(IMO) a Fashion Meetup

I attended my first "meetup" on Tuesday evening - an event where like minded individuals come together to discuss, debate, defend and denounce the topic at hand. On Tuesday evening, that topic was innovation and technology in the fashion industry.

The Fashion 2.0 Meetup is (at the moment) a once monthly gathering hosted by Yuli Ziv and held at secret location disclosed only to those selected as members. Yuli is a fashion blogger of increasing prominence. She is the co-founder and EIC of My It Things, a leading user generated fashion magazine and community; and a founding member of Style Coalition, an alliance of independent online publishers in the fashion vertical. Thankfully for all of us, Yuli is using her expansive network to help introduce entrepreneurs, the online community, and fashion ingenues in general to a wide array of industry professionals who are currently making big waves in fashion.

Tuesday's meetup brought one hundred members face to face with an impressive panel of fashion executives including Alexis Maybank, Founder, Gilt Groupe; Michael J. Smith, President and CEO, AVELLE (the new Bag Borrow or Steal); Susan Engel, CEO, Portero; and Adam Dell, Managing General Partner of Impact Venture Partners. Four of the most successful names in the online fashion market offered their view points - sometimes converging, sometimes diverging - on topics ranging from designer price points, discounting merchandise, the greying consumer, and the potential for competition in the niches they respectively dominate today.





A common thread throughout the discussion was that the current economic turbulence is a time for opportunity and action. The online consumer market is busting at the seams worldwide (pardon the bad pun). Ecommerce sites cutout the paralyzing overhead that is driving brick and mortar operations out of business, and they offer services that a traditional retail store simply cannot - there are of course limitations and downsides to both operations. Nonetheless, the numbers speak for themselves, and for anyone looking to make a name for themselves in fashion today - the Internet could, and should, be your angel.

In fact, more than that it is, quite frankly, the intelligent alternative for anyone looking to get involved in a start-up. And perhaps, as employment in corporate America continues to dwindle, this is becoming an intriguing consideration for many of us. "You have nothing to lose today," said Adam Dell. "It's not like you're walking away from the job at Merrill Lynch that you would have had last year. You've got no where to go but back to live with your parents." Depressingly honest, but sickeningly true.

Gilt, Avelle, and Portero - all first to market ventures - are introducing a younger set of consumers to the designer market, and challenging the credibility of the luxury price point. "We're hoping it leads to greater price equilibrium," espouse Alexis Maybank of the often absurd price tags on full mark-up products. With that sentiment in mind, and while acknowledging their intimidating dominance over the market, the panel both welcomed and encouraged competition. Michael Smith made the point that greater competition inevitably brings more awareness to the industry, and results in more customers spending more money. To revert to an timeworn analogy I heard far too often at business school: it is not about dividing up the pie into small pieces - it's about baking a bigger pie.

So there is room for us yet! And anyone still struggling or dreaming about making their name in fashion still has plenty of opportunity. My most recent personal favorite is Khoi Lee - a small time designer making a lot of noise thanks to her unique creative output and fashion blog Refiner29. Joining forces, scratching backs, and dropping names, the online fashion community is producing something enviable. While the behemoth department stores and designer stand-alones probably aren't going anywhere, neither is the online community, and those having the biggest impact are the ones that have found a way to work together. My personal opinion is that it is within this synergy that the greatest opportunities are to be found.

Adam Dell made the point most eloquently when he closed with:

"There is still a lot left to be built."

Ahhhhh, finally a bit of positivity!