Girls In Tech

“Designers who have been searching for an easy-to-use, low-cost platform for selling, promoting and marketing their styles have finally found their home – wonderMode was created with designers top-of-mind,” said Duncan, CEO and Founder of wonderMode. “But, it’s really the consumers that will benefit from this global design space and community. We’re already featuring NYC-based designer Gemma Kahng’s new line Gemma by Gemma, a wonderMode exclusive, Dubai-based Rana Jamshed’s Polka Dot Cat label and rising Australian star designer Lui Hon, proving that wonderMode’s unprecedented turnkey solutions work for designers and global designs for consumers.”

wonderMode’s platform was developed to give designers access to the ecommerce tools they need to make their business a success and increase global visibility. Duncan, a former designer and branding strategist, wanted to establish a “fashion-safe” site that could act as a marketing vehicle for designers who otherwise may not have the time or knowledge to support those efforts independently. The site provides full-service back-end technical solutions to support the designers, including features from lookbook creation and transaction details to branded packaging and shipping. wonderMode simplifies the process, never holding inventory and allows designers to ship orders directly to customers.

Designers apply for inclusion in the global design community by uploading four to five designs and providing basic background information on themselves and their brand. Select Advisory Board members are involved in the application review process including designer Eudon Choi, Calypso Retail Division Managing Director Nathalie Sears, former Diane Von Furstenberg VP of E-Commerce Ronit Weinberg and GMM of Urban Outfitters Terence Bogan. Once approved, designers set up a personalized wonderMode brand shop called a “Designer Space.” From inside this online store, designers can manage their style details, lookbooks, color palettes and inventory. In addition to availability in designers’ brand shops, each product is also offered by category on wonderMode’s main page, further increasing exposure.

Designers pay a nominal fee for presence and exposure on wonderMode – just 50 cents per style for four months and four images. The new “Key Items” feature allows designers to pay for increased exposure on wonderMode’s homepage for seven dollars per week. wonderMode retains 20 percent of total retail sales, excluding tax and shipping. The site also offers professional photography services, payment and logistics fulfillment, CRM, analytics, social media publishing and online advertisement support.

Duncan developed the site after completing a case study on eBay at NYU Stern School of Business that showcased the validity of a company selling products without holding inventory.  His years of experience in design, merchandising and strategic business development guided him to build a new platform for the design community. Notable additions to the team included investor and co-founder Matteo Sardi of Automaker Ferrari, as well as, Advisory Board members including CTO of Financial Insight Technology Philip Camilleri and Former President of Playboy Enterprises and wonderMode angel investor Alex Vaickus.