Editor’s note: This article was first published in June 2011, and Yandy’s figures are from 2011: more than 25,000 Facebook followers, over 100,000 orders in 2010 and a forecast to double that the following year.
Women are, without a doubt, big potential consumers, especially when it comes to beauty treatments, lingerie or any product that makes them feel good about themselves. Finding a profitable niche market online, given the competition that already exists, is hard, so today we travel to the United States to pick up a business idea for an online store aimed at women, with a touch of something sexy.
We’re talking about Yandy.com. The site started out selling daring, sexy lingerie for women, and later added dresses, bridal lingerie and costumes. Every product in this profitable online store has one thing in common: it awakens anyone’s sensual side. That was its marketing strategy, because when the site opened there were hundreds of shops focused on this sector, and today it is number one in sales.
Its secret lies, besides the obviously “spicy” products, in eye-catching offers that draw customers in. Once you’re on the site, you’ll notice they aren’t the cheapest, but they offer fast delivery and meticulous customer service.
In the United States, if you’re thinking of buying a sexy dress or a daring Halloween costume online, you’re thinking of Yandy, because they’ve earned a strong position in the market.
They’ve taken into account something we’ve discussed before: you have to make things easy for users who decide to buy on your website, so on this site you can place your order in just 3 clicks. The catalogue is complete and they have no stock problems, even though they don’t warehouse the products themselves (or at least not all of them).
Their work on social media has been excellent, and they currently have more than 25,000 followers on their Facebook page, a channel that clearly served as a springboard to make themselves known.
We don’t have exact sales figures, although it’s said that last year they shipped more than 100,000 orders and that this year they’re on track to double that.
Now look at whether there’s an online store like this in your city or your country. If you can’t find a product like the one Yandy offers, it may be time to think about copying this company’s business model and applying it in your area, because I can tell you right now that it would be a profitable business. In fact, even though I’m not a woman, just looking at the site makes me want to buy two or three things 🙂
It’s worth adding that, in their early days, they invested in offline advertising, with leaflets around the city and ads in all kinds of directories.
Further reading
- Tips for building a profitable online store
- A plus-size clothing business
- The most profitable businesses for 2011–2012
Featured image: Ben Ledbetter, Architect, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
