From: http://fashiononezerooneone.wordpress.com/2010/05/14/235/
Students starting up blog-shops as an online business by Poh, Ng.
written on May 12, 2010 at 8:53 am
written on May 12, 2010 at 8:53 am
More and more students in Australia are becoming young entrepreneurs as they turn their passion in fashion into a business through blog-shops.
When Su was first introduced to the virtual world of shopping, she did not know that her involvement in the trade would be more than that of a shopper.
These days, the Architecture student from University of Adelaide owns an online blog-shop that caters for women clothing.
According to Su, “It started out when my friends and I decided to make some bulk purchases from an online site because they were so cheap! The only problem was, when the stocks arrived, some of the sizes of those clothes were unsuitable for us. A friend suggested that we could try and sell them online and surprisingly, we sold out most of those clothes and there were several requests for more stocks.”
“I guess… what started out as passion in shopping turned out to be a part-time job and business for us.”
Su is only one of the many university students in Australia who owns a blog-shop.
One of the pioneers of the “blog-shop” culture in Australia are Chelle and Sher, two fashion students from Melbourne and the owners of the Muff+Stit blog site.
According to Cher and Sher, Muff+Stit is not only a business platform for making money but it allows them to express themselves and play around with what they truly enjoy- fashion.
Felicia Lee, an Arts student from Monash University and a previous owner of blog-shop agrees and said, “Even though it’s a lot of hard work to run an online blog-shop, it’s a really enjoyable experience because I’m doing something that I love – shopping and fashion!”
According to Mellissa Lee, a fashion journalist from Tongue in Chic fashion site, “Online blog shops are definitely a great platform for those who have plans to start their own boutiques in the future.”
“A blog-shop exposes young student entrepreneurs to the market and helps them to understand various aspects of the business.”
Most blog-shop owners described this business as a low-risk, small-capital business that anyone can start from the comfort of their own home.
However, according to Su, “It’s a business that’s easy to establish but difficult to maintain due to the competition as well as the absence of a monitoring body.”
“Even when exams are near, we still have to update our website because our customers are always expecting new arrivals.”
“In the beginning, sourcing for credible suppliers via the Internet was also a long process that involved filtering out unscrupulous traders”, she adds.
According to Lee, most of these blog-sites are usually owned by students who are avid shoppers themselves.
“I don’t think they’re in it for the money but more so that they can share their interest and passion in fashion.”
In a recent survey conducted in Monash University, more than 60% from a sample of 35 female students are aware of the existence of blog-shops while more than 40% of them admitted that they have previously made purchases via blog-shops in Australia.
According to Kinky from RMIT, “The prices of clothes sold in blog-shops are cheaper and they look equally good as the ones sold in retail shops.”
Su also said that some of the clothes she purchased from her overseas suppliers are the same designs as those sold in shops like Sportsgal and Forever New.
“I can’t tell you the exact cost of our stocks but we usually make a profit of 40% after deducting the cost price of our clothes. I can afford to sell my clothes cheaper than retail shops because online blog-shops do not require much capital expenditure” said Su.
According to Lee, “The Internet has become a convenient tool for these students to support their business initiatives while pursuing their interests as fashion enthusiasts. I believe that blog-shops will slowly become a popular shopping alternative for young people in Australia”
Written by Poh, Ng.
Links to some of these blog-shops: Button&Thread, Project Muff+Stit, Leflaterry, LeBlackbook, TwincatVintage,ThreePointSix
40% of the female students surveyed in Monash University admitted that they have previously made purchases via blog-shops in Australia
Survey was conducted at Monash University, Clayton, Australia.
This interview with Su, a student blog-shop owner from Adelaide was conducted from our own homes. It’s unedited and a raw media element. Su is the real name of the interviewee, however, it’s only one of her given names.
A slide show of some of the photos of blog-shoppers I took from last week. Photos of clothes are credited to Button and Thread, a student owned blog-shop in Sydney.
A video of a random interview with some local students in Melbourne regarding the fashion industry in Australia. The point of this video is to prove that students are turning to alternative methods of shopping. It also proves that students are well-aware that retail shops price some clothing too expensively.
A video interview with Felicia Lee: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_S-l177y88
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