- Two young Aix entrepreneurs want to revitalize the city centers.
- They created an online shopping application on the principle of "click and collect", to enhance independent shops.
- After Aix-en-Provence on June 24, the application will be operational in Marseille on July 30.
They are sure of it, they hold a thread. Two young Aix entrepreneurs are preparing to launch their “Hoppins” shopping application in Aix-en-Provence, before Marseille at the end of July. Are you looking for the little summer dress, the little color bracelet that goes well, the latest fashionable color? Simply download the application (free), accept the geolocation, then enter the item of clothing or accessory you are looking for and choose, with supporting images, from the selection of shops nearby. On the principle of "click and collect", you will have two days to pick up your order in store.
For the moment, the application brings together around twenty independent shops in Aix. Cédric Villain, one of the partners, hopes to quickly ramp up. “Our goal is to bring customers back to the store and avoid desertification of city centers. Designer boutiques and independent traders have suffered a lot from coronavirus, yellow vests, but above all from the establishment of market places and large brands that have enormous communication power, "he said. Hence the idea of offering a service to these stores, to develop their notoriety and support them in their “digital transition”.
“I tell myself that it is an additional showcase. "
The application had to be simple for the user but also the merchant. "This requires being comfortable with the IT tool and very responsive, you have to be able to remove the products that are gone every week," notes Céline Assouline, jewelry designer, who runs the workshop shop My Little Bijou in a not a busy street in the center. She finds the app successful. “I put the products that I sell best, small hoop earrings in single buckle, white bracelets. There is always the possibility in the boutique to choose other elements, to personalize. "She, who uses Instagram a lot, sees it as complementary:" I tell myself that it is an additional showcase. In Aix, word of mouth works very well. But we all have our habits, geolocation can allow you to discover new places. "
The reputation of Chewö Couture, the boutique of designer Moustadira Adame, is well established, but he too was won over by the project. "It's in tune with the times, it's visibility," he continues. There are people who don't dare to push the door, they think it's hypercher, while I also do ready-to-wear. There, there will be the prices. From there to create competition between traders? Céline Assouline does not think so: “We have all our specificities, each our products. In my street, there are four jewelry stores. There is work for everyone. "
"We are looking for solidarity," says Cédric Villain. The more users there are, the more sales they can make. The biggest competitors are the department stores. »On each sale, the application traditionally retains a commission of 10% (except during the launch period, where it will be 5%). And the subscription for the merchant is 25 euros per month. Hoppins, unwittingly, can also be a solution in this period of deconfinement. "Our solution is ideal for allowing people to shop online and spend less time in stores." A health argument in addition in the pelota of the young team of Hoppins, who is going to weave other links in Marseille, where shops are more scattered in the city.
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- Society
- Marseille
- Trade
- Aix en Provence
- Shopping
- Application