It was the search for a new pair of black jeans that proved the spark for entrepreneur Cally Russell to set up a personal shopping app that has been dubbed the “Tinder of fashion”.
Mallzee, the UK’s most downloaded multi-retailer shopping app, was started by the 29-year-old who decided he would build an app bringing together different high street retailers in one place – making it easy for shoppers to find, compare and buy items.
Now, from a standing start in December 2012 the Dundee University graduate, with no background in technology, has grown Mallzee to employee 22 people, raised over £3 million in investment and won a range of personal and product awards.
“Consumer shopping habits are definitely changing and retailers need to provide their customers with the experience they want to purchase, “ says Cally.
“The first step to this is that retailers need to understand who their products appeal to/who are their customers and again I believe data really can be the key to retail success.
“So many retailers take a ‘spray and pray’ approach to stock management on the high street, with products being placed in stores were local fashion indicate that they won’t actually be successful.
“The retailers that will grow the high street again are the ones that understand the value of using data in decisions and focus on making a truly engaging experience for consumers.”
Cally said it’s clear the effect of Brexit is already being felt with a pound that is far weaker than before last year’s June 23 vote.
He adds: “This has a huge effect on retailers as the vast majority of their stock is bought in $. Most retailers had some form of currency hedging in place but that’s either ended or will do in the near future.
“This sadly for consumers will likely mean retailers having to push prices up 10/15% to protect their margin.
“I think it’s clear from the British Retail Consortium monthly spending report that consumer confidence is also reducing and this will mean less people spending on products like apparel.”
It’s not all doom and gloom, however, and Cally believes businesses like his are at the start of a digital revolution in a range of services and sectors.
“I think voice interaction through devices like the Amazon Echo are going to change how we interact with digital, “ he says.
“In Scotland we’ve built some truly world leading digital start-ups in the last couple of years and I have no doubt with the talent we have here that this will continue in the coming years, I’m confident that Mallzee can be one of the leading lights in that process.”
Recently Cally was selected by Forbes for their prestigious 30 Under 30 European influencers list and just last month was featured on the cover of Drapers as one of their 30 Next Generation.
