奢侈品新生意：網(wǎng)上買手店

In today’s world of luxury retail, he who makes the sale as quick and painless as possible is king. Or queen. In 2009, inspired by the way young people were using social media, Sophie Hill, a blonde 20-something fashion buyer, launched Threads Styling, a personal shopping service with a mission to “Inspire, Acquire, Deliver”. All its business is done using social media: new clients usually arrive through Instagram before being picked up by the brand’s WhatsApp host team, who connect them with a personal shopper (one of 27) who becomes their sole point of contact. All communications are done via messaging. They call it “conversational commerce” or “chat-based media”, but the business model emulates normal peer-to-peer communication.

在當(dāng)今奢侈品零售界，誰(shuí)能盡可能又快又不費(fèi)力氣地賣出東西，誰(shuí)就為王，或女王。2009年，時(shí)年20多歲的金發(fā)女郎、時(shí)尚買手索菲•希爾(Sophie Hill)，受年輕人使用社交媒體的方式啟發(fā)，推出了私人采購(gòu)服務(wù)Threads Styling，口號(hào)為“啟發(fā)、獲得、給予”。所有業(yè)務(wù)均通過(guò)社交媒體完成：新客戶通常都是通過(guò)Instagram聯(lián)系，經(jīng)由公司W(wǎng)hatsApp運(yùn)營(yíng)團(tuán)隊(duì)溝通后，分配給一位私人買手(共有27名)。這名私人買手將成為客戶的單一聯(lián)絡(luò)人。所有交流均通過(guò)發(fā)信息完成。他們稱之為“交談商務(wù)”，或“聊天媒體”，但商業(yè)模式仿效一般的P2P社交。

From the start, Hill was unapologetic in her ambition to serve a younger clientele. “I remember, early on, people saying to me, ‘Why are you concentrating on millennials? They’re not a big enough market,’?” Hill recalls. “People didn’t understand. They thought everything we were doing felt too youthful. And I was like, ‘I really, really think that nobody is speaking to this generation.’?”

從一開(kāi)始，希爾就毫不諱言自己的目標(biāo)就是服務(wù)較年輕的客戶群。“我記得，一開(kāi)始，人們對(duì)我說(shuō)，‘為什么你要專注于千禧一代?他們的市場(chǎng)可不夠大。’”希爾回憶道。“人們不理解。他們認(rèn)為我們做的一切都太不成熟了。而在我看來(lái)，‘我發(fā)自心底地認(rèn)為還沒(méi)有人專門(mén)服務(wù)這一代人。’”

She was right. According to a report in Forbes in June, millennial and Generation Z clients are predicted to make up 45 per cent of the luxury market by 2025. They already account for 70 per cent of Threads’ client base. And their average spend is a whopping £3,000.

她是對(duì)的。根據(jù)《福布斯》雜志(Forbes)去年6月發(fā)布的一份報(bào)告，到2025年，千禧一代和“Z世代”客戶預(yù)計(jì)會(huì)占到奢侈品市場(chǎng)的45%。他們已占到Threads客戶群的70%，人均花費(fèi)則高達(dá)3000英鎊。

What started initially as a way of “looking after” the Asian luxury clients who passed through London each summer has grown in all directions. “We don’t give out the client numbers but we have in the thousands now,” says Hill, now 35, from the kitchen of her elegantly spare apartment in London’s East End, just next door to the company’s offices. “Our sales figures have doubled every year for the last three or four years, and we’ve sold £30m worth of goods with a 5 per cent returns rate. So, we’ve been extremely influential in the luxury space.”

Threads創(chuàng)立之初是為了“照顧”每年夏天經(jīng)過(guò)倫敦的亞洲奢侈品顧客。發(fā)展到現(xiàn)在，它的客戶已遍及全球。“我們不會(huì)公布客戶數(shù)字，但現(xiàn)在幾千位是有的。”希爾現(xiàn)年35歲，在倫敦東區(qū)有一處雅致的閑置公寓，就位于公司辦公室隔壁。她坐在公寓廚房里，告訴我：“過(guò)去三四年，我們每年的銷售額都做到了翻番，迄今總共賣出了價(jià)值3000萬(wàn)英鎊的商品，退貨率僅為5%。因此，我們?cè)谏蒿椘奉I(lǐng)域極具影響力。”

Key to cultivating these new clients has been the way Threads communicates: clients and shoppers ping-pong messages back and forth. Their products are showcased via Instagram Stories, for which the in-house team creates a minimum of six branded features a day. It’s fast, it’s efficient and it’s highly personalised. “It’s not about sitting in a carpeted room with a glass of champagne and someone coming and showing you things,” Rachel Reavley, president of brand strategy, says of the changing retail experience. “A typical client is probably sitting in Santa Monica having lunch with their girlfriends, but spending 30 per cent of their day on their phone. Threads Styling puts your personal shopper in your pocket.”

培養(yǎng)這些新客戶的關(guān)鍵在于Threads的交流方式：客戶和買手之間通過(guò)信息往來(lái)。他們通過(guò)Instagram Stories來(lái)展示商品。公司的內(nèi)部團(tuán)隊(duì)每天發(fā)布至少6條品牌小視頻。這種交流方式十分快速、高效，極具針對(duì)性。“這可不是坐在鋪著地毯的房間，喝著香檳，等著別人進(jìn)來(lái)向你展示商品。”Threads品牌戰(zhàn)略負(fù)責(zé)人蕾切爾•里夫利(Rachel Reavley)如此介紹不斷變化的零售體驗(yàn)。“客戶很可能坐在美國(guó)圣莫尼卡，和女伴們吃著午餐，但一天有30%的時(shí)間在玩手機(jī)。Threads Styling是幫你將私人買手裝進(jìn)口袋里。”

Everything is designed to feel instinctive and familiar. “It’s an unparalleled convenience, but it’s about being convenient for them in the way that they behave,” says Reavley. “The same with the messaging: that’s how millennials communicate with their friends, so it’s a really natural flow of communication. It feels totally organic. We’re not asking them to download an app or come to a website or check something.”

整個(gè)過(guò)程設(shè)計(jì)得讓你感到十分自然和熟悉。“用起來(lái)無(wú)比方便，而又完全貼合他們的行為習(xí)慣。”里夫利表示：“與發(fā)信息一樣：這就是千禧一代與朋友交流的方式，所以是真正自然的溝通。感覺(jué)完全就是日常所為。我們不需要他們下載應(yīng)用，或登錄網(wǎng)站，或查閱什么終端。”

Nevertheless Threads has to stay nimble. “You’re constantly learning because the customer behaviour modifies all the time,” says Hill. As well as using WhatsApp, Instagram, they also operate on WeChat and Snapchat, and are secretive about where they see the market moving next. “We get a real kick out of how fast we can do things, it’s part of our culture. But it’s also about people who’ve had amazing training from a human-to-human point of view and blending that with a great tech product team who are monitoring all that consumer behaviour.”

不過(guò)，Threads必須保持敏銳。希爾表示：“你要不斷學(xué)習(xí)，因?yàn)橛脩粜袨橐恢痹谧儭?rdquo;除了WhatsApp和Instagram，他們還有微信和Snapchat方式，且對(duì)于市場(chǎng)下一個(gè)動(dòng)向守口如瓶。“我們真的非常享受我們做事的速度。這是我們文化的一部分。但除此之外，還要?dú)w功于我們經(jīng)過(guò)出色人際交流培訓(xùn)的團(tuán)隊(duì)，此外還有一支出色的技術(shù)產(chǎn)品團(tuán)隊(duì)來(lái)監(jiān)測(cè)所有消費(fèi)者行為。”

As a company, it carries no stock, and Threads’ revenues are based on the commission on each sale. It also takes responsibility for all postage, packaging and delivery, most of it via its London hub. It’s a difficult business to scale. But in many ways, it is reshaping the narrative of what retail can be.

作為一家公司，Threads沒(méi)有任何存貨，收入來(lái)自每一筆銷售的傭金。公司還要負(fù)責(zé)所有郵資、打包和投遞。大多數(shù)商品都是通過(guò)其倫敦中心發(fā)出。這種業(yè)務(wù)很難規(guī)?；５谠S多方面轉(zhuǎn)變著人們對(duì)零售業(yè)未來(lái)的看法。

“We work with anything from wholesale to commission,” Reavley adds. “Because although we’re not a traditional buyer and we’re not going to turn up in your office and put in a pre-order buy, we’re probably as likely to shift as much product. We’re going to sell your stock for you. But in real time.”

“我們什么都做，從批發(fā)到委托。”里夫利補(bǔ)充道，“因?yàn)楸M管我們不是傳統(tǒng)買家，不會(huì)跑到你的辦公室，預(yù)訂某樣?xùn)|西，但我們應(yīng)該同樣有可能賣出一樣多的產(chǎn)品。我們會(huì)幫你賣掉庫(kù)存。還是實(shí)時(shí)的。”

Luxury brands like working with Threads. There have been Instagram Stories with Céline and Cartier in recent weeks, brands that have typically been shy of embracing digital sales. “We see ourselves as a complement to other people’s businesses,” says Reavley. “Because what we’re doing is the definition of see now, buy now. We’re really shifting your inventory. Like it or not, the reality is not as many people go into bricks and mortar as they used to. So footfall is down organically. So when one of our personal shoppers comes into a store, that head of VIP customer experience recognises very quickly that here’s someone who’s representing thousands of people around the globe who aren’t going to walk into that store but who are still getting visibility on what they have.”

奢侈品牌喜歡與Threads合作。最近幾周，Threads與賽琳(Céline)和卡地亞(Cartier)合作推出了一些Instagram Stories。這兩個(gè)品牌以前一直對(duì)數(shù)字營(yíng)銷懷有戒心。“我們把自己看作是對(duì)其他人業(yè)務(wù)的補(bǔ)充。”里夫利稱，“因?yàn)槲覀冏龅恼羌纯醇促I。我們確實(shí)在消化你的庫(kù)存。無(wú)論你是否喜歡，現(xiàn)實(shí)就是許多人不會(huì)像以前一樣去商店購(gòu)物了。因此商店客流量大幅下滑。因此，當(dāng)我們的私人買手走進(jìn)一家商店，那里的VIP客戶服務(wù)部負(fù)責(zé)人很快就能意識(shí)到，面前這個(gè)人代表著世界各地的數(shù)千名客戶。雖然這些人并沒(méi)有親自走進(jìn)商店，但仍看得到里面的一切。”

As yet, Threads doesn’t do paid content with brands, but that will surely come. “We’re definitely being asked,” says Reavley. “And I don’t see anything wrong with it; if somebody’s got something great to talk about which we would naturally want to talk about anyway, then we can strategise about how we do that as a partnership. But right now we’re only talking about it.”

迄今，Threads不會(huì)替品牌發(fā)布收費(fèi)內(nèi)容，但未來(lái)肯定會(huì)這樣做。“我們確實(shí)接到了問(wèn)詢。”里夫利說(shuō)，“而且我覺(jué)得這樣做沒(méi)有任何問(wèn)題。如果有很棒的產(chǎn)品想談合作，而這件產(chǎn)品我們本來(lái)也想談，那么我們就可以制定戰(zhàn)略，研究如何合作。但眼下，我們還只在談?wù)撾A段。”

As for Threads’ own future, Hill is pragmatic. It has taken investment from Horizon Labs, the Hong Kong-based seed fund operated by Horizons Ventures, but it is not looking for more at the moment. “We’ve had moments of profitability,” says Hill. “But all the money we’ve made we’ve put back into growth and expanding the business. It’s really important to us to be a profitable business. That’s key.” The company is also looking at setting up a second office in California, which she sees as having the biggest potential in the new millennial economy, and “I can definitely see us having an office out in China, Hong Kong and Dubai”.

至于Threads的未來(lái)，希爾十分務(wù)實(shí)。它已經(jīng)獲得了由維港投資(Horizons Ventures)運(yùn)營(yíng)的香港種子基金Horizon Labs的投資，但目前不打算尋找更多投資者。“我們已實(shí)現(xiàn)過(guò)盈利。”希爾說(shuō)：“但我們賺的所有錢又都投了進(jìn)來(lái)，尋求增長(zhǎng)和擴(kuò)大業(yè)務(wù)。對(duì)我們而言，盈利非常重要。這是關(guān)鍵。”公司目前還打算在加州成立第二個(gè)辦公室。希爾認(rèn)為，加州是新千禧經(jīng)濟(jì)最具潛力之地，而“我將來(lái)當(dāng)然也會(huì)在中國(guó)內(nèi)地、香港和迪拜開(kāi)設(shè)分公司”。

Brexit is less of a challenge, the group says, than the huge discrepancies in global pricing that still affect the industry. “There’s going to have to be a pricing equalisation,” says Hill. “There’s a 20 per cent to 30 per cent uplift on most luxury goods in the US. And the differences between the UK and other countries in Europe will have to change.” Threads表示，與英國(guó)脫歐相比，奢飾品在全球存在巨大價(jià)差是更大的挑戰(zhàn)，仍影響著整個(gè)行業(yè)。“必須實(shí)現(xiàn)定價(jià)一致。”希爾表示，“美國(guó)大多數(shù)奢侈品都會(huì)貴上20-30%。而英國(guó)和其他歐洲國(guó)家之間的價(jià)差將必須改變。”

“Millennials are too switched on to the differences,” adds Reavley. “They do the price comparisons. And I just don’t think from a brand perspective that’s a good way to treat the customer.”

“千禧一代非常在意價(jià)差。”里夫利補(bǔ)充道，“他們會(huì)對(duì)比價(jià)格。而且，從品牌角度講，我認(rèn)為這樣對(duì)待顧客也非明智之舉。”

For all its millennial ambition, Threads Styling is also having to adapt to meet the needs of a new consumer: the older woman. “The biggest thing about millennials is that they’re such an influential generation, they really influence everyone around them,” says Hill. “And while we’ve been working with millennials — we’ve now got their parents.” Whether or not they use Snapchat is moot.

盡管對(duì)千禧一代信心十足，但Threads Styling仍需應(yīng)對(duì)一類新客戶的需求：年長(zhǎng)女性。“千禧一代最厲害的一點(diǎn)在于，他們太有影響力，真的影響了身邊的所有人。”希爾表示：“盡管我們一直與千禧一代打交道——但現(xiàn)在他們的父母也來(lái)了。”他們是否使用Snapchat并沒(méi)有太大關(guān)系。

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