Venture Commerce Builds E-Tail Solutions Under One Roof
A label’s bricks-and-mortar flagship store can build brand awareness and consumer outreach, but the same outcome can’t always be said for a brand’s official Web site.
Most consumers are left with browsing through a vast collection without the ability to purchase anything online.
Oftentimes, a brand doesn’t have the internal resources to build an e-commerce platform and is left to seek a number of firms for each element of the process, ultimately running up costs.
Venture Commerce, based in Long Beach, Calif., is an e-commerce outsourcing provider and offers complete e-tail management solution services for established brands and manufacturers. They do everything from Web site development and product photography to customer service and shipping to online marketing. “Our goal is to provide a turnkey e-commerce solution that an entire business can operate on,” said Sukant Jain, the company’s founder and chief executive officer.
Prior to launching Venture Commerce, Jain founded a software company in 2000 called Visionaire, which he still heads. In 2004, Jain said Visionaire developed and launched e-commerce software that a number of companies used to power their online stores.
Jain started Venture Commerce in 2006 with its clientele roster growing to include premium-denim and contemporary fashion brands such as William Rast, J. Lindeberg, Geren Ford, Kasil Jeans, Black Halo and Velvet.
Customers encounter no upfront costs, and Venture Commerce does not charge for its services. Instead, it receives a portion of sales made on the Web site. All clients have to provide are the inventory and creative input. “All in all, it’s a symbiotic process,” Jain said. “We are in partnership with the brands, and we have everything under one roof and specialists in each category. We maximize the potential of online business for a brand.”
Jain does recognize the challenge with brands selling direct to consumers and potentially alienating their wholesale business. But according to Venture Commerce’s research, for every dollar spent online, $3 are spent through other channels. And consumer behavior dictates that shoppers will often research brands online before making a purchase. “Brands who embrace [the e-commerce service] are taking advantage of it and seeing results,” Jain said. “Direct-to-consumer business is core and helps to build a one-to-one relationship with consumers. It also allows companies to receive critical feedback on issues such as style, fit and colors.”
Venture Commerce also takes a customized approach with each of its brands. Jain and his crew launched the William Rast e-commerce store in October 2006. Since its inception, the site has been redesigned three times in line with the brand’s evolution and to utilize growing technology, such as interactive video and an online runway show.
Year-over-year sales for William Rast’s e-commerce site have increased 30 percent to 40 percent, Jain said.
Venture Commerce is also branching out into the online sample-sale market with a fashion shopping site called Secret Style and an online beauty site, a joint venture with private equity firm Intermix Capital Partners called The Fairest. Jain said the company is looking to add six new brands in 2010.
For more information, visit www.venturecommerce.com.
