Tell me a little about your eCommerce journey

Started as a wholesale business, 35 years in business. The transition from wholesale to online was a long process – takes a considerable amount of time and [you] need to stay positive as there are a lot of setbacks. [You] need to be willing to try out new ideas, and not be disheartened when things don’t go according to plan. Be active on social media.

How different is your life now compared to 5 years ago? Did you think you would be where you are or did you envision something different?

We had no website or online presence. Over the years, I have learned [who are] the right photographers and what products our online customers responded best to. It was a long case of trial and error.

What was it like getting your first sale?

He was in a band, and he had bought one of our jackets from a store. He lost the jacket and called the store, but they no longer stocked it. He remembered the brand name and turned out to be our first customer. He actually sported our jacket in a music video.

What does a typical day look like for you?

There is no straight answer. Tasks are very seasonal. At certain times of the year, I need to work on changing stock (fall/winter & spring/summer). Our website needs to reflect this (descriptions, sizes, materials, fabric content, product photos), and we manage all this via never-ending Excel spreadsheets. Changing banners to suit the current stock, and making sure last season’s stock is moved to sale. Focusing on trade shows twice yearly, traveling to meet retailers and liaising with our production team.

What is your main area of focus right now?

Introducing more products. We are introducing more bags, which our customers are increasingly more interested in. Our team of designers is always looking out for the freshest designs; they travel across the globe for sources of inspiration.

What sets your brand/product apart from others on the market?

All of our major customers keep coming back [to] me as our products are best sellers in their stores. Our focus is on quality, affordability and fashion that relates to a wide audience.

Have you ever considered opening a physical store?

No, our wholesale customers are amazing and increase their orders year-over-year. Our online store is now bringing a lot of new customers and reaching a much wider audience, so that is our main focus.

Have you noticed a difference in online shoppers since you first opened your online store?

Now we are learning what our customers like and the type of information/images they prefer. Introducing free shipping over $50 has made a big difference, and always tweaking based on customer feedback. I have noticed a massive increase in repeat customers.

How important is email marketing to your store? What tools do you use?

MailChimp – we had a template made that matches the website more consistency. Welcome emails, product review after purchase and abandon cart and all transactional emails are sent via Orderly, [which offers] easy ways to send out post-purchase emails (super affordable and improves customer experience and lots of customizations). Analytics & feedback help me make tweaks to the customer journey, and also the amount of orders and which products sell more.

How do you manage and optimize your content? Is SEO a big focus?

Right now, this is not a priority, but it’s something I need to look into. I’m used to use AdWords, but the spend was so high and I didn’t get the right conversions. I use Facebook and Instagram for  – outsourced – new acquisition and retargeting.

How did you define your branding and website layout?

We hired someone to help with branding and website design. I monitor customer experience and tweak accordingly.

How do you target and define your target audience?

We aim our products at a wide audience and focus on quality and affordability.

Where do you see the future of eCommerce over the next 5-10 years?

I think eCommerce is going to become bigger and bigger and swallow up some of the retail malls. This is one of the reasons we have no interest in having a brick and mortar store, particularly with the younger generation who are comfortable purchasing online.

How do you handle customer service, customer issues, and returns?

We have a team in-house who usually handle issues within 24 hours. We are more than happy to handle returns to make sure our customers are happy.

How important are good product images for your brand? How do you manage your product descriptions?

This is the most important part of our business. We need to have close-ups for [our] detailed products. We want customers to be comfortable with what they are buying. Our photographer edits all the images, and we resize them to be lower res. Product descriptions are the biggest issue. I usually split it up over a series of days, takes a long time. Having a tool to automate it would be amazing.

Why did you choose Shopify? What are their main strengths? Where could they improve?

I tried a few other options, but Shopify was super easy to use. I love that there are so many apps and integrations, and [they have] amazing customer service. Integrations are the best thing. [But] unless you pay for the higher packages, you don’t get analytics access…This would be great, but we use apps/plugins that overcome it.

If you could magically automate 3 tasks, what would they be and why?

Product descriptions, getting products uploaded takes weeks, [and] build spreadsheets, [we] go back and forth between [them and] Shopify.

Any exciting announcements in the pipeline?

Launching lots of new bags, and our fall product line is due mid/late August.

Where could you use more support, guidance or advice?

Would have liked to have known more about Facebook marketing earlier, and how to optimize it. Also, having the right photographer early on and getting support on branding, delivering and collecting products.

Quick Fire Questions:

Favorite holiday destination? Bali.

Best memory on your eCommerce journey? When I first got the website looking great.

Favorite movie? Pulp Fiction.

Shout out to any influencers or mentors? Dad.

5 apps you couldn’t live without? Shop Spring, Orderly, MailChimp, Snapped & Analytics.

Favorite sources of inspiration? Travel to Europe for inspiration, and LA is a great source of inspiration.

Main tools you use to run your business? Excel, Photoshop, Bridge (Adobe)

Goals for your product over the next 5 years?Increase sales & get PX Clothing name out there more across an international audience.

3 things you couldn’t live without?Family, basketball & travel.

What would you do with an extra hour every day? Sleep.

Biggest lesson you’ve learned along the way? Keep pushing and keep your chin up, stay positive.

Top tips for someone getting started? Stay positive.

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