Direct-to-Consumer
How direct-to-consumer brands and retail concepts are reshaping the industry, online and off.
Highlights

Activewear’s Biggest Disruptors

Breaking into the $384 billion sports apparel market is no easy task, but fast-growing start-ups are stealing market share by creating specialised, fashion-forward products around underserved interests.

A Tale of Two DTC Brands: Why Some Soar and Others Crash

This week, activewear label Vuori picked up $400 million from SoftBank, while Scott Sternberg’s basics line Entireworld announced its shuttering. Why did two brands that thrived on pandemic fashion trends face two different outcomes?

Case Studies & Reports

Case Study

How to Build a Profitable DTC Brand | Case Study

Case Study

Building a DTC Challenger Brand | Download the Case Study

Case Study

The New Four Ps of DTC Marketing — Download the Case Study

Latest News & Analysis

How the DTC Bust Could Play Out

Fashion and beauty start-up valuations appear to have stabilised after plunging last year, though it may be months or even years before many return to their old highs — if they ever do. But there are ways for emerging and established players to ride out the downturn.

Wholesale Brands Want to Be the New DTC Disruptors

Brands that once ruled multi-brand retailers are investing in DTC to build connections with customers and improve their margins. But like digitally native brands before them, they’re finding fatter profits remain elusive.

What Happens When Digital Brands Have to Cut Back on Marketing

With an uncertain economic outlook, digital brands are forced to make tough calls on whether to cut back on marketing at the expense of growth or continue to spend and accept lower profits.

How to Build a Profitable DTC Brand | Case Study

With the direct-to-consumer funding heyday now over, DTC brands need to turn a profit. Unlike their revenue-obsessed counterparts, DTC pioneers Marine Layer, Meundies and Trinny London offer a blueprint for achieving both top- and bottom-line growth.

The Year Ahead: The DTC Reckoning Is Coming For Fashion

Mounting digital marketing costs and e-commerce readjustments have put the viability of pure direct-to-consumer business models into question. The State of Fashion 2023 reveals that most brands will need to diversify their channel mix beyond DTC to generate growth.

How DTC Brands Are Cutting Costs

Start-ups under pressure to operate in the black have logistics and marketing expenses in their sights.

How Amazon Fits Into the New DTC Playbook

Digital brands that once steered clear of Amazon are more open to selling on the marketplace, as the e-commerce slowdown and rising marketing costs makes it harder to find customers on their own.

How Brands Can Turn Customers Into Repeat Shoppers

In a saturated market where customer acquisition costs are on the rise, fashion and beauty start-ups are exploring ways to boost repeat business.

Allbirds CEO On Why DTC Brands Are Going Multichannel

Today, running an online business requires more than just a Shopify storefront and ads on social media, explains Allbirds co-founder and co-CEO in an interview for The State of Fashion 2023.

The Debrief | Why So Many Direct-to-Consumer Brands Are for Sale Right Now

As the economy weakens and funding dries up, digital brands may face pressure to sell from investors. To do so, they’ll need to prove they’re more than just another money-losing start-up.

The Next Wave of DTC Acquisitions

As the economy weakens and funding dries up, more digital upstarts will face pressure to sell. They’ll have no trouble finding buyers – if they can prove they’re more than just another money-losing start-up.

Why Warby Parker’s Stock Soared This Week, and Allbirds’ Sank

The diverging paths for the two trailblazing direct-to-consumer brands is the latest indication that investors now value a clear path to profitability over growth.

The News in Brief

Report: Away Exploring Options Including Sale

The luggage company, valued at $1.45 billion when it raised capital in 2019, is exploring strategic options including a sale, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Everlane Slashes 17% of Corporate Workforce

The DTC basics brand announced internally on Wednesday that it will cut staff to help improve profitability by the end of the year amid rising inflation and recession fears, according to an internal email viewed by BoF.

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