Eles Clothing

An interview with Eles Clothing

We are continuing our tradition of bringing our readers interviews of the notable vendors. This week, we got the opportunity to interview Laurence Sugarman of Eles Clothing, who is a well known figure in the world of clothing trade. Here's what we learned from him.
Interviewer (I): I was browsing your online store where I found the eBay kit for starters which has 20 best selling items. What are these best selling clothing items? And do they keep changing?
Eles Clothing (ES): Our stock changes daily. You will receive a selection of our best sellers for that week.

I: Setting up a store and generating sales is hard for any newbie. To what extent do you think your start-up kit can help an eBay newbie in getting started, and how?
ES: We always like people to try before they open their main store setting up on eBay and selling a few garments first will teach you pretty much all you need to know also I have just posted an article on my blog which will hep you to set up your online store (this can be found at http://www.elesclothing.co.uk/)

I: For someone looking to start an online clothing retail business, which niches would you recommend?
ES: Ladies wear and dresses always sell. Ex topshop, ex River Island, ex Miss Selfridge brands are consistently good for us.

I: How predictable are the clothing trends in the UK and what strategies do you employ to keep up with the changing trends?
ES: We visit all major trade shows, all our staff are young and fashionable. We are always bang on trend!

I: Online stores offer convenience for the buyers. Being a seller, what benefits do you see in online selling as compared to offline selling?
ES: Costs. The cost of starting an online shop makes it the obvious choice for any newbie. Of course, a bricks and mortar shop helps but online is the cheapest and quickest way to start your business.

I: How do you ensure customer care for your online customers and what are their common concerns?
ES: Reliability is all of our customers main concern, we have been trading for over 20 years, please see our testimonials on the website, we have thousands of happy customers all making a good profit from our stock.

I: How do you ensure product quality of the surplus and ex-store chain supplies and what are some of the risks involved in dealing in ex-chain store clothing?
ES: We only sell perfect goods. We never sell damages, so any stock that may have a problem we will always accept back.

I: As an experienced clothing wholesaler, would you like to share some word of caution for people interested in starting a clothing retail business?
ES: Never buy damaged goods. If it looks cheap, there is usually something wrong with it.

I: Do you think B2B platforms like our website benefit the UK businesses?
ES: Yes they do, it gets people interested in what we sell and is a good way for our customers to find us and of course other suppliers.
I: What kind of services would you like to see in a B2B marketplace?
ES: A way for our customers to buy the goods through your site, yet we fulfil the order.

I: As a supplier of British Fashion clothes to the worldwide market, which country has the biggest demand for British fashion clothing, and why?
ES: Poland, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece all do very well with our stock. We are also seeing up and coming demand from Nigeria and the Ivory Coast.

I: Two tips for exporters of clothing items.
ES: Buy little at first and often to see what your markets require.

I: Anything else you would like to add?
ES: Our clothing shown on the site www.elesclothing.co.uk is always in stock please sign up to our newsletter to be kept in touch.