Bottom Line: Boohoo floats on rising tide as M&S sinks
BOOHOO.COM’s founders look set to be crying tears of joy this March when the retailer, which specialises in catering to fashionistas, floats on the London stock exchange. For one of its most established competitors, however, it’s another reason to reach for the Kleenex and start sobbing.
Marks & Spencer’s clothes division is a once-great national brand now stumbling from one downbeat update to the next, even as its sister food division flourishes.
M&S is unveiling its Best of British collection as part of London Fashion Week today, once more trying to walk the awkward line between classic and modern design. But at moments like this, you can see the contradictions pulling the M&S strategy apart at the seams. Even as style director Belinda Earl rolls out a new range of updated classics, she is busy assuring shoppers they can find the latest fashions in store as well. However stylish this latest set of designs, it can’t rescue a brand with a hopelessly muddled message.
What’s worse, in the 21st-century fashion retail world, collections are old hat. Constant updates are the future. Boohoo boasts that it launches up to 100 new styles every day on its online store. Like Boohoo’s close cousin Asos or, in the high street world, Zara, smart, agile supply chains underpin the retailers able to keep up with the relentless churn of taste at the low prices customers love.
So this isn’t a make-or-break collection. It’s a sign the model is already broken.