Independent retailers are suffering. Are emerging brands the key to their survival?

For anyone who doesn’t know, can you talk a bit about VooStore?

T: VooStore is a concept store, I know this is not a term people use anymore. “Concept store” feels a bit outdated somehow… We are a multi-brand store in Berlin, we have been open for around thirteen years, and we carry a big mix of designers, from established ones such as Margiela, Prada, and Dries Van Noten, to very emerging ones. We were the very first store for designers such as Nensi Dojaka and GMBH. We are a bridge between established and emerging, between sportswear and elegance, and between high price points and very low price points. We want people to feel comfortable when they come to our store, from fashion people to newcomers to the fashion industry. I have been working at VooStore for 11 years. Starting in Sales and Buying, I am now the Creative Director and Head of Buying and I am taking care of the creative strategies of the company.

“Schools focus on creative design but the students have no idea how to write an email to a buyer, how to make a line sheet, or how to price their products.” – Thibaud Guyonnet

So this collaboration with UdK was probably your idea? 

This was a project I started 4-5 years ago. We have a problem in Berlin as the creative communities not helping one another. So when I was thinking of ways to create this I saw education and students as a good starting point. A lot of these talented design students have no idea of how to enter the retail world and I sent an email to UdK offering to give some classes so they can learn about this part of the industry. We started the project and then COVID hit, but 2 years ago we had the first proper collaboration, and I was part of the jury at the final year show. I then took some designers for Voostore and as homework, I asked them to work on a lookbook, on prices, on all these elements that are super important. Schools focus on creative design but the students have no idea how to write an email to a buyer, how to make a line sheet, or how to price their products. I receive around 150 emails per day from brands, so I have to be quick with going through them all, so details matter. For example, if someone doesn’t start the email with my name I know they haven’t done their research. These small things make a big difference.

“If someone doesn’t start the email with my name I know they haven’t done their research. These small things make a big difference.” – Thibaud Guyonnet

It is not only the clothes that matter.

Exactly. It is so much more than that. I understand that university should be a period when you are focused on learning, and when you don’t have to think about money or emails, but a soft introduction to all of that would be handy.

So this is how the project was born. 

Yes, and I am so happy with the quality of the work in the end. The students had to think about how to communicate their work, it was a 360 project. My role in that was to mentor them, to give them feedback, to speak about prices, and to have their pieces in the store and reach out to the press.

“To be fully transparent, it is so hard for us right now to work with established brands. They are making it very difficult.” – Thibaud Guyonnet

Do you think that retailers have a responsibility to help and mentor emerging designers?

When you know how hard it is for young designers, you realise it has to be a collaboration. Also, to be fully transparent, it is so hard for us right now to work with established brands. They are making it very difficult. Big brands are limiting our budgets in two ways: First, they give us minimums. So when I speak with a brand they tell me they need let’s say 50k for men, 50k for women. No matter what the shop is. This is not sensitive to the traffic we have to the store or our capacity. But then, they also have maximums. So when these brands have some best sellers, the products from which we would actually make money, they limit us on how many we can buy, or they even don’t give us access to them. So I often get asked why we didn’t buy X product, and that is because the brand doesn’t let me buy it. Then, our markups have been going drastically down. Usually, in luxury retail, the markups are about 2.8, 3.0 in the past. Now we are talking about markups that are as low as 1.8. So, when we sell something for €180, we buy it for €100. And that is only if we sell it at full price. So then, we meet another problem: Discounts. Right now we are a month and a half before the official date when discounts should start but big groups like SSENSE are already selling products for 60% off for selections that we share. With 60% off, if you do the math, we are losing money. Then, big players are buying all of our portfolio. Every showroom meeting I have, the brand teams are like “By the way, X big online retailer is interested in the brand too.” How can we compete with them? On these online stores you can buy in instalments, they have free shipping, free returns… When I have conversations about it people think our customers are too cool to buy from some of them, but online nobody gives a fuck. There is no cool factor when you buy something online. What customers do, is they go to independent concept stores like us, they check the selection, they google the product, and see who has the best offer.

“Right now we are a month and a half before the official date when discounts should start but big groups like SSENSE are already selling products for 60% off for selections that we share. With 60% off, if you do the math, we are losing money.” – Thibaud Guyonnet

The way you are trying to navigate this is by tapping on emerging designers. 

Exactly. 2-3 years ago I felt this is coming. I travelled to Seoul to visit all the cool shops there, and I realised they have the same selection as us… So I started thinking about how we are going to survive this. So instead of going after the Balenciagas, I decided to make half of our portfolio of emerging designers. And it has been proven to be a successful strategy for us. The physical and online locations are doing great. Instead of going global, we went local with a global reach. I am trying to buy from Berlin as much as possible. I have a few British brands, but I have been trying to have only European brands. Then, I am developing cultural projects. What we are selling is a vibe, not products. I stopped pushing products on Instagram for example, I am only pushing styling pictures, customer pictures, and store pictures. The product is not that important. Everyone has the Acne scarf I have in the store. We are transitioning from a store to a brand. Brands come to us for creative direction now…

“Instead of going after the Balenciagas, I decided to make half of our portfolio of emerging designers. And it has been proven to be a successful strategy for us.” – Thibaud Guyonnet

“I always tell the designers not to do wholesale. I don’t think a deal like this is any good in the long term.” – Thibaud Guyonnet

What you say is very smart, but I am wondering if this would give emerging designers the illusion of demand and push them towards starting their brand because they got a small order. 

I always tell the designers not to do wholesale. I don’t think a deal like this is any good in the long term. What I think for emerging brands is that if they start selling with small concept stores and then they get someone like Zalando asking for a 50K order. The designer has to suddenly create a whole team because they just got this enormous order and they hire more people. Two seasons later, they get dropped as they don’t usually perform very well. The designers are left with a machine that is too big for their brand. This yes, creates an illusion of demand and fucks young designers up. My advice is: Pick your 5 favourite stores in the world, work with them, and do a real collaboration with them. I don’t personally care about exclusives, I prefer that a designer comes and has a dinner with our community.

“Is growth success? Is having 200 employees successful?” – Thibaud Guyonnet

Do you think a brand can survive with this way of working though? Can designers make a living with small orders and collaborations?

I am thinking about this a lot at the moment. It is a complex topic. But we first have to redefine what success is. Is growth success? Is having 200 employees successful? This is what I am discussing with the students too. I ask them what is their dream. Do you want to work for Prada or do you want to have an atelier where you make custom orders, you have 2 people working with you, and you are financially sustainable? Craftsmanship and going back to a cycle and a strategy that already exist is the answer to any sustainability questions. We shouldn’t overproduce, overorder, or oversell. Designers should produce what customers are asking, and the customers should wait for their orders. This buy-now culture is so bad.

“If you have 20 thousand t-shirts of similar quality, what makes you buy this t-shirt over any other one? It is because of the cultural significance and the community a brand has.” – Thibaud Guyonnet

Do you think designers who want to start their brand should think about their branding and creating a community more? 

Yes. The product is a base, but everything else is branding. If you have 20 thousand t-shirts of similar quality, what makes you buy this t-shirt over any other one? It is because of the cultural significance and the community a brand has.

If a designer is not that talented in that would you advise them to find a partner that can do that?

I always feel it is better to have one cook in the kitchen at this stage. It is good to get advice. Some designers don’t understand why their brand doesn’t go well. I see thousands of products and brands yearly, and people like me can locate a problem. So it is good to ask for advice. Many designers make the wrong decisions to please wholesalers.

Can you think of any emerging brands that have succeeded in this way?

I think Kiko has done a good job. They are selective with their wholesale, they have a strong community. They managed to have side gigs like Asics. It is impressive. I think Kiko is a good example. Knwls got the JPG collab, which was good for them. From the outside, the Kiko x Asics gig is objectively a huge success, but maybe KNWLS is happier on the day-to-day. Small team, beautiful products, that is a success story.

Do you encourage your students to start a brand?

I do. I focus on what they want to achieve. It is sad to see wasted talents giving up because their dream was to make millions. Fortunately, this new generation of designers is dissecting this capitalist idea of success. If you have a small atelier, with some customers, and you make a living, that is a huge success.

“If you write to the wrong retailers, you are not getting an answer.” – Thibaud Guyonnet

The students we have been speaking to think that even having a very small brand, having stable customers, or even getting Instagram followers is impossible. If you have a piece of advice for these young designers who find it difficult to get stockists and build a brand, what would it be?

Do your research. If you write to the wrong retailers, you are not getting an answer. Pick brands that you love and resonate with you, check who they work with and follow their footsteps. Figure out what you want to do. Make your definition of success. I am going through this process myself. What is the life I want to live? Do I feel good about what I am doing? Do I feel creatively stimulated?

“Have your lookbook book, have your order sheet, and have your line sheet. Have a brand book presentation and write a nice email.” – Thibaud Guyonnet

And on a practical level, how should someone approach you? Send you a lookbook?

I often get emails from designers that ask me if they can send me a lookbook. I won’t reply to that. I get so many emails. They need to send me a lookbook, and prices- so many designers to have prices! Who buys without a price? Have your lookbook book, have your order sheet, and have your line sheet. Have a brand book presentation and write a nice email. Send a short email. Show me you know what I do. Catch my attention 🙂