07/26/2010 08:21 am

DHL and House of Fraser coach Fashion Fringe winners for commercial success

DHL and premium department store group, House of Fraser, this week delivered a mentoring session for the 2010 Fashion Fringe at Covent Garden finalists, who were chosen by John Galliano.

The three finalists, Alice Palmer, Corrie Nielsen and Jade Kang, were chosen for their creativity and innovative design, but mentoring from DHL and House of Fraser demonstrated how their vision can be realised in terms of commercial success, with a particular focus on next generation, multi-channel retailing.

Based on the questions and concerns of the winning designers, DHL and House of Fraser’s mentoring covered:
•    Importing and exporting materials and accessories for production, including international shipping and freight regulations and insurance
•    Modes of transport and their impact on pricing models
•    How to set-up an e-commerce operation
•    Multi-channel fulfillment including branding, pricing, stock management, delivery and returns
As well as lectures and presentations from the industry’s leading logistics and retailing experts, 2009 Fashion Fringe at Covent Garden winners Jenny Holmes and Dimitris Theocharidis of JENA.THEO also gave a talk to the fledgling entrepreneurs on the challenges and opportunities of starting a commercial fashion enterprise.

Coached in the previous year by DHL, the design duo spoke of their journey from winning the 2009 Fashion Fringe at Covent Garden to becoming a commercial fashion brand. The company, which already experiences the shipping and logistics side of retailing through multi-territory material sourcing and manufacturing, talked the latest finalists through the planning behind launching collections.

JENA.THEO also shared their own learning on multi-channel retailing, in particular how using the web can start and grow a business and the challenges and opportunities presented by establishing an own-brand transactional website.

Roger Burns, Fashion Business Development Director, DHL UK says: “JENA.THEO got it spot on when they revealed that they spend approximately 25% of their time designing collections and 75% of their time running the business side of the label. That’s exactly why we’re involved in Fashion Fringe; there is enormous creative talent in the UK, but a good design won’t reach the public consciousness unless it’s supported by a strong business plan, plus the infrastructure and logistics to make the products and get them to the customers. That’s where our knowledge and experience comes in and I’m confident this workshop will help get the work of these exciting new designers to market.”

Mark Holland, Supply Chain Director, House of Fraser and DHL customer says: “The retailing environment that these designers are coming into is being determined by customer expectation. Today’s shopper is demanding more than a great product, they want the entire experience and brands need to be able to deliver on their promises. We want to help these new designers turn their great products into great businesses.”

Alice Palmer, designer and Fashion Fringe 2010 finalist, says: “It was really interesting to learn about all of the logistics about importing and exporting goods around the world in an understandable and practical way. Plus, to have an insight to the way DHL works with House of Fraser in their vast distribution centre. It gave me a lot to think about.”

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