By: Ale Hermosillo / March 4, 2020
The technological advancing 21st century introduces a new level of online shopping. Throughout the United States and globally, online shopping has become the preferred method of shopping. In terms of trendy-popular shopping stores, Forever 21 was iconic within the fashion industry.
Business Insider evaluates the evolution of Forever 21 as a franchise in association with online-based retailers such as Fashion Nova. Within the article, Shoshy Ciment writes, “The retailer thrived through the early 2000s, eventually peaking in 2015 when its founders were worth a record high of $5.9 billion combined, Forbes reported (2020).
Data presented by Google developers shows that in spite of this growing success on fashion Nova’s end, Forever 21 has been a more common googled term in comparison to Fashion Nova. This only began to change in November 2019.
Now that Forever 21 has decreased in value and being sold, “to a group of buyers for $81 million. Here’s how it went from a fast-fashion powerhouse to bankruptcy and a troublesome future” (Climent), what does this mean for Fashion Nova?
Fashion Nova’s success is undeniable. According to Fashion United, Fashion Nova has outperformed Forever 21 in more ways than one. Marjorie van Elven evaluates Fashion Novas’ success by saying, “the LA-based label founded by Richard Saghian was Google’s most-searched in the United States in 2018. With over 15 million Instagram followers, Fashion Nova is also Instagram’s top-performing fashion brand” (2019). What is it that Fashion Nova is doing right? “Fashion Nova invests heavily in social media marketing. In addition to posting every 30 minutes on its Instagram profile and creating separate accounts for its menswear and plus size ranges, the label frequently teams up with influencers big and small by sending them free clothes or buying sponsored posts”.
Having influential celebrities such as Kylie Jenner has also promoted a brand’s presence. During the summer of 2019, Fashion Nova searches skyrocketed in connection with an increase in Kylie Jenner as a search term. This was all associated with the fact that Kylie Jenner partners with the brand and promotes their pieces across social media such as Instagram.
Moving forward, social media marketing has become a powerful tool in the fashion industry and should be used accordingly. In terms of these two brands, virtual shopping experiences make or break a brand.
Ale Hermosillo Data Journalism 