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OneStop Shop for E-Commerce
Apparel News
May 2, 2005
By ROBERT MCALLISTER
TECHNOLOGY EDITOR
Most bricks-and-mortar retailers are evaluating their
clicks-and-mortar strategies in light of the booming
online shopping trend. The reality, however, is that
going online is not always easy or cost-effective.
Hiring an information technology (IT) staff or choosing
a hosting service can run into the six figures and
take away from the creative side of business. To avoid
that scenario, technology companies are starting to
provide full-package services. One of those companies,
Los Angeles–based Onestop Internet, is offering
a turnkey e-commerce solution that features everything
from Web site design to customer service to packing
and shipping. The big driver, according to company
executives, is that there are no upfront fees involved.
Onestop makes money by taking a percentage of each
sale.
Onestop, in two and a half years of operation, has
corralled an impressive list of clients, including
Von Dutch, C&C California, True Religion, Trunk,
Alpine Stars and Allison Burns Los Angeles.
The company is led by Brett Morrison, John Tomich
and Steve Tandberg, IT engineers who survived the
dot-com bust several years ago. That experience has
helped the company stay profitable from day one. Morrison
raised $21 million in capital for digital imaging
company Ememories.com before selling it to PhotoWorks,
another Internet business. He and Tandberg later hooked
up with Von Dutch, selling products on the Internet,
and leased 30,000 square feet of warehouse space next
to the company's downtown Los Angeles warehouse. Business
grew from there.
Onestop is one of only a few companies that take
e-commerce to the fulfillment level. Clients provide
the inventory, and Onestop takes it from there. "We
come in as their white knight," Morrison said.
The company's business development director,
Kirk Tedeski, said that outsourcing IT does not mean
surrendering control. "In fact, the client has
total control," he said, explaining that clients
can pick and choose how much they want to outsource.
Some choose to take control over their inventories
and shipping, while others pass on the responsibility.
Onestop also has inventory management software, which
gives clients a clear insight into what is in stock
and what has been sold. "It's very transparent,"
Morrison added.
The commissions, based on a percentage of retail
sales, work out to being about 50 percent more than
wholesale transactions, Tedeski said.
The situation usually is advantageous because many
companies do not make money on e-commerce vehicles,
Tedeski said. "Instead, a website could be their biggest
storefront," he noted.
The challenge for manufacturers doing direct sales
is to not alienate their wholesale clients. Manufacturer
websites can actually enhance business for wholesale
customers because they usually sell product at suggested
retail prices and maintain price integrity, Tedeski
explained.
With online sales growing 300 percent annually, most
companies are becoming involved in some type of Web
venture. Some are opting for vehicles such as Yahoo
Stores and Amazon.com. Morrison challenged the quality
level of those sites. "Our designers have a way of
making things look 3-D. It's a big difference," he
said.
Onestop has its own customer service department,
photo studio and fraud prevention program. It also
has the ability to help eliminate counterfeiting by
canceling Ebay auctions that sell knockoff goods.
In light of the heavy knockoff nature of the apparel
business, more consumers are opting to go to the source
for their purchases, including manufacturer Web sites.
Onestop executives eye a bounty of growth, given
the increasing popularity of online retailing. They
said, however, they are being selective in choosing
partners, opting to take on clients that show growth
potential and have some established volume.
For more information, visit www.onestop.com.
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