Her first season was picked up by department store David Jones before selling out across boutiques nationwide - but designer Nina Maya-Skrzynski has no regrets about pulling all accounts from brick-and-mortar stores this year.
Skrzynski, who founded Nina Maya in March 2006 and is now based in London, shifted her entire business online in June. She has now introduced a ‘Shop Global’ component to her online store, allowing consumers to purchase hand-selected products from her travels across Europe and the Americas. Items include hand embroidered linen pillows from a Provence-based studio ($65), printed silk scarves from Krakov ($95) and hand-crafted wire baskets made in Cote D’azur ($150).
Skrzynski credits the move to her new business model.
“I have cut operating costs significantly, expanded my product offering and focused on what I love doing best - designing and sourcing new products.”
She said savings have also been passed on to customers, resulting in stronger sales.
“Where customers used to buy one dress in-store, I now see them buying up to five garments in one transaction. The reason I decided to go exclusively online was to reap the full benefits of lower overheads and increased margins. Continuing to balance the fixed costs of a national wholesale operation would detract from this goal.”
Online activations across social media sites such as tumblr, look book, chictopia, blogger, facebook and twitter have also reportedly helped to drive growth. The designer said spikes in shop site traffic could soar up to 600 - 800 per cent per activation, bringing baseline traffic up each time.
NINA MAYA: Selling online.
