Plus-size women’s apparel marketplace OneStopPlus.com dropped what it hopes is its first on many catalogs in the mail on May 31.
It’s not the first time OneStopPlus.com has been in the mail. OneStopPlus, part of multibrand conglomerate Redcats USA, did put a catalog in the mail in 2009, when the group was under different management. Since then the five-year-old marketplace opened itself up to non-Redcats merchants, says Jim Lofgren, vice president-brand manager for OneStopPlus.com.
“We tried it as a house catalog with just the Redcats brands,” Lofgren says, which include apparel merchants Avenue, Woman Within, Jessica London, Roaman’s, KingSize, and BrylaneHome. After OneStopPlus.com began partnering with other merchants with plus-size apparel such as Ulla Popkin, Shoe Buy, Torrid and Newport News, “we evaluated the catalog and decided to go full speed.”
The 52-page June catalog measures 7-5/8” x 10”. The bulk of the circulation will go to select names on OneStopPlus.com’s house file; 20% of the books will mail to prospects. Lofgren says Redcats plans to put a catalog in the mail more than twice a year, but it will make that decision after a thorough evaluation of the initial drop.
“We think catalogs can be the most efficient way to market the website,” Lofgren says. “We’ve found we tapped out most of our traffic volume through paid search, remarketing and affiliate marketing, so we’re looking for more volume.”
OneStopPlus is also testing display ads and television, Lofgren says. It is currently running a three-week test campaign of short-form DRTV during shows such as the CSI suite of police dramas and “Ghost Whisperer.”
Lofgren says the results so far are showing the impact the commercials are having on web traffic. This is helping Redcats USA determine by region where sales are increasing and its new customers are located.