Fashion 2.0 :: High Fashion Goes Franchise-esque

Michel de Guilhermier has done a lot of things when it comes to the web. A recent article by LeJournal du Net discussed his latest venture, Inspirational Stores.

Mr. de Guilhermier has taken all of his experience in entrepreneurship, e-commerce, innovation, consumer goods, and customer relationships and turned it into a new venture called "Inspirational Stores."  Created in 2007, this French  company has specialized in building a line of high-end, online boutiques that are established in a rather "franchise-esque" manner.

Michel has established relationships with several different high-end brands to create a company that is a cross between an online agency and a franchise; he's now selling everything from caviar to clothing. 

Brands such as Antik Batik and Daniel Crémieux have let Michele build their websites and sell their products.  However, Inspirational Stores doesn't get paid on their sales of the products, they actually purchase the products directly from the designer and then sell them at a profit to consumers.

While the initial launch was for 5 stores, 2008 promises to be a busy one and in 2009, Inspirational Stores will target the UK and Germany.  Each of the five sites, although designed by the same company, look different from one another. 

There is nothing spectacular about any of them, but I suppose they serve the purpose  - which is all Michel is really shooting for.  He's not looking to reinvent the wheel, he is just looking to take what's existing and amp up the service.

One example of this is the "White Gloves Express Delivery."  This involves a gentleman in a suit, and white gloves, delivering your products to their destination.  To some of our American readers, this may seem a little much, but for those of us in France, this is perfectly acceptable behavior.

Inspirational Express coordinates the web design, back office accounting, and delivery arrangements; the designer gets their name out at virtually no cost to them.  Frankly, it's a no-brainer for anyone looking to get a little more notoriety. Want to see them in action?  Check out Daniel Crémieux's boutique, Antik Batik's boutique, or Kaspia's boutique.