Fac hio! - |

ah

ashion labels are finally recognizing ¢

_ The fashion adh is fs csartinls to realize how vibrant Canada’s e-commerce eadeyekies is. But what’s taken so long?

By Knowlton

7 ou a fan of those preppy “Big
Pony” polos? How about
that embroidered Equestrian

Knight paired with the iconic
Haymarket check?

Well, they’re certainly available.
You can always go to their downtown
Vancouver stores. But if you want
to order online, forget it. The closest
country with online shops for most
fashion brands is the United States,
and they’ll either refuse to ship
their products to Canada or charge
ludicrously high shipping rates.

All of which is very strange,
considering Canada is widely

considered as one of the most tech-
savvy nations in the world, right on
par with Japan, China, and, yes, the
States. And it’s not like they don’t
serve Canada: Ralph Lauren and
Burberry both have two retail shops in
the Vancouver area alone, and many
times more in Toronto, with most
other fashion labels having at least
one location in other major Canadian
cities such as Edmonton, Calgary, and
the fashion-astute Montréal.

Gap Inc. broke the mould
recently by simultaneously launching
all three of its labels—the cheap Old
Navy, the average-Joe Gap, and the
semi-luxury Banana Republic— online
in Canada. Their new sites ship to

lfFE ana SCYIE

as e-commerce contender

Canada, from Canada, and offer all
the luxuries of a true e-commerce
experience: free shipping, free returns,
etc.

But they’ re relatively alone.
Besides American Exchange, which
recently unveiled a 3D trailer for its
brand online and mailed Canadians
free 3D glasses as well as offering
them in their stores, Canada is largely
neglected. Okay, so our population
is only 10 percent of America’s—but
when Ralph Lauren asks you to pick
a country, while you can choose from
the U.S. and all other so-called first-
world countries, you can also choose
Kuwait, a nation just one percent the
size of America, and other tiny nations

(Macau, anyone? It has the population
of Vancouver alone).

Burberry, which is similarly
ignorant of us in the North, gives
you the options of United Kingdom,
Europe, United States, Asia, and
“rest of world” — which, no, does not
include Canada.

Toby Lenk, who is the president
of Gap Inc., said that “Canadians are
increasingly seeking effective online
retail options,” and that his company
has “made significant investments to
build a dedicated e-commerce site...to
meet these needs.”

Thanks, Toby. Hopefully you’ re
the first of many.

 

BIKRAM YOGA

2 WEEKS
FOR $30

STUDENT RATES AVAILABLE

2 Yoga Rooms ¢ Smoothie Bar
Cardio Center e Infrared Sauna

Non-Porous Antibacterial Floor

  

Directly Across from Columbia Skytrain Station

eS
@
e Mats & Towels Available
@
®
e

Free Parking

  

428 Columbia Street, New Westminster

, "
f yy
O

 

A

604-523-9642

www.bikramyoganewwestminster.com