Seven For All Mankind will take its first steps toward developing a direct-to-consumer business today with the launch of its first e-commerce Web site.
“I think it’s true of any luxury company that’s addressing a modern consumer — you need to be available on the Internet,” said Michael Egeck, who left VF Corp. to become chief executive officer of the Vernon, Calif.-based premium denim company in August.
After taking the reins at Seven, Egeck outlined five growth initiatives that would be the company’s focus for the future, including expanding into other product categories, growing its international business and signing new licensing deals. Although the company plans to begin opening its first signature stores during the second half of 2007, Egeck found that the groundwork had been done to move forward quickly on launching an online store.
“The rework of the noncommerce site was well under way when I got here,” he said.
Once the redesign was finished in September, the number of visitors to the site increased by double digits, spurring Egeck to move quickly on the e-commerce aspect.
“It seems like we’re doing this quickly, but it would have been good to do this a year or two ago,” he said.
Egeck also believes the launch signals the beginning of a new era in the firm’s development.
“This company was growing so rapidly that the focus was on servicing the existing demand versus creating new demand,” he said. “There’s a lot of pent-up demand for more and improved information about our products. We’re really interested to see what happens when we turn it on.”
Egeck declined to give estimates regarding sales and traffic targets, and acknowledged that consumers looking to buy “a fit-specific product like a jean” may be reluctant to do so online. However, he believes the site’s greatest value may be in increasing brand awareness and displaying the full range of Seven products.
The site will initially be devoid of any bells and whistles such as interactive fit guides, instead focusing on presenting detailed views of the full product range. However, Egeck said the site will eventually be used to create an online community and inform customers about the brand and company-sponsored events.