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It isn’t fashionable to fear Amazon

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Many retailers have felt the pressure of competing against Amazon. The behemoth online retailer sells pretty much everything, and it does so better than most traditional retailers.
But high-end fashion is one industry that hasn’t really been troubled by Amazon so far. In a market where success is dictated by style, faster shipping and lower prices make less impact.
Amazon does already sell a lot of clothes, but its focus has been the lower end of the apparel market. Just as in other sectors, Amazon’s sheer scale and agility allows it compete aggressively with some of the high street clothing retailers. Some forecasts predict that Amazon will be the biggest clothing retails in the US in 2017. With such a solid mass-market base to build on, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Amazon slowly creep up-market.
So how might Amazon have an impact on the fashion? I see two potential strategies. Using its search and retail data to spot gaps in the market or hot trends, it could react more quickly than traditional fashion players with private label brands. It could also partner with existing fashion players to improve their logistics and shipping.

Estimated reading time: 2 min

 

Due to the potential for losses, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) considers this investment to be high risk.

What are the key risks?

  1. You could lose all the money you invest
    1. If the business you invest in fails, you are likely to lose 100% of the money you invested. Most start-up businesses fail.
  2. You are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong
    1. Protection from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), in relation to claims against failed regulated firms, does not cover poor investment performance. Try the FSCS investment protection checker here.
    2. Protection from the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) does not cover poor investment performance. If you have a complaint against an FCA-regulated firm, FOS may be able to consider it. Learn more about FOS protection here.
  3. You won’t get your money back quickly
    1. Even if the business you invest in is successful, it may take several years to get your money back. You are unlikely to be able to sell your investment early.
    2. The most likely way to get your money back is if the business is bought by another business or lists its shares on an exchange such as the London Stock Exchange. These events are not common.
    3. If you are investing in a start-up business, you should not expect to get your money back through dividends. Start-up businesses rarely pay these.
  4. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
    1. Putting all your money into a single business or type of investment for example, is risky. Spreading your money across different investments makes you less dependent on any one to do well.
    2. A good rule of thumb is not to invest more than 10% of your money in high-risk investments. https://www.fca.org.uk/investsmart/5-questions-ask-you-invest
  5. The value of your investment can be reduced
    1. The percentage of the business that you own will decrease if the business issues more shares. This could mean that the value of your investment reduces, depending on how much the business grows. Most start-up businesses issue multiple rounds of shares.
    2. These new shares could have additional rights that your shares don’t have, such as the right to receive a fixed dividend, which could further reduce your chances of getting a return on your investment.

 

If you are interested in learning more about how to protect yourself, visit the FCA’s website here.