Online Shopping Part II: Giordano Online Store

In the midst of global economic instability, Giordano, one of the biggest names in fashion, continues to flourish with record profits not only in Asia but the Middle East and other parts of the world.

Hoping to reach more clients, Giordano has ventured into another formula that is focused on bringing shopping comfort to their clientele, that is online shopping.

While this has an enormous following in Hongkong and China, they have yet to conquer the hearts of the Arab market in the Middle East. "In this region, it's still more of an infancy stage, people still have issues or concerns in terms of payment security", says Giordano's Executive Director for the Middle East Operations, Ishwar Chugani. He, however, assures clients that they have already crossed the threshold taking into account Giordano's long time solid presence in the market. Efforts are being made to bring more people to their online store, offering a simpler, more convenient shopping experience in the comforts of their homes or offices.

On a different note, Giordano boasts of an Inventory Management System that is unparalleled. The company claims that one of the secrets to their success is their passion for their work in inventory management. Their inventory, according to the Mr Chugani is under control, and allows them to offer special bundle offers and deals during shopping festivals. They also never have more than 5-6% of obsolete or slow-moving merchandise because of its efficiency.

Ella Panganiban

When asked if the rising cost of raw materials is a concern, he admitted that it used to be an issue but was already stabilized to make sure they can compete in the market and never have to lose. What is more of a challenge for the company, according to Mr Chugani, is the currency fluctuation in the Eurozone and India. However, Giordano make sure to negotiate with their suppliers from China so they could work on better pricing that will not compromise the quality of the merchandise they have been known for through the years.

Listen to Mr Ishwar being interviewed by Dubai Eye 103.8



So, have you visited their our store?
Share with us your favorite Giordano online purchase.

Ella Panganiban
Giordano Social Media Executive

Online Shopping Part I: Taking a virtual brick and mortar shop right at your finger tips

Online shopping is one of the by-products of convenience and technology.  With the likes of amazon.com, ebay.com, alibaba.com and many others crossing our minds, we know that online shopping has made its mark.  After all, who amongst us has not even tried to buy online?

Admittedly, our shopping experience has been revolutionized by the convenience of online shopping.  Products are brought closer to us and we can shop anywhere in the world. The most obvious benefit of online shopping is that we save time and money – no need to deal with commuting or parking, traffic and even carrying shopping bags.

Here in the Middle East, online shopping has also taken shape.  In a recent report by a newswire company quoting research conducted by Euromonitor, customers in the region spend around $1.1 billion through the internet expected to double to $2.2 billion by 2016.  The news report said that online shopping in the region has one of the fastest growing rates in the world.

The study only took into account purchases made on physical items such as books, DVDs and clothes.  The figure can actually go higher if the study included purchases from group buying websites or even booking flights or holidays.  Both the UAE and Saudi Arabia were observed to have had tremendous growth in online purchase.  This also shows that netizens are increasingly becoming more comfortable in using their credit cards to purchase goods (or services) online.

The potential for this medium is quite high, considering that it’s still in the nascent stage in the Middle East.  While there are different schools of thoughts on how online shopping is measured – the sheer increase in online purchasing activity already drives a point.  Online shopping is in our shores and something we welcome.

We, at Giordano, also recognize that online shopping is a great way to complement our own stores.  With the launch of our e-shopping portal www.giordano-me.com, with UAE being the pilot market with view to cover other markets in the future, we are aiming to complement existing Giordano stores to make our customers’ shopping experience more convenient.  

More than sales, we want our customers to have an alternative should they not be able to go to our stores for one reason or another.  Customers can now also buy from any of the 300 Giordano items in the comfort of their own homes or offices.

Ishwar Chugani
Executive Director
Giordano Middle East