WWD reports today that the fashion industry’s big, untapped audience for social media is its male customer base. Loyal to their favorite brands, interested in the history of the products they buy, and more willing to shop online than one might think, it’s time for retailers to reach out to men via both their social media and editorial channels.
Of course, some men’s brands have gotten on the bandwagon early. Who are the labels and retailers leading the way?
Coach’s Facebook page for its male audience focuses on product knowledge.
1. Coach: Coach launched a separate Facebook page for its men’s division. Granted, it has just under 14,000 fans while the women’s page has around 2 million, but it only launched five months ago. As they grow their male online fan base, the label’s busy making educational inroads with informative posts on Coach’s product history and quality.
Park & Bond offers fully shoppable, totally useful editorial content.
2. Park & Bond: Gilt Groupe’s full-priced men’s site, launched with GQ, came right out of the gate offering useful editorial content. In between blue jeans and gingham buttondowns, Park & Bond also provides how-tos on topics like folding pocket squares and dressing for dinner with one’s in-laws.
The entrance to Ermenegildo Zegna’s 3D online store.
3. Ermenegildo Zegna: Using tech-heavy tactics, luxury men’s clothier Ermenegildo Zegna launched a 3D online store over the summer. Besides its inherent video game quality, the site is appealing for its seamless integration of retail and original video content.
Mr Porter, Net-a-Porter’s menswear site, provides niche editorial content integrated with its retail component.
4. Mr Porter: Net-a-Porter’s separate men’s site came into being through every social media and editorial channel possible. Before even launching, Mr Porter offered potential shoppers access to benefits as “founding members,” through email, Facebook, and Twitter. When Mr Porter finally launched, with an audience of 70,000 of those founding members, they offered extensive editorial content in conjunction with their upscale menswear.
Unlike much of its competition, Valet offered editorial content first and added a retail component later.
5. Valet: If Valet looks more like an online magazine than a retailer, well, that’s because it is. But the men’s site, which offers style, grooming, and lifestyle editorials, began making much of its content shoppable after its audience demanded it. Now Valet aggregates product picks from an array of online retailers, and alerts its readership to sales and physical store launches.
