Farfetch to focus on boosting menswear business

London - Online marketplace for fashion, Farfetch, has set its sights on developing it menswear arm as the US etailer revealed plans for a new male focus, which includes tailored editorial features and edits to showcase its collections.

The new focus on menswears comes after the online retailer witnessed its net menswear sales for autumn 2014 grow at twice the rate of its womenswear, receiving over 195,000 orders for menswear products over the past six months. "We see the typical male behavior. They buy less frequently than women, but when they buy, they buy larger baskets," said Jose Neves, chief executive officer at Farfetch, who added that menswear currently accounts for 30 sales of their sales.

In order to fully support its menswear growth, Farfetch has relaunched its website to cater for the male eye as well as the female eye. To help ease the process of online shopping for its male consumers, the redesigned site features new labels from around the world, editorials targeted at the online marketplace's customer and brand spotlights. "The best thing about creating a portfolio or a best-dressed list is that you are including a gathering of guys. You aren't just targeting one customer," said Tony Cook, Farfetch's newly hired menswear editor.

The menswear focus comes after the online retailer made waved in the industry with the purchase of London-based luxury boutique Browns Fashion, although the company is not planning any additional acquisitions in the meantime. "The Browns acquisition was a one-off. It’s really about building the retail experience of the future because that’s what I think the big win will be," noted Neves.