Creating Online Showrooms for Start-Ups
Bringing the wholesale marketplace to the Web has been a daunting task for Internet solution providers, but New York–based PinkGray (www.pinkgray.com) is taking a different approach than its predecessors.
Launched in November by former designer Jason Yang, PinkGray is aimed at start-ups and smaller companies looking for an avenue to present their lines on a budget.
“It’s geared for young designers who may not be able to afford a showroom. It’s not meant to replace a showroom, but [it’s] more of a supplement,” explained Yang.
Other efforts have been aimed at the mass market. Most have failed. Yang is starting small and staying small.
Designers pay a monthly fee based on their inventory levels plus a 3 percent cut of transactions.
Yang knows the struggles of starting out; he was a clothing designer before becoming a Web entrepreneur, launching retail sites such as So Wear and Stars and Infinite Darkness. Many young designers have lots of potential, and Yang would like to help them emerge out of the starting blocks.
He set up PinkGray as a self-service vehicle, allowing designers to post product images themselves as well as control terms and promotions. All monetary transactions take place offline but are set up through the Web site.
The site is also open to fashion press and media looking for samples and editorial content.
PinkGray has so far enlisted 40 designers from around the world. Products include high-end women’s and men’s clothing, T-shirts, children’s clothing, jewelry, and accessories. Yang is especially targeting the West Coast because of its community of independent and emerging talent.
The site also features a section that allows buyers and press to create their own profiles to facilitate searches for the right resource.
“We’re trying to get buyers used to this,” he said. “The thing is that they can order from anywhere in the world. It’s completely under their control.”
So far, the site has a strong international flavor, with resources from New York, London and Bangkok. West Coast resources include San Francisco–based jewelry company Jester Swink.
Yang is marketing the site during fashion week events in New York and beyond and has launched an editorial campaign with a marketing agency in New York. —Robert McAllister
