Why Next’s New Luxury E-Commerce Site Is About To Become Your Latest Shopping Obsession
Attention shoppers, there’s a new shopping destination to add to your hit list: meet Seasons, a new luxury e-commerce site from British retail giant Next.
Seasons will launch with an mix of affordable luxury and contemporary labels like Marc Jacobs, Ganni, Completedworks, Nanushka, Coach, and A.P.C., alongside shopping edits for occasions from weddings and parties to date night and weekend wardrobe. In addition to womenswear, it will also sell menswear and designer kidswear from brands like Kenzo and Chloé.
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Seasons is launching at a challenging time for the luxury space, which has been hard hit by a broader spending slowdown and a luxury e-commerce landscape under pressure:
in March, beloved online retailer Matches shuttered its doors, while earlier this month, Mytheresa announced it would buy Net-a-Porter from Richemont, which would swallow a significant loss. Last year, Farfetch narrowly avoided bankruptcy thanks to a last-minute rescue deal from South Korean marketplace Coupang.
Jade Taylor, Seasons’ brand director, however, believes that, despite the challenges, the new e-commerce site is well placed to succeed. It will leverage Next’s massive scale and logistics network to provide shoppers with an a seamless shopping experience, with services like next day delivery, home collection returns and over 500 collection and return points across the country.
‘There is nobody else in the UK with that delivery proposition,’ says Taylor. ‘We believe with all the turmoil that’s happening at the moment, there’s an opportunity to bring all the services we already offer into the luxury sector.’
Led by a team of experienced luxury buyers, such as ex-Flannels’ Emma Ilori, the platform will focus on a tightly curated offering of premium investment pieces that are more affordable than some of the bigger luxury brands. It plans to add higher end names to its mix by the end of next year.
‘The fallout in the luxury sector at the start of this year made us change our approach to the site,’ says Taylor. ‘Advanced contemporary brands are particularly desirable at the moment. We’re selecting investment pieces that customers can get the most pounds for wear out of.’
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