How two founders took their sock brand to 11 markets (and planted 10k trees in the process!)
How two founders took their sock brand to 11 markets (and planted 10k trees in the process!)
Natural Vibes jumped feet first into Zalando’s Partner Program with their colorful socks. We asked Guillermo Ortega Garcia, co-founder of Natural Vibes, to share the brand’s journey — and his tips for other small brands looking to step up their growth.
Natural Vibes jumped feet first into Zalando’s Partner Program with their colorful socks. We asked Guillermo Ortega Garcia, co-founder of Natural Vibes, to share the brand’s journey — and his tips for other small brands looking to step up their growth.
The Story
In 2018, Guillermo and his co-founder, Burcu Ozenli, started Natural Vibes to bring color to the world of socks and sustainable fashion. Three months later, Guillermo was presenting his brand in the sustainable section of Berlin Fashion Week.
“I am new to fashion. I used to work in finance, so I had to learn a lot!” laughs Guillermo. Today he runs the business with his co-founder, and three freelancer specialists who support with specific processes such as integration or uploading new stock.
As the pandemic hit in early 2020 and their offline business slowed down, Natural Vibes were looking for more opportunities online. A couple of months later, Natural Vibes joined Zalando’s Partner Program and quickly launched their sock range in 11 European countries. For 2021, they’re looking to double their 2020 sales.
Tips for Other Brands
“I would 100% recommend Zalando if you as a brand are prepared to sell a bit of volume and develop your brand. It is the best test to know if people like your brand or not,” says Guillermo.
His biggest tip for a small brand interested in joining Zalando’s Partner Program is to have a clear strategy for the brand. Guillermo says: “You need to have a plan for how you can keep having visibility and keep selling.”
For brands already selling on Zalando, Guillermo believes sustainability will become even more important to customers in the future. “I want all brands to focus more on sustainability. Having the sustainability tagging also helps conversion,” explains Guillermo. “So ensure products are labelled with this!”
In Detail
About Natural Vibes |
Founded 2018 |
---|---|
Based in |
Luxembourg and Berlin |
Joined Partner Program |
Autumn 2020 |
Employees |
Two founders |
Assortment |
Socks with a focus on sustainability |
Services used |
zDirect - the Partner Program portal Zalando Fulfillment Solutions Zalando Marketing Services |
Related content