Style.com to become e-commerce platform

Condé Nast has confirmed that it will launch its global e-commerce platform under its Style.com brand, replacing the website’s news and show report content with a shopping site, as it looks to target the 1.5 trillion dollar global e-commerce market.

The e-commerce site will launch this autumn in the UK, followed by the US in 2016, and eventually other major markets around the world. It will be targeting fashion brands as well as upmarket brands from other sectors such as beauty, travel services and technology, and the platform is expected to launch with between 100 and 200 brands, with the number expected to grow as the business expands in sales and geographical reach.

“The signed contracts are starting to come in. Every week we sign up another five to ten brands, and the momentum is increasing,” said Style.com president Franck Zayan. “Fashion companies and other upscale brands understand the authority of our magazines and websites, and their unique ability to connect them to potential buyers.

Zayan added: “Style.com will take these relationships to a new level, taking advantage of our existing customer database. It will provide a great user experience for consumers, employing the most state-of-the-art technology, and build sales for the brands.”

Style.com to be transformed into e-commerce site

Technology will play a huge part of the site launch, with shoppers being able to order merchandise from magazine-branded websites and digitised magazine editions in app form, as well as the Style.com website itself, and they will use technology-enabled images in the printed magazines allowing readers to just scan the image to place an order.

Style.com will continue to be owned by Condé Nast but will operate as a stand-alone business, under the helm of Zayan, whose previous role was head of e-commerce for the Parisian department store Galeries Lafayette, while other members of the new team have joined from the likes of Yoox, Net-a-Porter and Asos. Its offices will be based in London, close to Regent’s Park.

"The audience of our magazines and websites around the globe comes to more than 300 million, a huge base of support with whom we already have an active relationship," explained Newhouse of the launch. "It can be considered the top five per cent of the world's adult population. Our potential customer base is far higher than any fashion e-commerce business currently operating and will give Style.com an enormous advantage over its competitors."

The current Style.com editorial content will be redirected to a new url, Voguerunway.com, which can be found on the American Vogue website.

Images: Style.com and Franck Zayan photographed by Claudia Burlotti