Labels We LOVE: ASOS

Labels We LOVE Introduction

There’s like this label that we sorta like love and stuff because it’s nice because we wear it as clothes and that, and I’m gonna like tell you about it and stuff because we like clothes and stuff cos that’s what we do on here.

Fundamentally I am done speaking like an idiot and fundamentally is fundamentally… the only big word I know so that’s out the window also.

Ello, ello, ello you snazzy little sartorialist you. This is the first in a brand new series from yours truly. Excited? Damn right you are!
(Cue intro music) – If you actually started humming an intro song for me, I love you and you are now my friend!

The ‘Labels We Love’ epilogue will be making a regular appearance on the site discussing why we love… me. No? Okay. Speedos? A few disapproving looks. Fine, seeing as you bothered to come on a (by ‘a’ I do mean ‘the’) top fashion website of this glorious internet those young’uns keep speaking about on their MyFace & Twitbook; I s’pose I’ll discuss why we love the labels we wear.

It may be called labels we love but no label nor site is safe. I’ll be tackling the biggest to the smallest. The largest online & high street stores to the fiver out of the back of a Camden lorry. The Kate Moss’ to the “I can’t help it, It’s glandular, now where’s my cupcake?”

I will be giving you an insight into their history before marking the labels on key rounds:

• Stock trend; how often do they update it and is it on trend for SS10? Points will be lost for any sight of ‘out of stock’.
• Brands; how many and how unique? Extra points for collaborations!
• In-house lines; with many branching out into in-house stock, how well do they fair against the established brands?
• Media; do they offer articles and advice on their products & trends, do they embrace the social media and can they compete with fashionbeans.com (a completely unbiased category)? Extra points for a shiny website.
• Extra time; a final chance to grab those vital points. Anything that makes me pee my pants is a shoe in for an extra 8 points!

Each round will be marked out of ten and then a final score will be totted up at the end. Where will they sit on our leader board and how long will they hold their coveted place? If you think you have or know a label worth loving then let me know by leaving a comment below!

For now, let’s get started with our first love-worthy label: ASOS.com…

About ASOS.com

Established in June 2000, ASOS.com is the UK’s largest independent online fashion and beauty retailer. With over 19,400 branded and own label products available and 1000 new lines added each week, ASOS.com is rapidly becoming the market leader in the UK online fashion world. Aimed primarily at fashion forward 16-34 year olds, ASOS.com attracts over 6.3 million unique visitors a month and has 2.8 million registered users.

What the fashion press are saying about ASOS.com:

“ASOS.com is a bottomless pit of fashionable pieces that make you click, click, click and buy.” In Style

“I resent the eclectic online emporium of fashionable goodies robbing me 60% of my wages on a monthly basis.” Luke Todd (yeah, the other one)

“From sampling celebrity style to setting it, ASOS.com has become a style front runner.” Daily Mail

Round 1, Stock trend:

Winning such awards as Drapers Awards 2009 – E-tailer of the Year, National Business Awards – Grant Thornton Mid-Cap Business of the Year & Company High Street Awards – Best Online Shopping, you would think their stock would be something to scream about. It is.

A daily update of staple items, covering everything from blazers to scarves and knitwear to shoes. They practise a somewhat of a ‘without fail’ commandment where you can see an update of new lines even on a bank holiday. *Extra points*

Here are my top three picks from a recent (21/01/10) new in page:

As for on trend buys, it’s a hard category. Many items are not out yet and are still in the press release stage. Granted, ASOS do seem to be favouring the more ‘acid youth’ look. The global traveller trend appears to be non-existent in their shirt section. Global traveller is going to be based around the principle of print. Yet I find not a single Hawaiian shirt in sight. As is the same with the collegiate American Graffiti look. A few of their competitors seem to be ahead with releasing these key items!

Nevertheless; hats? Just a few. ASOS is a one-stop shop when it comes to hats and you won’t be short of a few for any of the SS10 looks.

Despite having minimal SS10 necessities for us early-birds, they still boast one of the biggest overall stocks online. For these reasons I give it…
5/10 + 1 Extra Point

Round 2, Brands:

Acting as more of an eclectic warehouse of fashion goodies, ASOS is anticipated as a frontrunner in this league. Breaking it down I can see their main areas are: High Street, Denim Brands, Street Brands, Active Brands, Premium Brands & Designer Brands. So pretty much…everything.

ASOS is certainly part of an elite classification where you can find Adidas & MCQ on the same site; I’m not endorsing you mix the two for a trend-setting running wardrobe however!

As far as collaborations go they are far and few between but there might be a few hidden gems somewhere. What really sticks out for me is the LTD 100 collection that appears selectively throughout the seasons. The LTD 100 range is exactly as it implies. Eccentric and definitively rare. You have to act sharp when you see this feature spring up because not only do they go extremely fast, they are also exclusive! *Extra points*

With branding from students at London College of Fashion – they are truly unique!
For their sheer attention to brand diversity & exclusivity furore I give ASOS…
8/10 + 1 Extra Point

Hold up…
There have been many a’great arguments throughout history. Is the world flat? Is there a god? Is Posh’s IQ higher or lower than my cats? But one of the most prominent of these arguments lies within the very label we discuss the love for today!

Aye-Soss Or Ah-Soss?

Here is what the most reliable internet source I could find at 10.58pm, Wikipedia, states: ASOS.com (pronounced A-sos[citation needed]) is the UK’s largest online-only fashion and beauty store.

Great, citation needed. So that settled, ummm, eff’ all. On with the next round.

Round 3, In House Lines:

ASOS have had a strong in house line since 2007. And despite only being active for 3 full years, they maintain one of the strongest. They separate their lines into three sections. ASOS Collection which is in the main draws from the wider market. Fashion basics and fashion trend pieces in one place. Ultimately it is modern, on trend styling.

Then we have ASOS Laundered. The relaxed brand is inspired with comfortable “laundered” clothing. Casual but with a strong focus on fabric and fitting, these pieces give a worn in and vintage appearance when worn right.

Then finally we have ASOS tailoring. An in house alternative to your Saville Row, they mix time-honoured tradition with a modern flair hitting the sartorial mark with sharp suiting’s.

ASOS is one of the few in house lines that covers every output right down to literally, well… your undercrackers (and for reasonable prices). They have done well to establish themselves as a key brand of modern fashion. Here are my three top picks from the ASOS range:

But before you snap up their stock (or in fact somewhere else does) I need to point out their in house stock issues. Particularly with tee’s and basics, the range is there, the colour is there even the size is there; it’s just an XXL size. Obviously with a wide range of products comes a scarce availability of storage. Never fear; they are regularly restocked albeit if a little late.

Hey ho, again for their range and diversity and without skimping on the detailing and embellishment of their lines I give ASOS collection, oh and ASOS laundered, oh and ASOS tailoring:
6/10

Round 4, Media:

Already I can see ASOS claiming the top spot and holding it but we’ll have to carry on and see. Hint: The answer to an upcoming question is no.

Round 4 is media. And when it comes to media, ASOS have all the bases well dressed and truly covered.

Email Newsletter: Check
Post Newsletter/Magazine: Check
Facebook: Check
Twitter: Check
MySpace: Check
Bebo: Check
Other: Check (ASOS life)

Just in case you get withdrawal symptoms between the posted ASOS magazine & newsletter, they send you a little email with all sorts of goodies in it! But if you’re even more of a ASOS lover (or stalker) then you can check out their Facebook (give ‘em a little poke), monitor their MySpace, eyeball their Bebo, follow their twitter tweets or stand naked outside their head office with “I LOVE YOU” smeared over your body in red paint.

Or the non arrestable option is to join ASOS life. Launched in 2009, ASOS life is the stylistic equivalent to all the above. Acting on the basis of forums rather than blogs, all the ASOS staff are actively involved (despite endlessly plugging ASOS products).

I did pose the question “can they compete with fashionbeans?” I wouldn’t like to comment I’ll just let you take a hint.

Respectably the two are in different formats and ASOS life still offers a lot of that which other online stores do not. Also January saw an updated look given to every aspect of the ever changing ASOS home and dock pages. A fresh design with plenty of space to show off their latest trends! Shiny website? Me thinks so! *Extra points*

For not missing a trick I give ASOS…
10/10 + 1 Extra point

Extra time:

Anything goes in this round. This is the time to earn some real label loving! As if you want free & unlimited next day delivery all year. As if you want someone to personally collect all your returns (yep, even in that snow). As if you want no minimum order value to qualify for this. Oh wait you do? Well tough, you can’t.

Okay I lied. ASOS Premier is a yearly subscription to which you receive all of the above. At first when they asked for the £24.95 a month I thought I was sponsoring a member of staff. After an awkward phone call to head office, I realised I was wrong.

For this amazing dedication to (albeit) lazy customers and not pressing charges on me for trying to steal my adopted member of ASOS staff I award… 3 Extra points.
Total: 29/50 + 6 Extra points

The Labels We Love Leaderboard

I wonder where that leaves ASOS.com on the leaderboard? Stop pointing out the obvious. Stop it. Stop… alright I know the leader board is empty! So ASOS goes on top of the fashion Olympics but for how long will they hold the top spot? Keep checking back and keep suggesting your own favourite labels for my sartorial scrutiny.

The Labels We Love Leader board of Label Loving Loveness:
1. ASOS.com – 29/50 + 6 Ep

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