Lucky magazine launches e-commerce platform

Lucky Magazine, which was spun off by Conde Nast into The Lucky Group, a new venture with BeachMint last year, has launched its new content-meets-commerce platform to bring together its print and digital style with shoppable content.

Billed as a new concept in online shopping, LuckyShops.com, has been designed to provide a multi-faceted experience for shoppers with content and commerce, while also offering enhanced integration opportunities for advertising and retail partners looking to offer “cohesive storytelling across print, digital, mobile and e-commerce”. In a move to capitalise on the fact that Lucky consumers buy 70 percent more products over the course of the year than the average women’s magazine reader, according to its own research.

The site launches with a 1,000 product strong, curated selection of merchandise featuring clothing, shoes, accessories and beauty from high profile designers including Kenzo, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Public School, The Row and Opening Ceremony, which has all been hand selected by editor-in-chief Eva Chen and her buying team.

Chen explains: "LuckyShops.com combines the constantly-updating feed of news stories, designer profiles and engaging essays you've come to expect from our digital team with the thrill of the hunt, a.k.a. shopping the best pieces from your most-loved brands right on our site."

Lucky magazine debuts new content-meets-commerce platform

This is an editorial site with e-commerce integration, not the other way round, even the home page looks like any of its magazine rivals, with content carrying the best placements, and shoppable aspects such as the ‘Shop Our Top 6’ positioned subtly under the editorial. Even when you click directly through to the category, such as clothing or eyewear, you are still greeted with large editorial-style imagery or a list of related articles and you have to scroll down to see the products.

Josh Berman, CEO, of The Lucky Group, said: "We are proud to be the first to market with a cohesive content to commerce platform. Lucky is truly creating a new media ecosystem. No other media company out there has created such a model."

Gillian Gorman Round, president of The Lucky Group, added: "By controlling our own technology as well as our own data, we're able to service the customer and advertising partners from end to end. Many women will come to LuckyShops.com simply to consume content, but they will also have the ability and the option to complete their shopping journey by making a purchase."

The question is will this content-meets-commerce model work? FashionUnited spent time navigating LuckyShops and the format at times can be tricky and time-consuming, you have to click though to an article, then through to the slideshow to see the items and then click again to view the individual product, which then if not stocked on LuckyShops redirects to the brands own e-commerce to buy. But on occasions we didn’t even get that far as were enticed by the ‘related articles’ than the products, which makes us wonder whether some consumers will just forget to buy the products it is offering.

Images: Screenshots from LuckyShops.com