Première Vision show gives details of new web marketplace

By

Matthieu Guinebault

Translated by
Nicola Mira

Published
Feb 15, 2018

At the opening of its latest edition, held at the Villepinte exhibition centre in Paris on 13th-15th February, the Première Vision trade show revealed more details about its future marketplace, due to be launched at the show's September 2018 session.

The marketplace benefited from a dedicated stand, located strategically at the intersection of PV's halls 5 and 6, where the website was promoted to exhibitors and buyers. The website, whose predominant colour is white, will enable users to search for fabrics using 13 different criteria: by their textile components, by certification, colour, weight, etc. As reported by FashionNetwork.com in September, the site will be initially limited to the ordering of fabric samples, with the placement of production orders a possibility at a later stage.

"The gateway for a website listing is exhibiting at the show. Added to that, there will be a very affordable subscription fee, to access the site's tools. This is the initial economic model. In the longer term, it will be possible to place orders through the site, when we will be able to offer more than just samples," said PV's General Manager Gilles Lasbordes. 

The marketplace will be gradually deployed for fabrics, yarns, leather, accessories and sourcing, following the six thematic events of Première Vision Paris. It will also include editorial content, akin to PV's trend forums, featuring specific insights on the range of products offered on the website by the show's exhibitors.

Première Vision Digital, the wholly-owned subsidiary of PV which runs the marketplace, set itself an initial target of 1,500 companies joining the marketplace, offering a range of about 70,000 products in the textiles, apparel, leather, accessories and textile design categories. The exhibitors will be able to limit and control access to their products. On the buyers' side, Première Vision intends to tap its database of 250,000 international buyers.

However, like every e-commerce launch, this project needs time, investments and personnel. For the time being, PV has set up a team of four people, headed by Gaël Seguillon. Further recruitment is ongoing, and the plan is to have a staff of about 15 people by 2020. All of this will have to be financed through the marketplace's self-generated business, said the senior management of PV.

As underlined recently by FashionNetwork.com, an array of new initiatives for trade show digitalisation have been introduced in the last few months. Eurovet announced the launch of a networking website for the lingerie industry, Playtime launched its own virtual show, and Who's Next hired the former director of French mail order/e-tail company La Redoute: an online dimension is becoming increasingly sought-after by trade shows, a trend which makes Gilles Lasbordes happy.

"For me this is a positive transformation. It shows that we are not alone in regarding the addition of digital services to the tools that are already available as something important. These projects are structured in different ways, and we must also consider their international dimension, which is where these websites are heading for. There will always be two segments in the industry: upstream and downstream, and they do not have the same needs. There is much progress to be made. But I think our website will freshen up the sourcing world.”