Global disruption in fashion, how can B2B Commerce help?

If wholesale fashion brands are going to survive the consistent chaos of the global supply chain, a sophisticated B2B eCommerce platform will be vital. 

The last decade has seen a myriad of threats to supply chain stability, with the pandemic, Brexit and the war in Ukraine to name a few. But what exactly can an eCommerce platform do to help B2B fashion firms cope with this uncertainty?

Choosing a modern B2B eCommerce platform can equip you to foresee supply chain issues, manage shortages and avoid selling goods you can’t source. You’ll have clear visibility of your inventory levels, including both raw materials and manufactured garments. An advanced system will also provide up-to-date records of order entry and distribution, with accurate data available to all users, so you can keep a close eye on supply and demand. 

So while a B2B eCommerce platform can’t prevent the disasters that disrupt supplies, it can give fashion brands the foresight to anticipate a problem, and the time to develop a Plan B. After all, your response to supply chain issues will likely impact metrics like brand loyalty and buyer satisfaction.

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4 wrinkles in the B2B fashion industry

And how B2B eCommerce can help you iron them out

Supply chain disruption 

The global supply chain has faced unending issues over the last few years, from lockdowns to climate disasters and the war in Ukraine. An advanced eCommerce system means you’re better equipped to mitigate the consequences of these disruptions. With a purpose-built eCommerce platform, you’ll have better visibility of your inventory, a more efficient procurement process, and the ability to offer real-time stock updates for B2B buyers. 

Sustainability expectations

Sustainability has become a more prominent concern across the B2B and wholesale fashion industry. Many buyers are pledging to move away from fast fashion, while the demand for individual brands and manufacturers to supply green credentials is on the rise. An eCommerce platform facilitates transparency about the lifecycle of production, with capacity to showcase garment passports and approval from certification organizations like B Lab or Solidaridad. 

Competitive vendor pricing

Another challenge for fashion wholesalers is ensuring consistent pricing across their own websites and third-party vendors. Whether you’re selling via digitally-native franchises like Amazon and ASOS, or vendors with physical stores, being undercut on price is bad for business. Upgrading from a static eCommerce platform to an open-architecture alternative means you can access tools which provide individual pricing structures, fed by live industry data, allowing you to quickly price match your vendors. 

Death of brand loyalty

Thanks to an oversaturated market and the ease of comparison, brand loyalty is declining. Your eCommerce platform can be a central part of your strategy to counter this. With customer segmentation, you can offer a personalized buying experience and implement exclusive perks or discounts to reward returning customers. Meanwhile, smart reporting features will give you vital insights on how to improve metrics like average order value, bounce rate and cart abandonment.

How a womenswear brand increases sales by 300% with a B2B eCommerce platform

After years relying on complex Excel sheets, a contemporary womenswear brand was tired of grappling with a frustrating, labor-intensive order process. 

Without a centralized platform, reps were giving franchise buyers inconsistent prices, and then struggling to stay abreast of orders, cancellations and deposits.

Order processing was slow, and as it relied on archaic manual service methods, the brand was forced to turn away customers if they were already dealing with another buyer.

Migrating to an eCommerce platform changed everything. The brand now had access to an automated ordering system for quick order capture, so order processing delays became a thing of the past.

Linesheet creation was 2.5 x faster, and prices were listed consistently across the platform, regardless of currency. This increased buyer trust, and sales went up by 300% as a result.

In the three years since they moved to a professional eCommerce platform, the brand has had 30% more customers too. The figures speak for themselves - eCommerce has a vital role to play in B2B fashion, and the right platform can transform your brand’s performance.

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Five key takeaways

In summary, the main five benefits of using B2B eCommerce in the fashion industry are…

1. It gives you a better platform to win more clients and grow your business.

2. It provides a better experience for your customer, resulting in increased average order value and retention.

3. It streamlines the sales and supply chain processes so that you can get perishable goods from A to B quicker, for less.

4. It future-proofs your business, scaling as you grow to ensure that you can always meet increased demand.

5. It future-proofs your business, scaling as you grow to ensure that you can always meet increased demand