California Apparel News

The off-price market is grabbing a bigger stake in cyberspace. Off-price jobbers, manufacturers and liquidators who struggle with the expense and maintenance of their own online vehicles will soon have another option as the producer of the Off-Price Specialist Show in Las Vegas will unveil Offpriceshowrooms.com, a new virtual marketplace for its exhibitors and others.

It’s jobbing 24/7, said Don Browne, marketing director for Off-Price Shows, a division of U.K.–based Tarsus Group PLC.

“We’ve been doing this for more than 30 years. As we progress, we are looking for better ways to serve the buyer,” Browne said. “As successful as our show [is], there’s a need for buyers beyond the show. The buyers have been telling us that we have this huge database, so we responded with a 24/7 year-round vehicle.”

The format and pricing information will be released at the Off-Price Specialist Show, set for Feb. 10–14 at the Sands Expo and Convention Center. This is not the first time the show has expanded into cyberspace. Last summer it added an auction site in conjunction with United Auction LLP.

Off-price goods usually perform well during a sluggish economy, so the timing is good, Browne said. The site should also help define the off-price market better for buyers.

“Some don’t have a clue what this market is about. They think it’s all junk or broken fits, but it’s not that at all. We get quality cancellations and quality goods from Asia and around the world. With this venture, buyers can conduct virtual visits to showrooms from all over the map.”

The new venture will have to compete with other Web sites such as Los Angeles–based Offpricemarket.com, which has already established itself over the past 18 months. The company has tripled its business over the past year, growing to about 80 vendors, said Chief Executive Officer Robert Libby.

The site features companies that sell overruns, cancellations and surplus merchandise, much of it in-season. Vendors pay $65 per month. Each gets a storefront and benefits from Libby’s heavy marketing activity both onand off-line.

“It’s a virtual mall. You’re giving the retailer more choices and a selection,” Libby said. “Stores are reinventing themselves by going into the online off-price market. And it helps the vendor who finds it very hard to get the traffic themselves.”

Libby said the company can help vendors build their own storefronts or create links to existing ones. The site is free for buyers. They are required to commit to a six-piece minimum on orders. The site caters to every category of apparel and accessories.

As for the new competition, Libby isn’t daunted.

“I thrive on it. When there are more choices, it only makes me better and stronger. I learned that through being a retailer in malls for 28 years.”

Off-price vendors said the Web has only enhanced their businesses.

“It’s going well, said Kathy Chikato of Commerce, Calif.–based DLM Off Price, which sells designer brands including Tadashi, A.B.S., Tommy Hilfiger and Anne Klein. “We’ve been getting a lot of new customers as a result. The Internet is where a lot of people are going now, so you have to be there.”

Chikato will also exhibit at the Off-Price Specialist Show. Asked if she might cross over to the show’s new online venture, Chikato said she was happy about where she is right now.

Cassandra Grundy of Moss Apparel Group joined Offpricemarket. com in November.

“We started at a bad time in this industry, right before the holidays, but it’s slowly getting there. Going this route is definitely cheaper than having our own Web site, and I like the fact that it is very easy. It’s still important to go to the shows. You want the one-on-one visits, and we all look forward to seeing each other.”

Show organizers are expecting more than 140,000 visitors and about 1,000 booths. Preregistration is up 20 percent, Browne said.

“In good times and bad, the smart off-price buyers know they can write winning orders at our shows that really make their season, said Julie Ichiba, the new executive show director for Off-Price. The show will feature several programs for visitors, including “TOP$,” a display of trendy apparel sourced by fashion students from the International Academy of Design and Technology, as well as new buyer tours led by David Abbate of New York–based LadyRose Shop . A demo area featuring Offpriceshowrooms. com will also be on display. For more information on the Off-Price Showrooms, contact Mary Spitzer at mary@tarsus-inc.com. For more information on Offpricemarket.com, e-mail bob@offpricemarket.com.