After the cancellation of the very first key tradeshow of 2021, London Bridal Fashion Week, this left many retailers at the crossroads on how to approach the new buying season after several months of lockdowns.
That is why Bridal Times caught up with UK’s award winning bridal retailer and bridal expert, Ellie Sanderson, to give us her view on the current situation and how partnerships between suppliers and retailers need to be strengthened in order to push forward in unprecedented times.
Ellie Sanderson, Owner of Ellie Sanderson Bridal Studio in the UK
Europe and the UK are in National lockdown with no end imminent. Yet we have big decisions to make over critical business issues. Big issues like buying stock for the year ahead. The new season normally gets under way in April, May, June but this year many of the key trade shows might still be cancelled this year and we are left wondering what to buy and how much.
Many retailers are wondering what would happen if they don’t buy stock this year and instead hold on to their cash. I believe that not buying new stock for 2021/22 could be utter commercial suicide. Buying too much with the future so unclear can be also but there is a balance in there somewhere.
Things are exceptionally difficult for us retailers right now but I believe we have to gamble if we are to survive and come out winning.
Statistically the history of Weddings has shown us that people celebrate after wars have passed. They break out and celebrate. Statistically Marriage and birth rates soar after economic slumps for many reasons. People seem programmed to seek stability and get married, they decide to start a family and to move home and settle. So if , or when this happens we need to be ready don’t we?
Its so difficult to know that information and still feel nervous, how can we feel super confidant weddings will soar after the pandemic slump? The UK’s FTSE (Financial Times Stock Exchange 100) is still -12% on January 2020 (*the telegraph newspaper ) and so for many of us assuming a recovery is still a huge risk.
Investing whilst we are closed with no end in sight seems crazy doesn’t it? But not investing is also a huge risk and one with far reaching outcomes.
We each have a decision to make.
We each have to decide if we are predicting growth for 2021/22 or not.
It really is that simple and it really is down to each of us to decide what we believe. No one has a crystal ball and no one can guarantee anything.
Once we have made our decisions we have to work with our suppliers who are also making their own decisions and predictions. They too have enormous risks to take and their risks have to be taken sooner than ours in terms of timelines. They have to source fabrics and commit to buying them, they have to commit time to designing dresses and then bring them to market for us to BUY or NOT BUY. The risk they have is also huge.
That’s why working together in this transformative year is vital.
It’s not something we do, as independents we sit on opposite sides of the fence.
However I firmly believe the way out of this is to unite with our suppliers and manufacturers. They share the same worries and are in the same situation as us retailers. They don’t know if history will repeat itself but I am sure they pray it will and that 2021/22 will see rapid growth.
Buying for 2021/22 is tough; we have hardly any feed back from our brides on last season because we were closed for months. However we cannot blindly ignore the need to buy new product nor can we ignore that our suppliers need us to buy. I was on a facebook community group a few weeks ago and the subject of buying came up. The people on that group reacted and everyone said “ just don’t buy, keep your money” I was utterly astounded at the reaction and response.
I also understand that some suppliers are playing hardball and forcing people to buy when they don’t have the money and this is not acceptable.
Its important to remember that a portion of your supplier’s annual turnover and success is dependent on selling samples to retailers and if retailers don’t buy any samples those suppliers will struggle to stay in business. It’s quite simple and its how their business model works.
Considering our position, we too need a certain annual turnover and that is dependent on having the right stock and selling samples to our brides. Its all about supply and demands and we both have the same end goal. Therefore it is imperative that we unite to achieve it, this year more than ever before.
What retailers can do
As a retailer this time of year is when you should review the return on investment (R.O.I) obtained on product sold by supplier for the previous year/years.
Because money is tight you should consider only buying your strongest labels. Only buy those labels with the highest return on your investment. Buying less labels and committing only to those labels that support you will in turn make you more efficient.
What suppliers can do
Our suppliers need to make a commitment to make to us.
Weeding out stores that don’t sell well, and that don’t pay their bills. Getting rid of retailers that don’t fit or support the brand effectively. They too need to evaluate their return by retailer.
In addition to help us commit to them they need to come up with some if not all of the following.
- Offering payment plans will help retailers buy product but spread the payments – a joint commitment.
- Offering loyalty discounts. Applying a discount if a retailer buys over a certain number of dresses. – Again a joint commitment.
- Buy back scheme for dresses that simply don’t work.
- Having a proper collection of loan samples so that dresses can travel to stores when they perhaps werent able to buy as many samples.
We need to be bullish, whilst the pandemic has caused a recession, which has deepened by the second wave lockdowns I firmly believe that this year and next will be strong for our industry.
We need to synchronise with our suppliers like never before to make sure we have a successful 24 months ahead.
We need to plan now to get ahead.
On the behalf of Bridal Times, we would like to thank Ellie Sanderson for contributing her viewpoints with Bridal Times.
For further information on Ellie Sanderson and her bridal studio in the UK, visit Ellie Sanderson