California Apparel News

Mona Bijoor thought she could solve an age-old problem for boutique owners: finding time to scout for new merchandise without sacrificing time spent on the sales floor with the customer.

In March, she debuted Joor (www.jooraccess.com), an online network for contemporary brands and boutiques, many of which complain they do not have enough time to sell to their customers. The New York–headquartered network will use social media–style communications similar to Facebook. Bijoor said boutique owners and brand salespeople can save a lot of time by communicating and doing business with their vendors online.

“Boutiques get 50 phone calls a day; they can’t take 50 calls a day,” said Bijoor, a former buyer and Wharton School of Business MBA. While it won’t replace trade shows or face-to-face meetings, she said, the non-invasive communication style of e-mails and Facebook-style postings and even placing purchase orders on Joor can take place before and after business hours, which will give retailers more precious time with their customers.

Bijoor is not alone. A handful of other entrepreneurs recently debuted business-to-business social networks geared to the fashion industry. These companies say they will help retailers and manufacturers cut down on meeting time and slash travel costs by transferring some of their business online.

The fashion business has been criticized for often being the last industry in line to adapt new technologies. The industry has seen several social networks, such as Uber and ThreadMe, launch and shutter over the last two years while general-interest networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter have flourished as a tool for communicating with customers and colleagues. According to a survey from Arbitron Inc. and Edison Research released in April, 48 percent of Americans aged 12 and up maintain profiles on a social-media network.

But industry insiders are divided over whether the wholesale side of the fashion industry is ready to adopt the social-networking ethic. Mary Helen Shashy used some social media–style features in her virtual showroom site, Hotter Than Hollywood. However, she recently put the virtual showroom on the back burner to concentrate on direct marketing of fashion designs.

“I think the business model is ahead of its time,” Shashy said of business-to-business social media for fashion. “The fashion industry has been slow to embrace it. They would rather go with their traditional ways of the business: going to trade shows, selling on the road.”

Time for B2B

Yet according to David Dea, an instructor of apparel management technology at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, the fashion industry is on the cusp of taking a plunge into B2B social networking. “E-commerce has gone straight up in sales,” he said. “People are a lot more comfortable with doing business online.”

Jeannie Lee is the owner of high-profile Los Angeles boutique Satine. She joined Joor in March. To date, she had not used it. However, she said she believes it will save time for retailers. “If I’m looking for some pants, do I have to call every single designer? That is cumbersome. Instead I’ll post ’I need pants,’” she said, and a lot of the brands on Joor will be able to answer her online request—no matter what time of the day.

Joor offers an invite-only community for contemporary boutiques and brands. Businesses will only be able to communicate with another business on Joor if they receive approval to be friends with the other business.

On Joor, members can view line sheets and designs from various designers. They also can watch video blogs on specific boutiques, which introduce the store’s history and business style. They can order through the site but not move money. Joor was funded by private investors, whose identities were not divulged.

Afingo (www.afingo.com), another New York–based social-media Web site, debuted in January as a place for the fashion industry to meet and do business. Afingo, however, also brings consumers into the mix.

While fashion designers and stores set up profiles to network and go over collections, consumers can set up profiles on the site. The consumer edge can offer designers and retailers feedback on fashions. Just post ’Do you like this design?’ on a profile.

In July, Afingo will debut an Afingo eBay-style auction site, said Liza Deyrmenjian, co-founder of Afingo. The site will be a market where retailers can buy wholesale and consumers can search for unique styles.

As part of its consumer edge, Afingo hired Gabriel Bell, former editor of the popular Refinery 29 Web site, in March to write fashion editorial for the site as well as produce contests for the fashion public.

Deyrmenjian predicts B2B social media will soon be viewed as a necessary business tool. “The new generation that is coming up, their entire experience in the world has been digital. Their language is Web-based and social-based. In a few years, they will be the buying masses,” Deyrmenjian said.

And there are more companies eyeing the fashion industry for the next wave of B2B social-networking sites. Los Angeles–based Forward Global Trade Show (www.forwardshow.com), plans to produce a virtual fashion trade show, where brands and boutiques make deals online. The first trade show was originally scheduled to take place in March. However, the launch date has been postponed until 2011 because the site is adapting new technology and a new investor joined the company last month. Forward founder Kele Meenan did not divulge the name of the investor.