Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 29
expanded customer base
Access to a broader market is the reason
many independent retailers are moving online. Erin Swan, owner of Charlie Boutique in
Toronto, jumped on board Shopcaster this year
to expand her already solid customer base.
“I have very loyal, regular clients who come
in once a week and I know it’s for the experience, but definitely some are so comfortable
online, know their size, and just order,” she
says, adding that she took her boutique, which
features mostly Canadian designers, online to
grow her business beyond the city.
Swan says that although she promotes the
store through social media such as Facebook
and Twitter, Shopcaster is promoting her internationally in a focused way, an opportunity she
might not otherwise have.
The Vancouver boutique Much & Little is
also a newcomer to the e-commerce platform.
The store sells “humble yet hearty” housewares, clothing and handcrafted accessories.
Owner Sarah Savoy added the online component to meet customer demand and to boost her
competitive edge.
“The types of products I sell are not readily
640443_Think.indd 1
available,” she says, adding that this makes it
all the more important to use the Web to help
people find her, not the other way around.
“It’s maybe not critical to survival but critical to competitiveness. There are all sorts of
cute little shops. If I can offer one other level of
service then I stay competitive.”
So just how strong is the retail revolution?
Finkelstein says one of the strongest years for
Shopify was 2008, a time when many people who
suddenly found themselves unemployed realized that they weren’t satisfied anyway and started their own business. Shopify now has more
than 55,000 active stores online worldwide.
Likewise, Shopcaster continues to expand,
and every day new platforms and technologies
become available to make it even easier and
more efficient for independent retailers to make
their mark.
Khudayar at Zelen Shoes in Vancouver says
it “does get tougher” with many U.S. retailers
entering Canada. But he’s confident he can survive because of the brand he’s building at home
and abroad. He recently sold a pair of speciality
Converse shoes to someone in Australia.
“That’s just the way of the future,” he says.
22/05/13 11:03 AM
www.retailcouncil.org/cdnretailer | summer 2013 | canadian retailer |
29
http://www.thinkwrap.com
http://www.retailcouncil.org/cdnretailer
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013
Publisher's Desk
Retail Currents
Retail: At Issue
Understanding The Expectations of Today's Consumer
The Retail Marketer's Most Powerful Tools
Driving and Converting Web Traffic
E-Commerce
A Better Microscope
The State of Canadian E-Commerce
Owning The Brand
Advertiser's Index
Retail Quick Tips
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - cover1
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - cover2
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 3
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - Publisher's Desk
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 5
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - Retail Currents
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 7
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 8
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 9
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 10
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 11
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - Retail: At Issue
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 13
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 14
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 15
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - Understanding The Expectations of Today's Consumer
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 17
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 18
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 19
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - The Retail Marketer's Most Powerful Tools
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 21
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 22
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - Driving and Converting Web Traffic
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 24
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 25
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 26
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - E-Commerce
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 28
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 29
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - A Better Microscope
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 31
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - The State of Canadian E-Commerce
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 33
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 34
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 35
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - Owning The Brand
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 37
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 38
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 39
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - 40
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - Advertiser's Index
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - Retail Quick Tips
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - cover3
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2013 - cover4
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0617
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0517
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0417
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0317
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0217
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0117
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0616
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0516
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0416
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0316
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0216
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0116
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0615
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0515
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0415
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0315
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0215
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0115
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0614
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0514
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0414
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0314
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0214
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0114
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0613
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0513
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0413
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0313
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/GrandPrix2012
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0213
https://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/RETS/RETS0113
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0612
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0512
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0412
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0312
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0212
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0611
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0511
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0411
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0311
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0211
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0111
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0610
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0510
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0410
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0310
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0210
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0110
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0309
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/naylor/RETS0209
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com