Matalan has added 10 new third-party fashion brands, including Blue Vanilla, Quiz and Roman, to its website as it works to grow its online offering.
The fashion and homeware retailer said it had carefully selected the brands to complement its existing roster. Matalan introduced third party brands to its site last September, and now includes the likes of Craghoppers, Jack & Jones, Little Mistress and Regatta.
“We’re so excited to be adding more fantastic brands to our portfolio, brands we know our customers will love to shop. We’re committed to offering our customers a dynamic online experience, and by giving them more choice across our product ranges we know they’ll continue to trust Matalan as their one stop shop as well as remaining a leading online retail destination for families across the UK,” explained Ben Smith, chief trading officer, Matalan.
RetailX’s UK Fashion 2023 report tracks how Matalan has grown from a market stall in Liverpool to a £1bn turnover omni-channel fashion retailer, but has maintained founder John Hargreaves core philosophy of selling quality clothing that his customers can afford.
The company profile in the report stresses that the company is seen as a pioneer of out-of-town value retailing, opening its first store in Preston in 1985 and going on to corner the market in retail park selling in the 1990s and early 2000s.
While rooted in the old school market stall trading, Matalan has also been a pioneer and champion of technology and was one of the first true omnichannel fashion retailers in the UK. Today, it offers in-store sales in harmony with online sales with click and collect and home delivery options to its 12 million customers.
The RXUK Top 100 retailer saw online sales climb by 50% during the pandemic and is building on this surge in digital sales by investing in its platform, warehousing and distribution – including tie ups with a number of leading third-party logistics firms.
Matalan is also leveraging its online presence by targeting the younger 35 to 45 year old audience by on boarding new brands and upping its online marketing. In 2023, the retailer appointed former Co-op customer and community director Ali Jones as its new chief customer and omnichannel officer, with effect from 19 April.
In her new position, Jones will focus on establishing a new customer function within the fashion retailer to connect all customer touchpoints. Jones spent more than five years at symbol group retailer the Co-op, and is currently a board member of the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS), a position she held since May 2021.
The retailer hopes that Jones can help build on the company’s switch to omni-channel and take advantage of the firm’s value proposition, which is particularly attractive in the current economic climate.
This company profile was authored by Paul Skeldon and originally appeared in the RetailX UK Fashion 2023 report. Download the report in full to discover how apparel, footwear and accessories performed individually in 2022 and where these segments are heading. We also assess how speedy delivery and free returns are among the key factors shaping online fashion shopper purchases.
