Loop 18's Small but Smart Move to Capture the Junior Plus-Size Market
Charming Shoppes, the mega-retailer (CHRS) which also owns Fashion Bug and other plus-size women's apparel brands, is prepping for the grand opening of Loop 18, the little sister (think junior styles) to its Lane Bryant stores. With the July 23rd debut in 30 selected Lane Bryant Outlet stores, Loop 18 may just be exactly what Charming Shoppes' was missing in its portfolio of plus-size chains.
The recession hasn't exactly been kind to Charming's family of stores. The retailer was still battling losses in the first quarter 2010 with net sales decreasing 6.2 percent to $504.8 million, partly due to 144 store closings in the past year; comps were down 2 percent. The bright spot was a 36 percent increase in e-commerce sales, no doubt boosted by Charming's recent moves to create community-based commerce sites.
In June, I reported that Charming went live with a new social commerce site targeting women dubbed Sonsi. This was just a year after Lane Bryant's site Inside Curve launched which also merged fashion retail with social networking.
With Loop 18, Charming is aiming squarely at the young and curvy fashionista that can't necessarily find their size at most mall stores â€" much less at the outlets. Hence the move to locate the first 30 doors in those meccas of discount merchandise. Beth Thompson, Charming Shoppes marketing brand manager, told me, "There really is an underserved junior plus market â€" especially in the outlets. But I definitely wouldn't consider us focused in outlet locations."
I did wonder about the choice of geographic locations. The southeast after all is home to a preponderance of the country's heavier denizens and there aren't any in Georgia or South Carolina. When I asked Thompson about the spread of the Loop 18 stores she admitted, "It does skew a little to the northeast concentration, but this wasn't done for geo-targeting purposes â€" these were the best stores to launch the new brand."
Given time (and strong sales) Charming will likely continue rolling out Loop 18 stores in more underserved markets. But to really win over a slew of teen plus-size shoppers, Charming would do well to consider how it can create an online community catering to the under-25 set a la Inside Curve â€" and maybe even kick it off with a haul video contest.
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