Fancy that!
Amazon has officially announced that they are planning to open a photography studio in fashionable East London, in efforts to further their ambitions to become the leaders of online fashion retail.
The enormous 46,000 square foot space in Shoreditch will be bigger than it’s premises in the United States. They say , its due to open in the summer of next year! And will focus on garment shooting- either modelled of flat lay.
The move provided a little look into the company’s agenda on fashion in Europe. At the moment Amazon remains best known for its sales of entertainment and technical products , despite its launch of its clothing store also in the UK in 2008, and its MYHABIT online designer brand site.
Fashion is one of Amazons fastest-growing commodities in Europe states Sergio Bucher , vice-president of Amazon fashion EU. “The creation of this new Studio illustrates both our ambitions in this area and our dedication to providing a first class customer experience,” he said in a statement.
This came after the US Studio was opened in 2013 in Brooklyn & was a whopping 12,000 square metres.
Screenshot sample from Amazon website
The Shoreditch studio may not be one of the largest in Europe , however amazon has claimed it is? But I well know that French e-commerce company Vente-privee.com states its studio is over 30,000 square meters. Speculation aside, it is such a sizable investment to what already is such a highly saturated and penetrated market , a curious move on amazons part you may ask?
However much we question, amazon maintains that they’re more than keen to get a slice of the action, becoming the official patron of the British Fashion Council in September.
In a release, Amazon claims they have signed up to over 100 fashion brands since the commencement of the year including Emporio Armani, Ted Baker & Vivienne Westwood. The website has also launched exclusive collections with British designers, notably Osan & Solange’ Azagury-Patridge.
Amazon’s (may I say impressive?) focus on premium brands can shed light on Amazon’s investment in a state of the art facility, which they say, will help to get high end brands on side. If Amazon is seeking to inevitability compound their offer at the designer end, it really needs to demonstrate that they have the best platform of which these selective brands can be sold.
Alexandra Mantoura
