In the fashion industry, UBM’s MAGIC is a leading marketplace event for retailers. The biannual conference is a key platform for networking as designers, manufacturers, and other industry players come together to fuel the hottest emerging trends.

Here are CohnReznick’s top three takeaways from the event: 

Brand Recognition

Private label is no longer the path to success. Companies that are winning in today’s retail marketplace are acquiring or developing brands that resonate with the consumer. Ulta Beauty, for example, has been widely successful with expanded in-store experiences, adding skin bars to select stores and partnering with Spruce Labs to enhance their mobile capabilities, all while staying the course with their core product offerings. Consumers want a great story along with relevant, freshly branded products. Retailers need to think through the story of their brand to build and cultivate a following that will help to ensure future and long-term profitability.

Sustainability

The spending power of millennials and Generation Z will continue to grow. These populations list sustainability as a key component of their purchasing decisions. If retailers are to appeal to these consumer segments, they need to adopt sustainable and ethical practices. Companies like Patagonia, Alternative Apparel, Kotn, Naadam, and Nature USA have had success and continue to grow and connect with their customers by using sustainable practices, giving back to communities from where they source their goods, or allocating a portion of their profits to charities, which in turn appeals to millennial and Gen Z consumers.

Customer Data

Data analytics provides insights into customer behavior and buying patterns, which helps retailers and their suppliers understand their customers’ habits, motivations, and needs. When a retailer effectively analyzes sales data, it can determine the optimal customer based on age, location, buying patterns, and preferences. The importance of connecting with customers expands beyond using customer data to improve and launch products; it provides retailers with the opportunity to enhance the omnichannel experience through data, and to create better, longer-lasting relationships with their customers. Data- driven insights are critical to tackling challenges like improving customer conversion rates, personalizing campaigns to avoid customer churn, and lowering customer acquisition costs. However,  it is the personalization and customization of contact with consumers that is most important.