The web shop concept, which brings together local fashion stores’ online sales in one powerful digital platform, has proven itself very successful, and Miinto is now also establishing itself in Poland.
Miinto’s concept, which gathers local fashion stores on one large online web shop, has become very popular. The consumers shop online on miinto.dk, but the purchases and sales are made by Miinto’s physical partner stores, which take the item down from the shelf and send it to the customer. There are more than 400 partner stores in Miinto’s Danish network, and they are wide spread throughout the country.
“Everyone argues that the growing network is a challenge for small and large stores that cannot compete with the big web shop’s huge supply of brands,” says Konrad A. Kierklo, CEO of Miinto, “But with Miinto, they get a powerful access to web sales for their own stores – while Internet customers get access to more than 400 Danish fashion stores’ inventories. ” “For us, the local physical stores are the right fashion stores, with buyers who know their customers and passionate sellers who know what great customer service is. They can do something completely different from a large automated warehouse in Sweden or Germany, “continues Konrad A. Kierklo with a smile on his lip.
The concept has been so strong that it has been exported and adapted to other markets – such as Poland, where Miinto has just established itself, even though Poland has quite a different retail structure when it comes to fashion stores.
In Poland, the retail structure is concentrated around local, Polish high-end designers who only sell their own brand. Unlike Denmark, there are only a few multi-brand stores with a wide and mixed range of brands. Competing with them are the major international brands and the well-known internet portals. Miinto’s strategy is to gather the local designers’ brands and make them widely available on Miinto’s online platform, together with other strong international brands.
As elsewhere, online sales are growing in Poland. In retail, the current level is 7% and it is expected to grow to 10% within the next 2-3 years. Given that it is less than half of the European average, Miinto expects plenty of room for further growth. A growth that the Polish brands are now given the opportunity to participate in.
“We already had our development department in Poland and now we have expanded with an operations department dedicated to miinto.pl. I have met many of the local designers themselves, and it will be exciting to help them increase sales through Miinto’s platform, “concludes Konrad A. Kierklo, CEO of Miinto.
In addition, Miinto’s entry in Poland can become an advantage to Miinto’s Danish store network. In Poland, there is a high interest in Nordic and Scandinavian design and the well-known Danish clothing brands are very popular. Miinto predicts that sales in Danish stores will increase when their potential market has expanded, welcoming 38 million new Polish customers, who, as mentioned earlier, are expected to engage in more online trading in the years to come.
Miinto.pl has just gone online with 25 local, Polish high-end designers and a selection of Scandinavian stores and brands that will be expanded continuously as Miinto gets some more insights on what the Poles demand in terms of brands and products. The number of Polish partners in the Miinto network is expected to reach 150 within two years. In Denmark, more than 400 local fashion stores sell through Miinto, and globally more than 1300, with a number steadily increasing. Miinto expects to open in several European countries this fall.
