Dimas Gimeno’s return to retail was long overdue, but it’s here: the former president of has taken a new step in the launch of Wow, a marketplace that has the backing of the US fund FJLabs. Gimeno had already closed one in October 2020, which, together with the initial capital of three other partners, has managed to raise around 10 million euros in successive rounds of financing (the last one of 8 million euros in September 2021).
The opening of its first physical Wow point was on March 12 at number 18 of Madrid’s Gran Vía, a historic building born in 1908 that has eight floors and 5,500 square meters. At the same time, the marketplace in which different categories of leisure, fashion and home products are offered.
The day of the opening of the premises, one of the members of was there, who shared the experience of touring the facilities showing us all the news.
Our buddy Iván went to
Dimas Gimeno’s most ambitious project
After two years of unemployment that required a commitment not to compete after leaving , Gimeno returned to the public scene with the idea of Wow and an agreement with FJLabs under his arm, a reference fund in the US that has investments in such successful companies as Uber or .
Wow seeks to be a disruptive business model that combines an online presence with a new physical store concept. Gimeno’s idea is that they are characterized by being exclusive, novel, relevant and trendy articles. Although the place will not seek to identify itself as a luxury establishment, it does present itself under a aspirational and ephemeral model. The catalog of these physical stores -less than that of the marketplace- will change completely every six monthsat most.
Thus, by combining the profile of the entrepreneur with his extensive retail experience and FJLabs, which has more than 500 projects to promote new digital brands, all the conditions are met for Wow to achieve rapid growth.
Gimeno expects that traditional brands will seek to have a presence in his new marketplace, while new brands that only operate digitally will join to access the new physical channels that Wow will also offer.
A commitment to differentiation in omnichannel retail
According to Gimeno, both brands and product offering differentiation will be the key to the success of Wow. Such as , “Companies tend to settle for the business meeting minimum expectations”, and added that the antidote is “to have information that allows you to deepen your knowledge of what can be done from the physical and traditional world to be relevant in this new scenario that has nothing to do with what we were used to”.
Thus, until now the chains have only dedicated themselves to selling the same, or just products with slight differences, while a rival appears in the online world that sells the same, but cheaper.
NowGimeno’s challenge is to redo the store concept, start from digital to physical, focused more on experiences, in offering unique or special products with the benefits of the online channel, with a physical offer focusing on the omnichannel and global level. In addition, as we can see in the store presentation video, Wow will opt for theatricality and visual impact, as a hook to attract the consumer. Said approach, together with its six-monthly renewal strategy, will maintain the brand with a fresh, dynamic and, above all, attractive image.
As the businessman pointed out to us a little over a year ago “The principles of competition and business remain the same: differentiation. What arguments do these traditional physical retailers have that are trying to be omnichannel, what can they add value to these new operators, who are not so much anymore and who are here to stay: the store”Y this is the bet for which he has decided to launch Wowand of which we are sure we will soon know much more.
Wow consolidates its work team and goes out in search of new brands for its project
During 2021, Gimeno was building a star team for the launch of this hybrid marketplace project. Among the latest additions is louis lara, fashion expert who works as a consultant for different brands in the sector. Lara, I would take the position of global senior adviserbacked by its long history in the field through companies such as Marks & Spencer or Pronovias.
It has also been incorporated Hugo Cut former director of the Antai Venture Builder, who complies with offering his operational and technology knowledge for the development of Wow. On the other hand, the company is also in the process of attracting brands to consolidate the marketplace. This process is being managed by Raphael Medina, After a long career in companies in the sector such as Massimo Dutti and Scalpers, of which he is the founder.
The search for these investors is focused on pure players and native digital brands, providing an environment that promotes omnichannel through the integration of its physical and digital channels. In this way, it allows an innovative approach within e-commerce channels, with a unique style inspired by the Soho neighborhood, according to Gimeno.
“We don’t want to satisfy needs: we are looking for early adopters of any category… We will be a marketplace with physical stores that serve you: to make it clear, we understand the store as a cost.”
Wow bases its business model on the highlights of the items in its catalogue, offering everything from food products to fashion and related articles, which represent 50% of its references. Likewise, Gimeno reaffirms his model by answering questions such as: “Will we have washing machines? If one day there is a washing machine that offers something really different, we will have it”.
Alliances with Adyen for payment methods and with Making Science for communication
Less than a month after its opening, Gimeno consolidated a alliance with the payment platform Adyen to offer customers a wide variety of payment methods with local alternatives widely accepted. This incorporation goes hand in hand with the model of hybrid businesssince customers will be able to purchase the store’s products through multiple channels.
As he expressed himself Gimeno“Having the right allies allows us to deepen our knowledge of our customers, personalizing the experience and narrowing the distance and capabilities between online and physical stores.”.
On the other hand, Wow chose the communication company MakingScience to disseminate everything related to this new retail chain, which entered the shopping business with a phygital concept.
Stay informed of the most relevant news on our news channel
Facebook Comments
Disqus