Informa's Licensing Week goes virtual June 15-19. Image credit: Informa
Informa Markets Fashion and wholesale ecommerce platform NuOrder have joined forces to debut what they claim is the fashion industry’s largest digital tradeshow.
The digital tradeshow will run alongside Informa’s currently scheduled physical events in Las Vegas and New York in the fall, including Magic, Project, Coterie and Micam Americas. Per the deal, NuOrder will power Informa’s digital trade events, starting with the men’s show in August and the women’s in September.
“We see this as an important next step in the evolution of our business, and the fashion industry as a whole,” said Nancy Walsh, president of Informa Fashion Markets, in a statement.
“The live event experience is irreplaceable,” she said. “Fashion, in particular, is a very tactile business. Buyers want to feel fabrics in their own hands and see colors with their own eyes.
“But we also believe that the future of fashion wholesale is a synergy of physical and digital.”
Show and sell
London-based Informa Markets’ portfolio includes more than 450 international B2B events and brands in markets including healthcare and pharmaceuticals, infrastructure, construction and real estate, fashion and apparel, hospitality, food and beverage, and health and nutrition.
NuOrder claims a network of thousands of premium brands and 500,000 retailers, which when paired with Informa Market’s global fashion network, will create the industry’s largest digital trade event.
Brands will be able to tap into NuOrder’s custom digital catalogs, line sheets, in-platform ordering and interactive 360-degree virtual showroom technology to tell their brand story and virtually present new collections.
Also, retail buyers will be able to discover, connect and do business with new brand partners through category and price point search functionalities, access to curated content and relevant product recommendations, and in-platform order placement, per NuOrder.
The relationship between Informa Markets Fashion and NuOrder will extend to new shows, categories and regions for a hybrid embrace of business-to-business fashion commerce.
“Our partnership marks a defining moment in the industry solving real customer needs at a critical time,” said Heath Wells, cofounder and co-CEO of NuOrder, in a statement.
“This is the beginning of a new era for fashion markets and the standard for discovery and commerce moving forward,” he said.