![\"Milan](\"https:\/\/www.theindustry.fashion\/wp-content\/uploads\/milan-1.jpg\")
<\/p>\nWith a lengthy lay-off from being able to put on physical trade shows due to the Coronavirus pandemic, Scoop and Pure London were back this week joining forces in one show format, titled Scoop x Pure, at the Old Truman Brewery on East London\u2019s Brick Lane.<\/p>\n
Exhibitors overall felt that it was great to be back and meeting customers face-to-face again, and evidently there were plenty of orders being written. The buzz was back.<\/p>\n
Contributing Editor Tom Bottomley found out what some key exhibitors had to say, gauging the mood of the market and the trials and tribulations of the past 18 months. Resilience, buoyance, despair and laughing in the face of adversity \u2013 it\u2019s all here.<\/p>\n
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Milan Ramanandi, Commercial Director, Palladio Associates <\/strong><\/p>\n Showing: Hartford, Rino & Pelle, DL1961, Chaser LA, Baye, Ecoalf, Dilli Grey, Pom Amsterdam, Rose & Rose, Murphy & Daughter, Feri, Dream, Thunder Love and Flamingo Life<\/strong><\/p>\n How has your SS22 selling season been?<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s been pretty much back to normal, with customers coming back in to our showroom with an appetite to see new brands. We\u2019re really excited about SS22 and moving away from the disaster of COVID and Brexit.<\/p>\n Is there a new focus to what you have brought to the show? <\/strong><\/p>\n We\u2019ve brought a lot our sustainable brands which have been a focus for us in the last 18 months, as there seems to be a lot of consumer appetite for them. Ecoalf is one of the pioneers of sustainable fashion, and that\u2019s had a really good reaction. New for us is Feri, a brand which has really beautiful printed dresses, very relevant for womenswear at the moment, which are made out of orange peel. On footwear, we have Flamingo Life from Spain, will shoes made out of corn waste and bamboo waste.<\/p>\n How have you found the show?<\/strong><\/p>\n The show has been brilliant. The first day was super busy, as was day two. Considering it\u2019s quite late in the season, there\u2019s still a lot of buyers coming in and adding to their SS22 buy, so we\u2019re really happy. We\u2019re chasing some final orders for the season and still have some showroom appointments booked in for next week. It seems that production time has been extended a bit, which gives us a bit of breathing space.<\/p>\n How have you found the mood from retailers?<\/strong><\/p>\n The mood is actually really buoyant. It\u2019s been great to welcome back the buyers into the showroom, and they\u2019ve all pretty much wanted to come back in to the showroom too, so very few Zoom appointments across the board now. There\u2019s definitely an appetite to look at new collections as well sticking with what they currently buy from Palladio, and that\u2019s really helped us this season.<\/p>\n So, is wholesale still very important for brands despite a lot having to pivot to online direct to consumer sales with stores forced to shut for such for long periods?<\/strong><\/p>\n Wholesale is still 100% very important. We\u2019re actually seeing growth from this SS22 selling season. Yes, there is a lot of direct to consumer, or business to consumer, sales going on, but a lot of the independents we work with are still bricks and mortar. That\u2019s their bread and butter, and while they may have done a website or started utilising Instagram to be selling more, ultimately they\u2019ve still got their revenue from a bricks and mortar shop. The brands benefit hugely from customer loyalty to those independents who do such a fantastic job.<\/p>\n Have you been facing any issues with delivering orders?<\/strong><\/p>\n We\u2019re still encountering delivery issues at the moment, with a lot of the brands shipping but not perhaps putting a commodity code down. That means shipments get stuck in customs and then you have the whole rigmarole of finding those orders and trying to get them to the stores that have paid for them. There\u2019s a lot of \u2018admin\u2019 work for us right now, but I think from SS22 we should have a lot more things ironed out, which should make it a cleaner process for customers getting their stock.<\/p>\n Lucy Walsh, Owner, The Brand Ambassadors Agency<\/strong><\/p>\n Showing: Sirens, Stardust, Poppy Field The Label and By Malina.<\/strong><\/p>\n When did you start your agency and what are you showing at Scoop this time?<\/strong><\/p>\n I launched my agency six years ago with three brands at Scoop, and I\u2019ve been coming back ever since. This time I have two British brands, Sirens and Stardust, Parisian brand Poppy Field The Label, and Swedish designer label By Malina. Poppy Field The Label is designed in Paris but made in Bali. It\u2019s a sustainable brand and it\u2019s made in a female owned factory, which is rare, and it only employs women. Everything is sustainable, even the plastic they deliver the product in is biodegradable. By Malina is our premium label, and that\u2019s been amazing.<\/p>\n What\u2019s been selling well for you for SS22?<\/strong><\/p>\n I\u2019ve never sold so many dresses across the board. Everybody thinks that next spring is just going to be nuts when it comes to weddings, parties, people dressing up to attend the races at Ascot and so on. We have a dress from By Malina that will retail at \u00a3410, but it\u2019s been pretty much on everybody\u2019s order book. And, with Sirens, in the first hour of the show we opened 10 new accounts, with retailers from Ireland being particular keen. Beachwear and swimwear has also been selling very well, most likely in anticipation of holidays abroad being back in full swing next summer.<\/p>\n What dresses from Sirens have had a big reaction?<\/strong><\/p>\n There\u2019s a real 70\u2019s feel to them which has been going down well, and one which is a nod to Michelle Pfeiffer\u2019s look in \u2018Scarface\u2019, as well as the famous 70\u2019s New York nightclub Studio 54, and what the famous faces wore there. All of the prints are hand-painted, exclusive to us, and everyone just loves all the vibrant colours. They\u2019re easy to wear dresses with shirred elastic backs so they\u2019re really comfortable, and nearly all of the dresses have pockets \u2013 even the evening wear gown. Women are loving that.<\/p>\n What has the mood from buyers been like?<\/strong><\/p>\n The mood has been electric. There\u2019s a real buzz as everyone is so delighted to be back. Then even been lots of buyers who have come to the show who have done all their buying, but they just want to be here and rub shoulders with other buyers and agents, and feel like we\u2019re part of a community again. Even those people who have said they\u2019ve spent all their money for the season have been so excited to be here that they\u2019ve been spending that little bit more.<\/p>\n What\u2019s the last 18 months been like for you as an agency?<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s been really tough, but we\u2019ve had to keep going. Agents have not really been mentioned when people have talked about how difficult it\u2019s been through the pandemic. The brands and retailers have certainly been mentioned, but the agents are the glue that hold everybody together, and so many of us have fallen down the cracks because we don\u2019t have a permanent showroom, and lots of us haven\u2019t had a single penny from the government.<\/p>\n On top of which, we\u2019ve had our commission cut to a quarter of what it\u2019s been, we\u2019ve had orders cancelled and we\u2019ve lost brands and retailers. Having said that, we probably deal with about 150 retailers and we\u2019ve only had two permanently close. But then we work with really good customers with solid businesses. Those that did close were probably ready to close anyway.<\/p>\n What have retailers been saying about how business has been?<\/strong><\/p>\n I\u2019ve had loads of independent boutiques that have said to me that year-on-year this has been the best trading year they\u2019ve ever had, because their online business has just gone nuts.<\/p>\n A lot of retailers have had to push themselves out of their comfort zone and they\u2019ve been doing videos on Instagram, including styling sessions, and they\u2019ve put themselves in front of the camera instead of behind it. They\u2019ve really embraced social media and that has really elevated their businesses. People want to buy from people, and customers understand that these are small businesses and there is so much loyalty for them.<\/p>\n Ed Fife, Sales Manager, Egomark London<\/strong><\/p>\n Showing: Silk95 Five<\/strong><\/p>\n How long have you been working with Silk95 Five and how would you best describe it?<\/strong><\/p>\n This is only our second season with Silk95, and the first time we\u2019ve shown it at Scoop. We are looking after all the distribution for the UK and Europe. The brand is 10 years old and is out of California. It\u2019s a silk collection with a point of difference. It\u2019s washable and stretch silk, which is quite unusual and it\u2019s very versatile \u2013 with dressier options for evening, and some great day time options as well. The solid colours are very vibrant for SS22, including lime, apple, sea blue, sky blue, turquoise, fluorescent pink, that give a strong alternative to prints. There\u2019s a lot of printed options out there in the market, and this really diffuses that.<\/p>\n What are the key pieces?<\/strong><\/p>\n The key pieces include structured dresses, tiered block colour skirts, silk trousers, loose fitting blouses and some gorgeous shirts, with or without pockets, as well as elegant slips. Prices go from \u00a3195 retail. Being stretch silk it\u2019s really about the comfort. It\u2019s a very chic collection, without massive designer prices.<\/p>\n What has the reaction been like?<\/strong><\/p>\n The reaction has been fantastic and we\u2019re starting to get a lot more traction from strong independents. It\u2019s been fantastic to be \u2018open\u2019 for business so to speak, and in a trade show environment again - seeing people who are clearly enjoying seeing and touching clothes again, especially outside of a showroom.<\/p>\n What do you think about the timing of the show?<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s quite late for us to be fair, but we\u2019ve extended our books to accommodate the trade shows and we are getting more traction with buyers who wouldn\u2019t necessarily get to see the range. That\u2019s great for us because it opens up a few more doors and puts the brand and product into peoples\u2019 minds.<\/p>\n What\u2019s your take on business right now?<\/strong><\/p>\n The future is obviously still unsure, but recently it\u2019s been really buoyant and positive. A lot of the stores we deal with do have online presence, which has helped through the various lockdowns, but I also think people are supporting independent businesses more so now than ever. It\u2019s the time of the independent, and that\u2019s the most important thing. And people are starting to spend and dress up more after being dressed down in tracksuits and loungewear for too long. We\u2019re seeing a real interest in more glamorous dressing for women for sure.<\/p>\n How did you cope with appointments during lockdown?<\/strong><\/p>\n We are mainly showroom based, though during the lockdown we relied heavily on Zoom appointments which people have not tended to mind, but it\u2019s harder to manage and very time consuming because decisions have to be made without seeing the actual product. Now we\u2019ve properly opened back up, our appointments are more like 80% showroom and 20% Zoom. There\u2019s a lot more jeopardy in ordering on Zoom, especially making colour choices, so as a distributor for us to take that risk is quite worrying, but so far, so good.<\/p>\n As Egomark London is multi-brand business, how have you found delivering orders?<\/strong><\/p>\n Deliveries have been very painful due to Brexit and the pandemic together. We\u2019ve had a lot of slow deliveries coming out of Europe and that has been a bit detrimental. We\u2019re still delivering AW21 in part shipments, so there are delays. It\u2019s not ideal.<\/p>\n How are you feeling about things going forward?<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s been really hard, and everyone has had to re-energise themselves in the business, but going forward I think we\u2019re in a good place. I think fashion is generally reviving itself.<\/p>\n Anna Park, Founder, Primrose Park, and owner of Anna independent stores in Primrose Hill, London, Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, Woodbridge in Suffolk, Burnham Market in Norfolk, Holt in Norfolk and Saffron Walden in Essex. <\/strong><\/p>\n How have you found the show?<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s been very steady for us, but I would say it\u2019s not been as busy as usual \u2013 when it was only Scoop and earlier in the season. I prefer it when Scoop and Pure are split. One thing I have noticed is that some people have thought we are too expensive for their stores, but we are used to being more of an entry price rather than a top price. Also, I think peoples\u2019 budgets are compromised because of them spending earlier in the season. I know myself from being a retailer (for the past 26 years) that I literally have hardly any budget left at this time. And we have to get in orders as well, so we have to encourage people to quantify here.<\/p>\n Do you design the collection yourself as well?<\/strong><\/p>\n I do all the shapes, but I work with a print designer. We do the colours together. It\u2019s really easy dressing. I\u2019m not a brand that\u2019s trend driven, and I\u2019m not a brand that is age driven. I think you should wear what suits you, regardless of your age. I keep best sellers within the brand, we just the change the prints. I will take a shape out of the collection only when the customers start telling me they don\u2019t want it any more. Why fix it if it isn\u2019t broken?<\/p>\n We have our \u2018Sandy\u2019 blouse which is in our collection every single season. It works for every age and every size, and it\u2019s been in the collection since we started the brand six years ago. We\u2019ve got eight prints for SS22, and we\u2019re selling seven out of eight. We work with silk, Viscose and cotton. Over the whole collection, our prices range from \u00a385 to \u00a3399 retail.<\/p>\n How have you found the last 18 months as a retailer and a wholesaler?<\/strong><\/p>\n Being retail and wholesale has been a real, dare I say, head f**k! Because I\u2019m a retailer, I know how hard it is, but because I\u2019m a wholesaler, I\u2019m not a bank! So, it\u2019s been really difficult to juggle that. When people have said they can\u2019t pay me, I\u2019ve really just not known what to do. Our clients have generally been absolutely brilliant though \u2013 they\u2019ve been very loyal and have come back.<\/p>\n This season, sales have risen massively for us again. I understood why we didn\u2019t do so well for the AW21 season, because of the nervousness of everyone. I was nervous myself as a retailer. But who would have predicted what we\u2019re seeing now? It\u2019s so busy. Both sides are good at the moment, retail and wholesale.<\/p>\n What\u2019s your outlook going forward?<\/strong><\/p>\n My outlook is good. I do think as an independent it\u2019s great. I think as a brand such as ours, it\u2019s great too. We make our own prints, they are all exclusive to us. You will never see them anywhere else. The uniqueness is great, as is the price. The fact that large multiples are closing will affect the high street, and the high street might become residential, but what we\u2019re finding is these neighbourhood pockets where people want to shop in an independent.<\/p>\n They want to have a coffee from an independent, they want to have a sandwich from an independent. They want a community. I think, if anything that Covid gave us, it gave us this feel of community. People were saying \u2018hello, everything okay?\u2019 and \u2018stay safe!\u2019 You were talking to strangers, who then became a community. You saw them every day, you\u2019d seen them always before, but now you talk to them!<\/p>\n Jo Wallis, Sales Director, and Sarah Edwards, Distributor, Oneseason<\/strong><\/p>\n Do you normally show at Scoop?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jo Wallis: <\/strong>Yes, we\u2019ve shown at Scoop for about eight years, though obviously not for the past two seasons prior to this because of Covid. It\u2019s fabulous to be back! Sarah is my sister, and the whole ethos of the brand is that we\u2019re a big family and we\u2019re friends with our clients, so not being able to see them has not been great to say the least. We\u2019ve missed that connection and it\u2019s great to be reunited. The show has not been as busy as it has been in the past, but people have to come by train and some are obviously still a bit scared to travel on public transport.<\/p>\n Has the later show schedule had any effect?<\/strong><\/p>\n JW: <\/strong>It\u2019s had a bit of an effect for sure, because we usually put in our orders in July. We have a deadline we have to meet at the end of this week! Because our brand is Australian, we\u2019re a season behind them, so we have to get our orders in at a specific time. We\u2019d prefer the show to be earlier, but we\u2019ve certainly been writing orders here. In fact, we\u2019ve run out of order sheets! That\u2019s a first.<\/p>\n Have you had to adapt the way you operate to make it easier for retailers to place orders this season?<\/strong><\/p>\n JW: <\/strong>Because of COVID-19, we\u2019ve changed the structure of ordering by sending out a video and look-book to clients so they can order more easily online. I would say that two thirds of our customers have ordered that way, and then we\u2019ve taken orders at the show from existing clients, as well as picking up some new clients.<\/p>\n We don\u2019t have a showroom, we\u2019re based in Gloucestershire and that\u2019s where our warehouse is. We\u2019re very much about supporting the boutiques. We don\u2019t sell the brand online. You see it, you buy it, it\u2019s gone. It keeps our brand fresh and exclusive.<\/p>\n How would you best describe the brand\u2019s offer?<\/strong><\/p>\n JW:<\/strong> It was originally resort wear, but because of the success in the UK the designers have definitely gone a lot more into day wear that you can wear in more of a British summer.<\/p>\n How long has the brand been established?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sarah Edwards:<\/strong> The brand has been going for 12 years and we\u2019ve been the UK and European distributor for it for 10 years. I discovered it while in Australia, and actually bought four or five pieces for myself at the time.<\/p>\n How has Brexit effected your distribution in Europe?<\/strong><\/p>\n SE:<\/strong> We distribute across the whole of Europe, but because of Brexit we\u2019ve now had to set up a new distribution base in Lisbon because the additional costs were proving ridiculous. It\u2019s changed everything and it\u2019s been an absolute nightmare! We\u2019ve also incurred increasing costs bringing goods in to the UK, so our overheads are bigger, but we\u2019ve tried not to pass on added costs to our clients, or we\u2019ve kept any rises as low as we possibly can.<\/p>\n How have you found the mood among the retailers you supply?<\/strong><\/p>\n SE:<\/strong> The mood has been fantastic. We feel like it\u2019s almost the time to be independent. It\u2019s their time. A lot of the high street shops have just shut because they\u2019re big players who haven\u2019t been nimble enough to adapt, and the independents have had to get going and they\u2019ve picked up more clients, with more money in their pockets. Also, I think peoples\u2019 view of fashion has changed. People are thinking about spending a bit more on something that will last longer and not buying cheap fast fashion.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" With a lengthy lay-off from being able to put on physical trade shows due to the Coronavirus pandemic, Scoop and Pure London were back this week joining forces in one show format, titled Scoop x Pure, at the Old Truman Brewery on East London\u2019s Brick Lane.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":179102,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,13678],"tags":[21080,11188,21079,9993,21081,10160,21078,21077,11220,9683,21082,12643,10493],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"Lucy](\"https:\/\/www.theindustry.fashion\/wp-content\/uploads\/lucy.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Ed](\"https:\/\/www.theindustry.fashion\/wp-content\/uploads\/edfife.jpg\")
<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"Anna](\"https:\/\/www.theindustry.fashion\/wp-content\/uploads\/annapark.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Jo](\"https:\/\/www.theindustry.fashion\/wp-content\/uploads\/lr.jpg\")
<\/p>\n