Menswear retailer Topman has benefited from a surge in online spend from Europe as canny shoppers take advantage of the strength of the euro against the pound.
Topman is ramping up its online advertising in a bid to drive shoppers to its site and is introducing native language landing pages.
Topman head of e-commerce Gracia Amico said the Arcadia brand’s European customers are starting to realise they can pick up bargains because of the weak pound. She said: “We are doing pay per click campaigns in individual countries and we may introduce a currency converter so people can see how much they are saving.”
The move “could lead to multi-language sites”, according to Amico. If Topman creates such sites, they could be a test bed for similar websites for other Arcadia brands such as Topshop.
Topman now ships to eight countries in Europe. Germany and France are being the biggest in terms of sales at present.
Google retail industry leader Peter Fitzgerald said a growing number of retailers are observing a similar trend, which is spurring them to launch full international offers online. He said: “I think retailers will see enough critical mass to then open fully functioning international sites.”
In the coming months Fitzgerald expects many retailers, particularly in the fashion sector, to open up European-enabled sites. “International online is very important to retailers’ overall growth plans,” he said.
Topshop and Topman both have separate US websites, which were launched in September to create a buzz around the brands in preparation for the opening of the New York flagship store. The Manhattan branch now has a confirmed opening date of April 2.
Amico said that Topman’s main activity online in the week of the US launch will be through its blog and a video it intends to post of the store opening, which is expected to be a high-profile celebrity affair.
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