Harper’s Bazaar launches ShopBazaar
Harper’s Bazaar is venturing into e-commerce and making content from the magazine shoppable with the launch of the new online store, ShopBazaar.com. The new retail platform featuring an editorial perspective was created specifically for the Hearst title and will offer 32 items from the October issue, exclusive limited edition pieces and over 300 products in total. Like any e-retailer, items can be purchased and shipped directly from the site without buyers having to venture to another website.
“I thought about doing this at Elle — we tiptoed into it,” said publisher Carol Smith according to WWD.com. “Almost the first day on the job, I asked [editor in chief] Glenda [Bailey] about this. It has to start on that side. If church isn’t into it, the state can’t do anything.”
For the launch, the site has teamed up with designers and Saks Fifth Avenue, who will supply 20 and 80 percent of the merchandise, respectively. The luxury department store and individual designers will fulfill and ship the orders made on the e-commerce site, as Bazaar will hold no inventory.
Bailey will play a big role for the store but insists it will not alter her job or favor participating designers. Currently, 70 designers have agreed to work with ShopBazaar.
“We’re going to continue to do exactly what we’re doing,” Bailey said. “We just want to make shopping easier for our readers. You can now see something and immediately shop from merchandise picked from our informed point of view.”
ShopBazaar will be available on for tablets in October and iPhones in February 2013.
Tagged in: apps, saks fifth avenue, e-commerce, glenda bailey, harpers bazaar, carol smith, shopbazaar, shoppable editorial,
via shopbazaar.com
