Exclusives, wear-now, It bags, Instagram are key SS19 trends at Net-A-Porter

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Nov 30, 2018

Net-A-Porter has unveiled its key trends for SS19 with seasonless fashion, emerging talent, exclusive capsules, ‘it’ accessories, and the power of Instagram all set to be key next year.

Global Buying Director Elizabeth von der Goltz said that the “Buy Now Wear Now approach has never been more relevant” and that on average, the e-tailer’s What’s New emails generate 16% more revenue than a dedicated email “because our customer is shopping for an immediate wear. The idea that women shop months in advance of a season or occasion is simply irrelevant to our customer.”

She said that Resort, “which typically designers have approached as get-away dressing, is actually our prime time for coats, knits, jackets and boots. Surprisingly we sell more coats and knits in March than we do in October.”

On the subject of new designers, she explained that the company’s customers have “an insatiable appetite for newness and emerging talent. They are really open to newness, so it’s important that we keep on feeding that hunger.”

That's why the company has a total of 119 new brands on the site for SS19 and it’s also behind its Vanguard program that launched in September for young brands. This includes mentorship sessions, access to the N-A-P creative studio and coverage in its global campaigns.

Meanwhile, the importance of exclusive capsule collections was highlighted only a few days ago when the company released its information about how it had done over Black Friday weekend, with exclusives selling strongly. And as well as their obvious appeal because they offer customers what they can't get elsewhere, it seems they also fill an important commercial gap and will remain crucial into 2019.

Von der Goltz said: “If we take the current season, traditionally, for party dressing, you’re either shopping the tail end of fall/winter or the beginnings of resort. So, we were finding that there was a huge gap in product deliveries. We have seized that opportunity by creating 46 exclusive party season capsules, to go above and beyond the market offering and provide customers with unique pieces.”

On the accessories front, she added that “cult items, Instagram trends and off-the-radar labels have been driving the SS 2019 buy, which will see us investing deeply into single items that have the potential to become viral, from Loewe’s basket bags to By Far sandals and the new Chloé bag.”

And of course, that ability to go viral is very much dependent on the power of Instagram and other social media networks, including Net-Porter’s own #Thenetset.

“We’ve scouted a number of new brands through Instagram,” she said, “but scouting newness isn’t the only way we use [it] to impact our strategy. Product featured in posts from influential individuals really impact our performance.”