Fashion Unleashed: The Influence of Social Media

A fashion masterclass held in 2013 brought together decision-makers from some of the world's biggest fashion retailers, where they talked industry trends and the impact they will have on supply chain dynamics. In the second of this three-part series on In Motion, we take a look at how online retailer ModCloth uses social media to predict customer trends and keep their supply chain lean.

As a solely online retailer, the vintage style shop ModCloth is in a unique position, able to track not only sales but also immediate customer feedback, following their likes and dislikes to predict changes in customer trends. The “Be the Buyer” program, for example, lets online shoppers vote on dresses and jewelry designs they might purchase before the company places an order with a supplier.

Rather than buy hundreds of items months in advance and try to sell them as traditional retailers do, ModCloth can adjust inventory and understand what type of products will do well as quickly as possible, keeping inventory lean while giving potential customers what they want.

The company’s analytics team closely tracks details via social media, learning, for example, that while its plus-size customers buy 17% more items per order, they're also 66% more likely to talk about their purchases on social media. That makes them not only great word-of-mouth advocates for the store, but also excellent indicators of what products are working – and what not, a must for companies looking to keep inventories stocked appropriately.

To read the series as a whole and gain more insights from a survey of retailers like Keen Footwear, TOM TAILOR, and Debenhams taken by DHL on fashion supply chain trends, download the complete white paper, Fashion Unleashed: The Agile Fashion Supply Chain, free here: http://supplychain.dhl.com/fashionagility2013.