the fashion monocle | on Myer's big brands drop

what could Australian brands do after the big department stores cull? 

The announcement

Last week, Myer announced that it will be dropping about 100 brands as part of a strategic change to make room for more 'on-trend' brands on its shop floors. The news follows  a similar move from rival department store David Jones and its decision to cut 180 brands from its current portfolio. In addition to the change in brand portfolio, Myer is also initiating a voluntary redundancy program for permanent staff in stores in an attempt to restructure its resourcing model. 

Increasing competition forcing department stores to change

With the growth of online shopping and increasing competition from international retailers, Australian department stores are in dire need of refreshing their brand image in order to survive in the new competitive Australian retail environment. 

Myer's announcement is reportedly part of the new CEO Richard Umbers' strategy to streamline growth and rebuild earnings at one of Australia's iconic department stores. Some have described this as Aldi-style 'streamlining', a strategy which sees the company curating its offerings to appeal to more specific target market segments, because it recognises that it simply cannot try to please everyone. 

Indeed, a curated vision allows a department store to better tailor its resources and floor space. International department stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Henri Bendels or Galerie Lafayette offer their customers an almost escapist experience in visiting their physical stores through innovative store layouts, creative displays and tailored product offerings. That is the level that Myer should be operating at in order to stand a chance against the ever increasing competition in Australian retail.  

Brands could set up new online platform to capture a broader market segment

For any up and coming designer label, to get your name into one of the two Australian department stores is a momentous occasion. So one can only imagine the shock that designer brands must be facing in being dropped by a Myer or a David Jones.

However, a look at online Australian retailers reveal a potential gap to be filled - that is, an online fashion destination for upmarket Australian designers. 

While reputable global online retailers such as Net-a-Porter, Farfetch.com and matchesfashion.com have provided adequate platforms for reaching global customers looking for international designer brands, high-end Australian retailers currently lack similar online retail portals which allow them to collectively tap into their specific niche within the Australian market. 

To date, high-end Australian brands tend to source online sales via their own websites. While popular Australian online retailers including The Iconic or Shopbop do feature high-end Australian brands, these brands are almost lost in the clutter of international brands or less premium brands that are also featured on the same websites. 

So perhaps it is time for high-end Australian brands to work together in collectively creating a new online retail platform, dedicated specifically to profiling their respective brands to both target customers in Australia and internationally. After all, with so many home-grown talents in Australia, it's about time that we made a bigger impact on the global fashion industry, isn't it? 

xoxo

'the fashion monocle' is a commentary on topical issues in the fashion industry. It is representative of the author's own opinion only (unless otherwise indicated).