When Sotiria Krikelis started her line of foldable ballet flats, Relax Missy, she eagerly went into sales mode, picking up the phone and giving buyers her best cold-call pitch. Like many designers, she was faced with rejection and to no surprise, discouraged. She continued on her quest, but as she picked up the phone to make each call, she started asking herself those “wouldn’t it be nice” questions; like if there could be a streamlined way to connect designers to buyers to make the sales process easier. She knew that tradeshows were expensive to attend and selling not only took time but a plate full adversity. To help designers just like her, she started Meli-Moda with Co-Founder Karl Pierre and actualized her vision.
Meli Moda has 3 main user groups: Designers, Buyers and Consumers
1. Designers
Think of Meli Moda as an online portal that allows brands in women’s, men’s, kids, shoes, accessories, home and art décor to connect with buyers. Brands looking to sell their products can upload all key information to make a sale: look books, linesheets, press clippings, videos and bios.
2. Buyers
For buyers, Meli Moda helps them streamline the selection process and is a way to introduce their company to new designers in the profile section. Plus, it allows designers to see if they should pitch that specific retailer (because you can’t pitch everyone)!
Buyers can find designers, review linesheets, lookbooks and have access to all data that the designer has provided. For a buyer to make a purchase, they must register to receive wholesale pricing information. And, a designer can feel secure knowing that their information is kept safe.
3. Consumers
Consumers get to buy items at the retail price and also have the option to pre-order styles. A fun feature and a good source of market research is the “I’d Buy It” button that helps designers and buyers know what the customer would purchase.
The Social Media Connection
They’ve also added in the social media features where guests can follow others and invite people to connect with them along with the news feed that shows users the latest activity. Speaking of activity, they will be launching Moda points, an incenticitve platform that rewards the users for logging on, shopping and engaging with others that can be redeemed for cash and other items.