Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
the key strategic issues linked to both the front office (e-boutique
development, e-merchandizing, e-branding, product selection, sales serv-
ices etc.) and the back office (e-logistics, transport and deliveries, after-sales
services, security and privacy, sales support systems, content management
applications, interactive media software and systems and so on). In addition,
several intricacies of the retail of luxury goods also need to be evaluated,
as the luxury shopping experience is different from the usual shopping
experience.
Due to the sensory nature of luxury products, their purchase entails high
aesthetic appreciation using all the human senses. This often requires physi-
cal store presence, which is absent in the online environment. The Internet
also lacks the exclusive and prestigious locations where the luxury stores are
situated. As soon as luxury products are placed in an e-boutique, they become
available for and accessible to all. In addition, there is also the issue of the
“virtual” interpretation of a luxury brand's identity as well as the reproduc-
tion of a luxurious atmosphere that befits the brand online; and, of course,
dealing with the bridge of “mass” and “status” online. These concerns are
justified and thankfully can be overcome with the aid of digital tools and a
strategic mind-set attuned to accepting and embracing the inverted approach
of dealing with luxury online.
Luxury e-retail is not about having a beautiful and colorful website or an
e-boutique that shows the latest flash technology. Neither is it about copying
the websites of competitors and changing the background colors and logo. It
is also not about price discounting or plastering the websites with “buy now
pay later”, “free shipping now”, “two for the price of one now”, “clearance
sale now” and all manner of
“
now
”
that scream “I am desperate to make a
sale” and reduce the website to the status of an Ali Baba store while sending
jitters down the spines of luxury clients (apart from those coming for a one-
off experience).
It is about a completely integrated process that includes strategy formu-
lation, planning, execution, monitoring and improvement. It is about taking
advantage of tools that provide an opportunity for optimizing retail in an
elevated form and relating with clients in a more intimate way. It is about
creating a shopping environment that appeals to all the senses and results
in a “wow” experience which will get clients hooked on the website and
returning for more. It is about exceeding sales expectations and substan-
tially reducing operational costs. It is about understanding that e-retail
has changed the way luxury is viewed, accessed and interacted with and
that this phenomenon is permanent. Just as there is no going back to the
days before the Internet, there is no more going back to the days before lux-
ury became available to be bought online. Luxury e-retail is about being in
tune with the twenty-first century business environment. It is simply about
being as smart as wealthy clients who have all taken up the Internet in unex-
pected ways.
