Perspectives on online vs. in

Although Indochino started with ecommerce, in-store sales have grown very rapidly. Its seven retail stores (Vancouver, New York, Boston, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Beverly Hills), all under two years old, already account for 50 per cent of gross sales. The physical locations are essentially measurement showrooms where men can be measured for their suits and feel and touch fabrics.

While Indochino will bear the cost of leasing physical locations, it will not have inventory costs in the showrooms and, as most customer visits are appointment based, labour costs are efficient, Housley said. Once a man has made an appointment to be measured, he’s likely to buy, Housley said.

Prices are the same online or in-store and Indochino offers free shipping on any order over $150. Online data allows the store to drive customers already on file to their new retail outlets.

The key opportunity is “understanding the customer data and the migration between online and retail, and how to facilitate that customer journey,” Housley said.

Earlier this month, Indochino secured a $42-million investment from China’s Dayang Group, a major suit manufacturer. “We have a supplier, now part owner, which is fully invested in product quality and, of course, there are huge efficiencies in that,” Housley said.

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