The pattern found with blogshop businesses on blogs and Facebook can be found in other parts of the world, especially with Facebook.  Although the use of blogs as improvised online retail platforms was never established outside of SE Asia, it appears that small businesses have jumped on Facebook.  This process of using social networking as the basis for business is a universal one.


From: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/26/business/smallbusiness/small-businesses-win-customers-on-facebook.html?_r=1

July 25, 2012

Small Retailers Open Up Storefronts on Facebook Pages

By EILENE ZIMMERMAN

When Mandie Miller left her job as an on-air traffic reporter in Charlotte, N.C., to have her first child, she started baking cakes for friends, just for fun. The response was so positive that in April 2009 she started a business, Got What It Cakes.

Ms. Miller put up a Web site, but about five months later her sister created a Got What It Cakes Facebook page. That’s when the business started to grow. Cake orders went from two or three a weekend to six to 10; now Ms. Miller is turning away another 10 each weekend. Annual revenue at the end of her second year in business was a little more than $40,000.

Got What It Cakes is part of a new wave of online commerce: F-commerce. Social media specialists say the term was coined in 2009 to describe the growing number of businesses that sell through a Facebook page. Payvment, a start-up that provides support for Facebook shopping transactions, says it has 170,000 clients and is signing on about 1,500 stores a week, most with fewer than five employees.

The rise of F-commerce has been largely haphazard, something Facebook did not instigate or promote. A spokesman declined to discuss the phenomenon, except to acknowledge, “Retailers are experimenting in a number of ways.”

Small businesses seem to be having more success on Facebook than large companies, said Sucharita Mulpuru, a retail analyst at Forrester. Those doing well, she said, generally have less than $100,000 in revenue and fewer than 10 employees. Gap, Nordstrom, J. C. Penney and GameStop, on the other hand, have all shut down Facebook stores in the last 12 months, mostly, Ms. Mulpuru said, because consumers are accustomed to the richer experience on retailing Web sites.

But Facebook can present challenges to businesses of all sizes. Some consumers do not feel safe buying directly from a Facebook storefront, said Krista Garcia, a social commerce analyst with a market research firm, eMarketer. And business owners should be aware that they do not own their Facebook pages — Facebook does, and it can change the appearance and rules whenever it wants. 

GETTING STARTED 

It’s easy for a small business to open a Facebook storefront by creating a page in the business’s name, loading photos of the product and adding shopping functions. Because Facebook storefronts can look generic, small businesses have to find ways to differentiate themselves, said Jay Bean, chief executive of an online marketing firm, OrangeSoda.

Customizing a page is done by installing applications that enable customers to do things like shop, enter contests or see a menu. Apps are available from Facebook and outside vendors, or they can be custom-developed.

Payvment’s tools let businesses create a storefront with a shopping cart and promotions like discounts and coupons. 

USE YOUR PERSONALITY 

Unlike larger businesses, small businesses can build on their personal relationships to end users, said Wendy Tan-White, chief executive of Moonfruit, which builds and supports e-commerce Web sites. She advises using a cover image for a business’s page that relates not only to the product or service but to customers, too.

On the Got What It Cakes storefront, for example, the cover photo shows the owner, Ms. Miller, in her home, with baby photos on the wall behind her and several cakes scattered about the sitting room; the smaller-profile photo is the company logo.

Many of Ms. Miller’s customers are busy mothers like her, and she communicates frequently with them on Facebook. “I am a local, one-person business but I have 5,000 fans,” she said.

Ms. Miller gives the kinds of tips her customers might get from a friend, like what to do with leftover chocolate cake batter: “Put some butter on your griddle and make pancakes with it.” 

POST, PIN AND TAG 

To attract fans and friends, a storefront needs to be dynamic, with frequent posts — status updates and photos. Tagging people in a photo may cause the photo to show up on the tagged person’s page, where friends (and often friends’ friends) can see it.

Deann Kump, founder of TuTu Cute, which sells hair accessories and clothing for mothers, babies and toddlers, hosts a monthly photo contest on her page.

“If someone posts a photo of their daughter wearing one of my products and tags it, their friends will wonder, ‘What is TuTu Cute?’ and go to my page,” she said.

Mrs. Kump opened on Facebook last December and about half of her sales occur on the site.

Ms. Tan-White of Moonfruit suggested that a business give customers incentives to spread the word, offering a discount if they tag its product in a photo. Facebook’s “pin” feature allows users to pin a post, which might be a product of the week or a special discount and pushes the post to the top of a business’s page. 

FOCUS ON COMMUNITY  

Magical Moments Modeling made TuTu Cute a “boutique of the month” on its Facebook page in April so friends of both pages could see it. And Mrs. Kump often promotes the work of children’s photographers she likes; they in turn promote her accessories.

Patrick Skoff, a painter who sells 90 percent of his paintings on Facebook, said some visitors to his page might have been hesitant about buying until they saw the comments and “likes” on new and sold paintings.

“They see all the likes and think, ‘Oh, I better buy that before someone else does,’ ” Mr. Skoff said.

In July he painted 10 paintings a day for 10 days and sold all of them through Facebook.

Darren Gann, co-owner of the Baby Grocery Store, started his Facebook storefront in February (he also has a kiosk in SouthPark Mall in Charlotte). Thirty-five percent of his sales come through Facebook, and Mr. Gann gives lots of help and advice to his customers. “They communicate with us there about everything, from asking about a shipment to what do we recommend for a gluten-free 9-month-old."

Heather Logrippo opened a Facebook storefront in 2009 for We’ve Labels, which sells clothing labels. She routinely goes to the Facebook pages where her customers spend time, like those for quilters or knitters.

“I log on as We’ve Labels and start interacting with people, writing things like: ‘That’s a beautiful scarf you’ve knitted,’ ” she said. Those knitters and quilters will often click on the We’ve Labels page out of curiosity. 

OFFER OPTIONS 

While some small businesses sell only through Facebook, others maintain separate Web sites or have bricks-and-mortar outlets, because not all consumers feel comfortable using their credit card information on the site.

Ashley Gall, owner of Méli Jewelry, which sells jewelry she designs and makes, said buying on Facebook was still too new for many of her customers — 15 percent of her sales happen there — so she also sells on Etsy, Indie Fashion Marketplace and her own Web site.

Most of Mandie Miller’s customers order on Facebook and pay when she delivers the cake or when they pick it up. Yet she still maintains a Web site of her own.

“I do a lot of wedding cakes, and it’s the moms and dads of brides usually paying and they often want to go to a regular business Web site. I also have grandmothers in their 80s and 90s that come to my cake tastings,” she said. “They aren’t on Facebook.” 

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:
Correction: July 25, 2012

Are Malaysians buying from overseas EC sites?

The majority of academic research papers on the state of EC in Malaysia claims that EC has been slow to take off.  Of course, all that is suspect because many of those studies did not factor in  blogshops.

Here is another finding that says Malaysians do shop online and that they buy from overseas EC sites.  While I agree this is the case, I do not think that the conventional EC scene in Malaysia is developed at all.  Reconciling this finding with others I have read, I would venture to guess that those people with credit card and/paypal shop overseas as indicated here.  A bigger chunk with no access to credit cards and/or paypal shop on local online boutiques and blogshops.

From: http://techcentral.my/news/story.aspx?file=%2F2011%2F3%2F23%2Fit_news%2F20110323161307&sec=it_news

Many Malaysians buying from overseas sites

KUALA LUMPUR: Many Malaysians on the Internet are shopping overseas. A consumer survey shows that one in three websurfers here are patronising international retail sites.
And the reason they prefer to buy from overseas merchants? It's because they get a wider selection of items, the products or services they want are not available locally, prices are lower, and/or they get better discounts from the foreign vendors.
The 2010 Visa eCommerce Consumer Monitor surveyed 558 Malaysian websurfers from August to September last year. It found that 36% of the respondents had shopped at an overseas website in the past 12 months.
Websites in the United States were the most popular for these shoppers; 31% of the respondents who shopped overseas said they had bought from these sites at least once in that period.
Most of the shoppers bought clothing and shoes (23%) while the others bought airline tickets (21%) and books (20%).
According to Visa Malaysia country manager Stuart Tomlinson, the increased Internet penetration in the country is fuelling the growing popularity of online shopping among Malaysians.
"An Internet-savvy nation will see more of its people, especially those keeping up with the latest fashion trends, turn to shopping at overseas retail websites," he said.
The survey also revealed that three quarters of the respondents were confident that their payments online were secure.
"We know that online shoppers consider payment security an important factor when transacting over the Web," Tomlinson said.
"Visa provides its cardholders an added layer of security with its Verified by Visa online authentication platform."

The Girl Next Door: Online shopping Part II: where to shop

Online fashion is a worldwide phenomenon.  The uniqueness of the online fashion scene in Malaysia and Singapore is that these are done on blogs.

From: http://media.www.umdstatesman.com/media/storage/paper1351/news/2011/02/23/Variety/The-Girl.Next.Door.Online.Shopping.Part.Ii.Where.To.Shop-3980758.shtml

The Girl Next Door: Online shopping Part II: where to shop

Charlotte Crowley

You may want to go get your copy of last week's column because you're probably going to need it for this week. After sharing some advice about having a hassle-free online shopping experience, I thought I'd share which online shops have drained my energy, time and bank balance over the last few years.

Up until a few years ago, the only sites you could order online from were those that already had physical stores. It was easy and it was convenient, and it is still popular today. Almost all physical shops today have an online counterpart, allowing shoppers to avoid the queues, changing room stress and over-crowded malls to enjoy shopping from their own homes. But over the last few years a new breed of online shops has emerged. These stores don't have physical counterparts, but exist only online.

This allows people to open online stores from their homes and in their spare time, giving us much greater diversity in what is available to purchase online. While previously small indie designers would advertise through word-of-mouth, they can now open their own boutiques at a click of a button. Here are some of my favorite online-only (or virtually online-only) shops:

ASOS.com

As Seen On Screen (ASOS) is the U.K.'s largest online-only fashion and beauty website that recently launched a U.S. counterpart. ASOS began back in 2000, where it prided itself on creating budget-friendly imitations of celebrity looks. Today the site is a haven of buys, featuring both UK high street pieces and designer duds. The site is constantly updated so there is always a new temptation with every visit.

Lulus.com

Lulu's is perfect if you have a girly, slightly Boho style. The site features hundreds of designers you won't find anywhere else, and all for reasonable (think Forever 21-esque) prices. They even have a vintage section for one-of-a-kind finds.

TopShop.com

Okay, not strictly online-only, but with only one store in the U.S. (in New York City), Topshop.com is the easiest way to get your dose of British style. Top Shop is a staple on the high streets of the UK, with its constant array of on-trend pieces and slightly quirky designs. The website allows you to browse both boutique and designer collections and often has some online-only treats to offer.

Modcloth.com

If your style is a little more vintage and edgy, then Modcloth is the place to shop. The site is a haven of quirky, retro-inspired clothes and gifts. The site prides itself on its unique pieces and features hundreds of indie designers.

This story from the US shows that there is remarkable similarity in the aspirations and entrepreneurial ventures of American and Asian women to own their own retail businesses.  Like their Asian counterparts, these women focus on things they are interested in, in this case kid's clothing.

From: http://newyork.dbusinessnews.com/shownews.php?articletitle=Perseverance%20And%20Passion%20Pay%20Off%20Despite%20Recession%20for%20Online%20Kids%27%20Boutique%20Clothing%20Retailer&newsid=229084&type_news=latest&s=sbcn

Perseverance And Passion Pay Off Despite Recession for Online Kids' Boutique Clothing Retailer

New York - Valerie Susskind, MBA entrepreneur, finds success in the competitive market of kids' boutique clothes by focusing her determination and passion for children's fashion on developing a solid business. NEW YORK, NY -- Despite a struggling economy, Valerie Susskind left the corporate world to follow her dream of being a successful retailer of kids' boutique clothing. Turning her MBA education and passion for kids fashion into her full time job, niche online retailer TreZ' Unique was launched. Customers seeking a specially chosen selection of unique European and American designer kids' boutique clothes will find what they're looking for at TreZ' Unique's website. Even hard to find specialty items such as fashionable pettiskirts and personalized baby shoes and blankets are available for the most discerning of gift givers. Another facet of the retailer's success has to do with their commitment to quality and customer service. Many of the items available are handcrafted, and the site offers a 'satisfaction guarantee' within the first seven days of receiving an item. Purchases can be shipped domestically and internationally, and many selections can be personalized with a child's name. "I'm so incredibly proud of our success so far! I've always been passionate for kids' fashion, and created this business to fill what I saw as a gap in this market. At TreZ' Unique, we strive to provide our clients with items that are not only of the highest quality, but something their child will treasure for years to come. Our pieces are trendy but classy, whimsical and full of fun," said Valerie Susskind, founder of TreZ' Unique (http://www.trezunique.com). TreZ' Unique is also very aware of their customers' concerns about privacy, even when shopping for toddler boutique clothing. Information provided on the website is secure, and is not shared or sold to any third parties. All major forms of payment are accepted, and giftwrap is also available. "I took a big risk leaving my secure corporate position to start TreZ' Unique, and am thrilled to offer customers such a unique range of products. We hope that each item will charm, surprise, and delight both parent and child. Our customers coming back means we're doing something right, and we hope they share their great experience with a few friends," said Susskind. About Valerie Susskind and TreZ' Unique: Valerie Susskind established TreZ' Unique, LLC in 2009 by combining her passion for fashion with her Marketing MBA education. Her children inspired her to start a business that would provide high quality, beautiful and functional gifts typically found only in boutiques. TreZ' Unique carries a line of stylish children's clothing that is fashionable yet trendy, and shoes that are fun and comfortable, yet whimsical and full of personality. They promise an enjoyable shopping experience, and a satisfaction guarantee. Media Contact: Valerie Susskind 244 Fifth Avenue Suite V231 New York, NY 10001 866-806-4065 Valerie@trezunique.comhttp://www.trezunique.com

What is a consignment shop?

This is a CONSIGNMENT SHOP format which operates in the US.

There are similarities with blogshops in terms of the selling items that are pre-loved and at lower prices.  They do not use a blog platform but a shopping cart site, but the ideas are pretty much the same as with blogshops in terms of cost cutting.

From: http://www.examiner.com/fashion-in-albany/what-are-consignment-shops

What is a consignment shop?

• October 11th, 2010 9:23 pm ET

Consignment shops are becoming extremely popular to the frugal yet fashionable. Often confused with thrift shops or goodwill due to selling second hand clothing, consignment shops differ in that the profits are split between two parties: consignment shops (consignor) and the people who bring the items in to be sold (consignee). Merchandise at thrift shops are mostly donated and purchased as is (you get what you pay for). Most merchandise is damaged in some way and may be extremely worn. On the other hand most consignment shops will not accept merchandise unless it looks new and the label is high-end, which affords them the ability to sell merchandise at a much higher price. Consignors and consignees split their profits and its usually a 50/50 or 60/40 split (the consignment shop receiving the higher percentage).
I had the pleasure of interviewing Tasha S. Robinson owner of Imperfect Concepts Boutique an online consignment shop. Read excerpts from my interview below:

Tell me a little about yourself:
I am a 25 year old. Graduated from Southern University A&M College in 2007 with a BA in Public Relations. I am a military brat and grew up overseas. I am Jamaican and love cooking Caribbean food. Creativity is how I thrive in life. Addicted to music, fashion and sports. I get no days off, I date my company. We have an excellent loving relationship

Please explain what Imperfect Concept is and how it works:Imperfect Concepts is a high end online resale boutique. Most people shop resale or consignment shops in their local state. Others use the means of EBay or craigslist or something of that nature. I am the middle woman. I provide a variety of amazing pieces at affordable prices for the public online or if you live in my state you can do the personal shopping at my place.

How long have you been in business?
I have been an Image Consultant since college and I launched Imperfect Concepts 7/11/2009. So my online store has been in business for over a year now.

What are the pros and cons of utilizing a consignment shop/boutique versus a major department store? I will start out with the pros because I am a positive person. The pro is always finding unique items. I feel when you are utilizing a consignment shop you will find vintage items. Vintage items have a better quality to me than clothes that are made now. The cons which would lead you to shop at your local department store is finding a particular item you need right here and right now. If you are looking for a jimmy Choo heel from this season a consignment or resale shop might not have it just yet. Another pro for resale boutiques is the fact that we are customer driven. I know personally that I try to make my customers feel as important as they truly are. Everyone is VIP with me because I cant thrive without my customers. With department stores millions of people shop them daily so they have lost their personal touch with the customers.

Where do you see the consignment shop/boutique business 5 years from now?
I am debating if I want to have a store front within the next 5 years. I do know I want to build my brand and use every step placed in front of me to its full potential. I am carefully building my brand and providing amazing and pre-loved pieces to women at affordable prices.

Shop online at ImperfectConcepts.com

Blog + Online Store

Here is another model that uses a click store complemented by a blog.

The rationale is simple.  The blog site focuses on content that supports the e-commerce site.  Blogs are good in the sense that they offer an opportunity for great SEO- relevant content will drive traffic to the site and this will of course help the online store.

The main difference in these two sites is again the shopping cart feature as well as the membership account feature in the online store.

The online store for this doggie-oriented site: http://www.poshpuppyboutique.com/

The blog that supports the online store- http://poshpuppyboutique.blogspot.com/

I have come across of pet-boutiques like this one, so this is another big thing in the US.

The question: WHY aren't there blogshops in other parts of the world (especially places where e-commerce is well developed, like the USA), probably finds some answers here in this piece about the growth of online boutiques in the US. 

This piece focuses on Milwaukee, but the interesting things are the increasing popularity of online boutiques as well as the use of online retail aggregate sites like Etsy.com as a platform for individuals to participate in EC.

Thus, niche boutiques are highly contextualized entities, as the form of their operation is very much dependent on where they are.

So, this is evidence that in the US, blogs are not the vehicle for cheap and easy commerce but sites like Etsy are.

From: http://www.avclub.com/milwaukee/articles/whatever-happened-to-indie-retail-in-milwaukee,44854/

Whatever happened to indie retail in Milwaukee?

Local designers go from the physical to the virtual marketplace

Janelle Gramling

by Cortney Heimerl September 14, 2010

 

Milwaukee might not be the first city that comes to mind when thinking about fashion hotspots, but with the handmade boom that began in the early ’00s, the city saw a surge in the number of local designers opening up their own shops. Storefronts that had sat empty for years in Milwaukee’s hippest neighborhoods had fresh coats of paint and signs welcoming customers to purchase everything from soap to jewelry to clothes made right here in town.

One of the first DIY stores in Milwaukee was Fashion Ninja, a boutique and clothing line created by Arika Ikeler. She began designing in 1997, and opened her boutique in the heart of Bay View in 2002; soon, she began teaching sewing and design classes. Ikeler’s DIY attitude helped launch a community of designers with the necessary knowledge to create their own clothing brands. Fasten Collective graduated from years of selling at indie craft fairs and farmers’ markets and opened a storefront in Bay View. Paper Boat Boutique and Gallery, which was operated by Faythe Levine and Kim Kisiolek, featured handmade designs from all over the world. The General Store in Riverwest created a showcase of local designers next to its gallery walls. The growing number of stores was welcomed by exploding demand—fashion shows began popping up at rock venues and art galleries, and wearing handmade designs became a badge of Milwaukee trendiness.
And then, slowly, Milwaukee’s DIY boutiques started closing. Now, many of them exist only online.

What happened? Economic fluctuation definitely took its toll on independent businesses in the last few years, but many designers cited fatigue as their main reason for shutting down their boutiques. Now the Internet has allowed them to sell their wares without the overhead of running a store. Free from the hassles of operating a physical retail space, designers can concentrate on the new frontier of personal Internet shops hosted by sites like etsy.com, where they can work from the comfort of home, in their underwear if they want, and keep their own hours. Even Ikeler has pulled the plug on her retail space and now operates online. “I love the Internet—I liked my boutique,” she says.

Tina Poppy, who runs an online boutique called Violetville Vintage that specializes in luxurious one-of-a-kind finds, thought about opening a brick-and-mortar store, but didn’t want to compromise what she was interested in selling to cater to a particular area. “Online, you have access to the entire world,” Poppy says. “Your chances of finding that one person out there who’s in love with this one particular dress in this one size and one color is a whole lot better.”

“I think that online shoppers are all about the feeling they get when they sit down at their computers and look at a website,” says Janelle Gramling of Little Ocean, which sells clothes made from vintage and recycled fabrics. “Your product is a photograph of your design and the story you write around your business. Shopping, whether it’s online or in person, is about feeling connected with the designer and that connection comes from the story behind the materials or the process used to make an item.”

DIY boutiques helped make some of Milwaukee’s most vibrant neighborhoods feel all the more vital; now that many of them are gone, a void has opened. While the Internet has made it easier for local designers to make a living, not everyone has left brick-and-mortar retailing behind. Levine has plans in the works to open a pop-up boutique this October in the back of Sky High Skate Shop (2501 S. Howell Ave., 414-483-2585), and other designers still dabble at selling through venues like Sparrow Collective (2224 S. Kinnickinnic Ave.) or Fischberger’s Variety (2445 N. Holton St., 414-263-1991). Fashion Ninja has been recently appearing Saturdays at the East Side Green Market, and Vanessa Andrew—co-founder of Fasten Collective and the designer behind Penny Spencer and Madam Chino—has sectioned off part of her studio to create a retail space called Look Nook, which she opens to the public on Saturdays. “I think it’s nice to be able to talk to people who are shopping in your store and develop a relationship with your customers in person,” Andrew says.

The new phase of Milwaukee’s creative community seems to be more about time and balance than the starry-eyed ideals that many realized are difficult to accomplish in a 24-hour-day. Still, it’s nice to know that you only have to log on to see that local designers are still flourishing.

US blogshop?

http://www.tofebruary.com/

This is an interesting site based in Walnut CA, USA.  Although the site does not identify where it is located, its Face book page has this description of its business:

U.S. based online retail store specializing in Asian inspired fashion / accessories from Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China ♥

The site is not a blog platform, but it has a FB page and it sure feels like a blogshop!

US home based entrepreneurs using social networks

Although I have not yet found a US-based blogshop, there is plenty of evidence that Americans are also using freely available social media sites to build home based businesses.  In this case, Facebook seems to be a popular choice as the social network site provides tools and a strong social platform to support this model.

Blogshops pre-date Facebook, which might explain the popularity of blogs as a social media tool in SE Asia.

Here is something from the Business.Gov site which is the official site that links to the US Governement: http://community2.business.gov/t5/Self-Employed-Home-Based/Requirements-for-Online-Boutique/m-p/31233/highlight/true#M3419

Requirements for Online Boutiques

I just started an online baby boutique on Facebook and Ecrater.  My sister helps me out some, but it's basically my business.  It's not making any money yet and I know that when it does, I have to claim it on my taxes.  Someone told me that I still have to register the business name in Minnesota (where I'm based out of) even though it's barely even a business.  Is that true?  And to write my expenses off on my taxes, do I need to register as a small business?  I'm just doing this because I enjoy making baby things and I hadn't even thought about it legally being a small business because I'm doing it out of my house and online.  I definitely can't afford any extra expenses yet and if I have to pay for a license and who knows what else, I won't be able to have my boutique at all.