1. Why fashion’s ‘generation rent’ is here to stay, regardless of the pandemic: “I’m of a generation that doesn’t question shared ownership,” says the sparky 27-year-old Victoria Prew, a former estate agent at Knight Frank who left to co-found Hurr Collective. The clothes rental service now occupies a permanent space in Selfridges stores. – Read More on the Telegraph
2. Despite political tensions, Alibaba’s international expansion is paying off: The company has been pushing to expand internationally over the past year, introducing new features especially aimed at U.S.-based sellers. Most recently, this summer, it announced a program for small-to-medium-sized businesses (SMBs) to buy and sell goods in the B2B space. – Read More on Modern Retail
3. China’s e-commerce giants get a boost as consumers continue to shift online after coronavirus: “Post COVID-19, the pace of digitization continues to accelerate and the shift from offline to online, in particular for individual shopping, is becoming a habit for consumers,” Jefferies said in a recent note discussing Alibaba’s June quarter earnings. – Read More on CNBC
4. Tiffany And Other Luxury Brands Find Creative Ways To Stay Relevant: Tiffany and other luxury brands have been late to the eCommerce game, mostly because their business was based on in-store viewing and personal customer service. Tiffany’s Q2 report shows the company only recently opened an eCommerce site in its most important market (China) and saw a 23% increase in Q1 over 2019 numbers. Now, eCommerce is 15% of the company’s total sales, compared to 6 percent in previous years. – Read More on PYMNTS
5. RETRO READ: Even 180-Year Old Hermès Cannot Avoid an Emphasis on E-Commerce. “A luxury brand that avoids the internet is effectively refusing to engage with its customers where they are increasingly spending time and money. It is not listening to what its customers want, which is dangerous in any consumer-facing industry.” – Read More on TFL
6. Martin Margiela did himself a favor: He anticipated fashion’s future — and its failures. Margiela ceased doing interviews. He refused to be photographed. He no longer greeted guests backstage with obligatory kisses and hugs. He decided to let his clothes speak for him and when his clothes were confounding, he was content to let audiences wrestle with the conundrums all on their own. – Read More on the Washington Post