience09:40 - 09:50: Report insight with sponsor Epsilon 09:50 - 10:00: Getting the smartphone experience right - The impact of smartphones on Fashion retailers pt II - Matthew Walsh, Director of Data and Retail, IMRGWhat are the clothing industry benchmarks for shoppers using smartphones and where is the trend heading? This session will also look at the proposition techniques of fashion retailers with the highest smartphone conversion
10:00 - 10:20: Panel Discussion - Attracting and converting fashion customers with Akeneo, Maginus and BigCommerce
10:30 - 10:40: What propositions do fashion retailers offer their customers? Pt I - Andy Mulcahy, Strategy and Insight Director, IMRGIMRG have been tracking the websites of 120 fashion retailers since the COVID outbreak. This session will look at which options they offer, and cross-reference with performance. It will also look at discounting patterns.
10:40 - 10:50: Insight on customer delight with headline sponsor Remarkable Commerce10:50 - 11:00: What propositions do fashion retailers offer their customers? Pt II - Andy Mulcahy, Strategy and Insight Director, IMRGIMRG have been tracking the websites of 120 fashion retailers since the COVID outbreak. This session will look at which options they offer, and cross-reference with performance. It will also look at discounting patterns.11:00 - 11:10: Insight on customer delight (TBC)
11:10 - 11:35: Panel Discussion - Strategies for customer retention with Meghan Lewis, Head of Ecommerce, Skinnydip, Epsilon and Conversant
09:00 - 09:10: Which customer behaviours have the biggest impact on return rates? Pt I – Matthew Walsh, Director of Data and Retail, IMRG
This brand new IMRG study will look at the elements that make up returns propositions – such as whether delivery and returns are free and number of returns options – and cross-reference with behaviours (such as do multi-size purchases trigger higher return rates) to see which have the biggest impact on overall rates.
09:10 - 09:20: Insight on operations with headline sponsor Avalara
09:20 - 09:40: Retail keynote - what is the true cost of returns? - Gavin Mills, Profit Erosion and Data Mining, River Island and Dr Regina Frei, Operations and Supply Chain Management, University of SouthamptonAnalysis of how to understand all the hidden costs associated with processing returns – and what can be done about it.09:40 - 09:50: Insight on operations with headline sponsor Remarkable Commerce09:50 - 10:00: Which customer behaviours have the biggest impact on return rates? Pt II – Matthew Walsh, Director of Data and Retail, IMRGThis brand new IMRG study will look at the elements that make up returns propositions – such as whether delivery and returns are free and number of returns options – and cross-reference with behaviours (such as do multi-size purchases trigger higher return rates) to see which have the biggest impact on overall rates.
10:00 - 10:20: Panel Discussion - What does a best-in-class delivery experience look like? with ShipStation, InPost and HelloDone
Now it has been almost 12 months since the UK went into lockdown, what trends did we note from that period and how well set up do the clothing categories look to rebuild? This session will also include the latest week’s sales performance update.
10:40 - 10:50: Consumer Home Delivery Report Insight with sponsor ParcelLab10:50 - 11:00: In-depth analysis of clothing and sub-category performance over past 12 months pt II – Matthew Walsh, Director of Data and Retail, IMRGNow it has been almost 12 months since the UK went into lockdown, what trends did we note from that period and how well set up do the clothing categories look to rebuild? This session will also include the latest week’s sales performance update.
11:00 - 11:10: What is the future for click and collect? - ConsignorClick & collect has established itself as a standard fulfilment channel in mainstream retail, but Covid-19 fast tracked the closure of thousands of shops and temporarily closed thousands more, disrupting the landscape in 2020. However, there were several noteworthy click & collect stories during the year. So how is click & collect evolving and what does the future hold?
11:10 - 11:35: Panel Discussion - What trends are going to define 2021 in fashion? with Ask BOSCO and Remarkable Commerce
Click here to register
Camilla is Connected Commerce Lead at Oliver Bonas, an independent, British lifestyle retailer, designing their own take on fashion and homeware, with stores across the UK and a strong online presence. During her time at Oliver Bonas, Camilla has overseen a number of key initiatives that have contributed to the growth of the website. The next phase for growth is building a fully unified shopping experience with the customer at the centre.
Gavin is the Profit Erosion and Data Mining Manager for River Island and has worked there for the last 4 years. Gavin has spent the last 20 plus years working in Retail Loss Prevention. Part of his role within River Island is looking at Profit Erosion and his main focus has been on returns.
Dr Regina Frei is a researcher and educator in Operations and Supply Chain Management. She leads the Product Returns Research Group (https://www.southampton.ac.uk/product-returns) at Southampton Business School, which she joined as an Associate Professor of Operations and Supply Chain Management in September 2019. She is passionate about sustainable value chains and the Circular Economy.
Andy has worked at the heart of the online retail industry since 2010 – researching and producing reports on trends and developments affecting the sector. During that time, Andy has developed strong knowledge in multiple areas of online retail, with particular expertise in Black Friday. Andy will reveal the latest data and trends we have been tracking in our sales index.
Matthew is responsible for all of the data and market reporting that IMRG publish. He produces the IMRG CapGemini Retail Index which is the largest and longest running eCommerce benchmark in the UK. Matthew also regularly provides data presentations to our retail members explaining the latest trends in ecommerce. Matthew is the first point of contact for our retail members. He has valuable retail experience having worked as an analyst for a top UK retailer and at one the largest online marketplaces in the world.
Headline Sponsor
Click here if you have forgotten your password.