eBay goes real world
I know I am suppose to talk about something happened online on this blog, but I found an interesting news recently so I decided to go the opposite.
The idea of pop-out-store is pretty popular recently. These stores would only open for a short period of time. Brands like J.Crew and Nike and even some luxury brands open temporary stores to sell specialty products or for specific reasons.
And now, even online auction site eBay will have its first real-world store opened in New York City from Nov. 22 to 29 for the holiday season. In addition, eBay will have a mobile boutique traveling all over the country. The pop-out-store will feature several of the site’s top fashion brands, including L.A.M.B. and Michael Kors. As for the mobile boutique, it would stop in several cities, started with Chicago on Nov. 10.
Anyway, just an interesting news to share for online brand goes real world.
ebay jeopardizes what makes the brand strong: unlimited shelve-space, the emotional thrill of having won a good bid and virtually no uppper limits to consumers willingness to purchase.
Ebay definately has enough market share to safely extend its brand into other related categories or channels. However, going brick-and-mortar will probably dilute the power of its brand by undermining nearly every point-of-differences.
Francesco Wesel
http://www.francescowesel.com
http://www.brandnewtimes.blogspot.com