Menswear Brands Get An Online Spotlight With Deal-Of-The-Day Platforms

Small menswear brands, even some that are considered to be medium or large, might face a challenge when it comes to marketing: How do they get in front of consumers? Michael Sacks, who co-founded Cayenne, settled on a Woot-like deal-of-the-day platform to enable these brands to put their clothing or accessories up for sale over a 24-hour period.

The idea is that brands don’t have to worry about competition or incentives to drive people to purchase their products. “We put them on the pedestal that we believe they deserve,” Sacks told PYMNTS in a recent interview.

The site, which features men’s clothing and accessories, focuses on quality, a brand story and a feature that sets a product aside from the competition. A button-down shirt, for instance, might have a unique pattern in the collar or on the cuff, buttons in an unusual style or a cut that might be seen as unconventional.

The Customer Experience

After downloading an app on the App Store or Google Play, consumers can enter a promo code or ask for one in exchange for sharing how they found the app. Once on the app’s main screen, consumers can find photos of the product that is up for sale that day, along with options for colors and sizes. Consumers can pay with a credit or debit card, PayPal, Venmo or Apple Pay, so they can make a purchase without opening their wallets while on the bus or walking, Sacks said.

Cayenne aims to provide more of a frictionless shopping experience. “We don’t think that shopping should be something that takes a lot of time in your life,” Sacks said. He noted that most men, even those who value style, don’t enjoy shopping for clothes. In fact, Cayenne’s customers have noted that they access the app in their spare time, such as when they are in an elevator. “It’s a quick, maybe 20-second to no-more-than-a-minute activity that you do daily,” Sacks said.

At the same time, the app differs from other online retailers in that it doesn’t have unlimited space to list products. Some retailers may put a product on their site even if just 2 percent of shoppers would be remotely interested in a product and one person buys it, Sacks said. By comparison, his service carefully chooses its selection, as it sells only one item per day. If the team chooses an item that falls flat, the company will see the impact in its sales. “We’ll have a significant dip in revenue if it’s not a great item,” he noted.

The Brand Experience

To handle the logistics of moving a product from brand to consumer, Sacks’ company has historically shipped the site’s selections. Some brands are very open to the idea of shipping their products directly to the end customer, while others won’t even consider doing so. For the latter reason, all of a brand’s products for sale are sent directly to Sacks’ company and then sent to the consumer.

Some brands will reach out directly to Sacks’ company to have their products on the site. In other cases, the company visits brand representatives or brand owners at trade shows in Los Angeles or Las Vegas, where they can see the items that might be available in coming months. If a brand makes the cut, it will also get exposure beyond a single product: On the app, customers can tap a brand’s name to access more information.

From a brand marketing perspective, customers might buy a product through Sacks’ website and fall in love with the brand once they receive their order. In one case, Sacks noted that he received an email from a customer who bought a pair of shoes from the site and ended up buying a few more pairs straight from the brand, which shows how a loyal customer could be created by the service.

In addition, the site seeks to provide exposure without a large commitment. As brands only offer one item in a 24-hour time period, they have the opportunity to be put on the pedestal without having to sell for days, weeks or months at a time. But if the brand is happy with the experience, the site can list more items in the future – and when that does occur, consumers focus only on that brand.