Nasty Gal is an online global retailer of women’s clothes that was started in Los Angeles, U.S., by the forward-thinking Sophia Amoruso. The company has a great potential for growth. The following discourse analyzes the company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats as well as their marketing mix and promotional strategy. The reason behind this is because Nasty Gal has been undergoing a slump, at the moment. Therefore, by moving to a new market, the company might get the impetus it needs to start performing as expected (Miller and Cross 63).
By comparing a company with its closest competitors, the management can clearly know whether moving to a new market is a good idea based on, for instance, a SWOT analysis. The following part is the analysis for the above-mentioned company.
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Nasty Gal has a number of strengths over its competitors. including the fact that it has a powerful, fashionable C.E.O who understands the business. A company that has a strong leader has the potential of growth since the management will steer it to greater heights through their sheer charisma. A perfect example of a charismatic leader who has single-handedly guided his companies is Virgin’s Richard Branson (Saloner, Podolny, & Shepard 48).
Another strength the company has is a strong social media presence. Social media has become a modern means of communication, especially among trendy individuals. As such, having a strong presence means that the brand name is being popularized among different groups of people.
The company has an efficient delivery service due to their partnership with WebLinc which has streamlined the data transfer between eBay and Nasty Gal’s website making shipments to customers much faster (Yoffie & Kwak 50). The fast delivery is one of its strengths.
The customer base of Nasty Gal is very loyal since the website gives them the freedom to post pictures of their new outfits on social media. Women love showing off their new outfits; Nasty Gal has tapped into this market by letting them exercise their freedom on company’s website. The loyal also stems from the fact that the niche of apparels that Nasty Gal sells is very unique. These outfits are normally colorful, outrageous and sexy; only a few bold individuals can dare wear them (Nadda, Dadwal, and Rahimi 9).
One main weakness of the company is that it lacks customer focus since it used to sell only vintage clothing, but now sells new “fast fashion” outfits as well. In addition, the company does not have a European client base which is an extremely crucial market, especially the United Kingdom. The latter is often considered to be the largest online shopper market. The lack of a European based distribution center means that interested parties have to pay added custom charges due to international shipping which does not appeal to many consumers (Wied, & Ebers 17).
The company does not have an official marketing team. Consequently, effective marketing strategies cannot be well coordinated by its management. Marketing is an essential part in the success of a company, and Nasty Gal needs to organize its marketing sector to maximize on profits.
The biggest opportunity that the company has is starting up a U.K. based distribution center. Technically, this is a massive opportunity because shoppers in the United Kingdom are extremely open-minded and ready to shop online. Arguably, this is a massive market that needs to be exploited (Narasimhan 15).
Another opportunity that Nasty Gal can exploit is the print advertisement industry. The company mainly advertises its products through its website and social media platforms. However, there are some individuals who are yet to hear about the company. By advertising the company on magazines, billboards and newspapers, it will be able to tap into a market which is overlooked by its competitors (Almasi 8).
The company can gain popularity by having endorsements with celebrities such as actresses, musicians and models. In the fashion world, celebrities are normally considered the most fashionable individuals. Therefore, whenever a celebrity wears a certain outfit, several of their fans will likely buy it. Furthermore, celebrities have many followers and friends on social media. Nasty Gal can post advertisements on the walls of these celebrities to reach a wider fan base (Gilad 26).
The company mainly targets women between the age of 16 and 34 years. However, it can broaden its target market to those who are 45 years since the age group is also fashion conscious.
Nasty Gal faces heavy competition from well-established firms in the U.K. such as ASOS, Misguided and Topshop. These companies have already created a name for themselves in the market thus it may be a challenge for the company to knock them off their perch (Gelder and Woodcock 119).
The promotional strategy adopted by the company entails exploiting online platforms in the quest for more sales. Undeniably, many people spend their time online which is what has influenced the company’s decision. Social media will be the main platform used. In fact, formal advertisements, offers and promotions will be posted on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. The company is ever present on most social media sites and, as a result, can reach diverse groups of individuals. Apart from such platforms, the company will also place advertisements on websites such as eBay. It will also embark on having print advertisements around London to appeal to a wider audience. The advertisements will be colorful, vibrant and attractive since being bold and aesthetically expressive is the main basis of the brand. Notable, other print advertisements will be published in magazines such as Look, Elle, Stylist and Mixmag. Another form of print advertisement will be placing billboards in strategic locations in London such as in train stations. Notably, more than 50 percent of train users are aged 18 to 34; this is the main target market for the company. By advertising around the stations, the company will be able to tap into a new market. Furthermore, research shows that most commuters own smart phones which they can use to access the company’s website (Fine 32).
