While Amazon and Walmart are already dominating apparel sales in the US, a series of new acquisitions and overhauled user experiences have poised the two behemoths to gain even more market share.
Thanks to the ‘endless online shelf’ that is e-commerce, and increasing demand for choices and diversity from customers, it has become more difficult for traditional retailers to sell generic, mass-produced products via conventional means. In response, Amazon and Walmart have intentionally acquired highly curated brands in order to reach younger, niche demographics.
Currently lagging behind Amazon, which acquired Shopbop and Zappos in 2006 and 2009 respectively, Walmart and its subsidiary Jet.com have recently purchased womenswear retailer Modcloth, outdoor apparel makers Moosejaw, and the footwear company Shoebuy.com.
And with the majority of millennials willing to openly share data in exchange for a more customized shopping experience, both companies are strengthening their personalization strategy with advanced algorithms, streamlined landing pages, and lookbooks.
The only sector the duo has yet to conquer is luxury, which has collectively rejected both sales platform to protect their prestige. However, as each becomes more able to provide a personalized shopping experience that’s on par with brick-and-mortar stores, and as more and more consumers demand better deals and faster fulfillment, some industry experts think that it’s only a matter of time before name-brand designers start to cave.
You can read more about it at Digiday.
