Jasmin Larian Hekmat is the Founder & Designer of Cult Gaia, an LA-based brand which she launched in 2012. Jasmin has grown Cult Gaia from its coveted Ark Bag with a waitlist of thousands into a complete collection featuring ready to wear, accessories, footwear, and swim. As a predominately direct-to-consumer brand, she shares insights into how she has navigated her online business since the onset of retail closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

How have online sales changed for the brand since the onset of COVID-19 and retail store closures?

We initially experienced a dip in sales so we quickly triggered a 20% off site wide promotion with a 10% give back to No Kid Hungry to make sure that children around the country who have been impacted by school closures are still getting their meals.

What were some of the first actions you took to ensure e-commerce optimization? 

We offered a site wide discount which we rarely do. Unfortunately, even though this was such a strong season and continues to do well with all things considered, there is less demand and we have a lot of wholesale cut backs so we have to move through the inventory liability. We are constantly re-merchandising because so much time is now being spent online and I want everything to feel fresh for each site visit.

What online channels are you focused on right now? 

E-commerce & Instagram Shopping are our lifeline right now. We are focusing so much more on community and engaging with our customers which was not a huge focus in the past. I am a very product focused person and now this is the biggest opportunity to emotionally reach our customer.

What have been some of the challenges you’ve had to adapt to over the past month with your own e-commerce? 

Having to suddenly mark down everything that we just received as well as scaling back our advertising spends.

What are your e-commerce goals for the next few months?

Our e-commerce is still up 120% over last year and above our plan. The goal is to maintain that and acquire more customers. This brand really started as a direct to consumer brand and I think wholesale is just icing on the top, so this is really helping me refocus our strategy.

Have your shipping and/or warehouse operations been affected? 

We’ve been very lucky that our warehouse also ships essential items so we have not been impacted there. It’s really our life line and we are incredibly grateful.

What shopping trends have surprised you over the past month?

This doesn’t really surprise me but we definitely have seen our AUR go down significantly. Although we didn’t plan for a lot of inventory in our lower priced items, that’s what we’re moving through the quickest.

Are you using any reporting platforms that have been especially helpful during this time?

We are using Dash Hudson which helps us track influencer engagement, hashtags and other digital marketing data.

How have you been communicating with your customers – has messaging changed, what have they been responsive to?

I think our customer definitely comes to Cult Gaia for an escape but it’s hard to escape the reality of the situation we are in, so we are touching on it and being really honest with the customer without making our entire messaging about this pandemic. Our messaging has just become more human, humorous and creative. I think It’s important to not ignore what is happening but still provide the customer with what they come to you for.