I can’t sleep!
Today starts day 1 of the eSquared 20 day sale. But this sale is totally different to anything I’ve ever seen both in South Africa and in my travels.
I’m experimenting, and if it works, it will get us a lot of sales and exposure. If it fails, it will cost us a lot of money.
We had a lot of debate and discussion on this sale - it’s risky, but we’ve decided to push ahead with it, and tomorrow is day 1 of a 20 day sale.
But it’s not just a 20 day sale, because the ENTIRE CONTENTS of the eSquared stores will be discounted by an additional 5% EVERY DAY. And our members get an extra 10% on top of that.
Which means that after 16 days, members get 90% off all their purchases - effectively giving us a huge loss.
Why won’t people wait till the last minute to buy stuff?
The reason, and this is why I’m confident that this marketing experiment will work, is that there is very limited stock of each particular item, so if you wait an extra day to buy the stuff you’ve been eyeing, you might miss out on it.
When we buy for eSquared, we buy very limited quantities of each item, which makes us different to the mass retailers. We now have EXTREMELY limited stock of each item left - so for a particular tShirt, we might have 1 small, 2 mediums, sold out of large, and 1 xtra large.
So yes, you might get a huge bargain if you wait an extra day or a few extra days, but you’ll PROBABLY MISS OUT as another customer will probably think the shirts are a steal at a particular price, and snap them all up.
It’s always nerve wracking trying new things.
A few people have told me I’m crazy already - that everyone will wait till the end of the sale.
But I think everyone has different price points.
If there is a shirt you’ve been eyeing out at eSquared, are you going to risk losing out on it by waiting another day or 2 or 5 or 9 or 14, or do you take a discount now, and be happy that you got your favourite shirt at a bargain?
I’ll be able to give you answers in 20 days time.
7 responses so far ↓
1 Brendan Meehan // May 10, 2007 at 8:55 am
Hey Eric,
I’ve been a member at E2 for quite awhile, and I really enjoy your products and funky brand you’re creating. I also happen to be studying at UCT (Bus Science), and I’ve done a few marketing courses so I think I can speak up and say I’m stoked to see you pushing the boundaries. I’m actually excited to see how this all works out. GOOD LUCK BUD. All I can say is that ive suddenly got a feeling that I should come visit you guys again.
2 Eric // May 10, 2007 at 9:53 am
Thanks Brendan,
don’t know why i’m thinking of the Doors song, but when I read your comment it came into my mind - “break on through to the other side”.
We’re going to take the boundaries to the limit!!!
Enjoy the sale and hope you get some bargains…
3 Vaughn // May 10, 2007 at 12:18 pm
It’ll work. People start waving their credit cards around when they think they might miss out on a good deal, and you get rid of your non-movers at the same time without attaching the stigma of “bargain-bin” fashion to them. Simply brilliant!
4 Shanna Heijberg // May 10, 2007 at 10:04 pm
Eric, you’re one crazy guy, and I love it. I have never been in your store, and have only seen you wearing one of your clothing products recently, so it’s all quite new to me, but just ‘cos of this experiment of yours, I’m going to make a certified effort (in my books in any case) to buy some clothes from your store during the 20 day sale. This is awesome, I can feel the tension of losing out already… and I hate losing out. It’s all in the perception - it’s what drives markets and provides economists with a career.
5 Eric // May 10, 2007 at 10:10 pm
Vaugn / Shanna - thanks for the awesome comments guys…
6 Eve D // May 11, 2007 at 11:54 am
Hi again,
I am very fascinated by your sale model. I am a closet retail-business fanatic (is there a pun in there?) and am always intersted in new techniques to improve the industry, esp in this country.
Your model reminds me of what Filene’s basement does. In case you don’t know, Filene’s Basement is a discount outlet in the basement of the “real†Filene’s store in Boston, US. (They have more branches, but this is their home). They sell excellent clothes at even better prices. Everything is hugely discounted. BUT, what they also do is they add extra discount to the ticket price according to how long the item has been on the rack. So, if I were to walk into the store today, I would proabaly see a sign that says:
All items dated 1May and later – no additional discount
All items dated 15 – 30 April – 10% additional discount
All items dated 1 – 15 April – 20% additional discount
Etc etc
This goes all the way down to, I think, 75% discount. After that, the clothes get donated to charity. Every item has a “date-of-entry†on the price ticket, so you know exactly what discount applies. The discounts dates are updated daily, moving one day forward, if you know what I mean.
The relevant point here is that when I lived in Boston, and could visit the store at any time, I would still NEVER guide my purchase according to the potential discount, since there was no guarantee the item would be there when a higher tiered discount kicked in. In other words, if I found something I liked, I bought it. If it had an additional discount, bonus. But no one, I think it is safe to say, would ever put the item back in the rack and say “I will come back in three daysâ€. Forget it – the item won’t be there!
Of course, FB has a HUGE following and a nation wide reputation. The stock turnover is high etc etc.
Good luck with your sale, and I hope you post extensively on its success!
7 Max Kaizen // May 11, 2007 at 2:14 pm
I am so excited for this sale EE it’s going to thump!!
Loving the direction that E2 is going - you guys are so bold & risky & very fresh in yr approach. Seen the designers & creatives are starting to cluster around the stores, always a gr8 vibe when I pop in
HUGE LUCK to you guys, may it be the first of many >>
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