Adam Ayers, CTO at Number 5. Technologist. Growth Hacker. Entrepreneur. Inventor. Investor.
The fashion industry is recalibrating. Traditional retail partnerships are faltering, platform dynamics are shifting and cost pressures are intensifying.
As a seasoned CTO and growth strategist in the e-commerce space, I’ve navigated the evolution of online fashion retail firsthand, from the early dominance of search engine optimization (SEO) and organic social media through the explosive growth of paid social to today’s influencer-driven content.
In this new era, brands that succeed will be those that take control of their distribution, customer data and long-term business narrative.
Wholesale Trade-Offs And DTC Gaps
Department stores were once synonymous with reach, reliability, premium customer service and validation (especially the kind of reputational validation that designers crave). But today, that credibility comes at a steep cost. Brands still prioritize wholesale partners with their best product, often leaving their own direct-to-consumer (DTC) channels understocked or underwhelming in terms of inventory depth and sizing. This loss of margin, visibility and control is compounded by industry-wide payment delays and mounting financial instability among retailers.
This creates a frustrating loop: The brand pays to acquire the customer through expensive digital marketing, the customer discovers the product on the brand’s site, abandons their cart and buys the exact same item deeply discounted from a third-party retailer. To make matters worse, that retailer may still owe the brand payment for those very goods, leaving the brand financially exposed and strategically sidelined. In short, the brand is funding its own demise.
Retailers are also offloading more risk onto brands through consignment, buybacks and delayed payment terms. The balance of power has shifted, and not in the brand’s favor.
A Retail Shakeout In Motion
In March 2025, Richemont received regulatory approval to divest Yoox Net-a-Porter (YNAP) to Mytheresa, signaling its formal exit from e-commerce ownership.
Additional shakeups include:
• Matches was acquired by Frasers Group for approximately $65 million.
• Farfetch walked away from its planned acquisition of YNAP, citing internal instability.
• Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Fifth Avenue were merged under Saks Global in a $2.7 billion deal backed by Amazon and Salesforce.
Following the Saks Global merger, brands began reporting extended payment terms and vendors are now paid 90 days after inventory delivery, with past-due balances pushed to a deferred repayment schedule beginning July 2025. For smaller brands operating on tight margins, this cash flow disruption could lead to bankruptcy. Several received large purchase orders from Saks in late 2024, which we now know they didn’t intend to pay on time, only to be left with outstanding invoices.
Furthermore, Amazon’s infrastructure is rapidly becoming the industry standard for digital retail, a shift echoed by other platforms like Meta’s commerce tools and TikTok Shop. While centralized platforms streamline operational efficiency, they also introduce significant vulnerabilities for fashion brands, especially when products appear on marketplaces without explicit brand approval, often facilitated by third-party distributors or off-price resellers.
This phenomenon, increasingly common across the digital landscape, compels brands to rethink their distribution and pricing strategies as control shifts toward platforms optimized for volume and price-driven competition. As this trend continues, fashion companies must proactively safeguard their brand identities and pricing structures to avoid commoditization and loss of market differentiation.
Seven Moves To Reclaim Control
In a volatile climate, strategic clarity matters. Brands should consider the following:
1. Fortify your DTC ecosystem.
Invest in robust infrastructure that strengthens owned channels, including modular e-commerce platforms for flexibility, advanced customer support automation for efficiency and personalization engines to enhance user experience and drive conversions.
2. Limit platform dependency.
Not every third-party placement is beneficial. Evaluate platforms based on critical factors like data ownership, pricing integrity and audience alignment. Ensure your core operations aren’t entirely reliant on social media or external marketplaces.
3. Own the customer relationship.
Utilize customer data platforms (CDPs) and analytics tools to effectively leverage first-party data, driving deeper customer insights, enhancing personalized marketing strategies, optimizing product development and increasing customer lifetime value.
4. Challenge risk-shifting models.
Actively push back on vague consignment agreements and extended payment terms that threaten financial stability and autonomy, prioritizing clarity and equity in your partnerships.
5. Diversify your fulfillment strategy.
Incorporate multiple logistics and fulfillment partners or explore in-house options to mitigate risks associated with dependency on single service providers.
6. Enhance inventory visibility.
Adopt inventory management software and real-time tracking tools that offer clear visibility across all channels, helping to minimize overselling, underselling and stock discrepancies.
7. Develop agile pricing strategies.
Leverage dynamic pricing tools and competitor analysis software to maintain competitive pricing without sacrificing brand equity or profitability.
Drawing The Line And Establishing Clear Boundaries
What’s happening in fashion isn’t just a cycle—it’s a power shift. Brands that want to thrive must set firmer boundaries with retailers and platforms and refuse arrangements that jeopardize their financial or creative independence. I believe this moment will reward those willing to say no, rethink distribution and build structures that protect their brand equity.
In a market driven by volatility, the strongest brands will likely be those that choose self-governance and brand sustainability over miscalculated perceptions of quick and cheap scale and validation. Ultimately, retailers and marketplaces will have no choice but to become better partners, respecting and prioritizing the integrity of brands once again.
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