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Ryan Atkins
Co-Founder & CEO at Supercycle
Ryan Atkins is the Co-Founder and CEO of Supercycle, a company that specializes in bringing rental business models to Shopify, enabling brands to offer circular commerce solutions.3 Supercycle aims to help fashion brands balance sustainability with profitability by providing tools for memberships, one-time calendar rentals, and subscription hires.3
Atkins has been actively involved in promoting circular fashion and rental models in the e-commerce space. He has spoken at industry events, such as TheIndustry.fashion LIVE, where he shared insights on how rental can benefit both businesses and the planet.1 Atkins encourages brands to integrate rental options into their websites, emphasizing the importance of combining rental and sales for a seamless customer experience.1
As an entrepreneur, Atkins has also been involved in other ventures. He launched "Locations Made Super," an app for creating SEO-optimized and customizable store locators on Shopify.2 His LinkedIn profile indicates that he is based in York and has over 500 connections in the professional network.4
Atkins regularly shares insights about e-commerce trends, rental commerce, and the circular economy on his LinkedIn profile.5 He has discussed topics such as financial modeling for rental businesses6 and the competitive landscape of the rental fashion market5, demonstrating his expertise in the field of circular commerce and sustainable fashion.
Highlights
"If I add rental to my website, won't it just cannibalise my existing sales and affect my conversion rate?"
Yes, I hope so (eventually) 🙃
👆 That's my slightly facetious answer to a question I get asked all the time.
Here's what I mean:
If we sell less and rent more, will you eventually end up selling fewer items and having a lower sales conversion rate?
Hopefully, yes. Because that's the end goal and the sustainability promise of what rental and circular models can deliver.
But, if I rephrase the question: "Will I make less money?"
Then the answer is NO.
And that's what we're trying to deliver with rental. Selling less, without harming economic growth.
Having said this...
Rental doesn't seem to be affecting "from new" sales and conversion rates anyway 🤷♂️
If anything, we're seeing overall conversion rates INCREASE in a lot of cases.
The people who were always going to buy, still buy. But some of the people who were previously not ready to buy, instead choose to rent.
It's all about being able to provide your shoppers with the option that suits them best at that particular moment in time.
#circulareconomy #sustainability #ecommerce
1 in 5 people in the UK admit to “wardrobing” - buying an item, using it once, then sending it back.
And it’s costing brands billions in returns.
(Especially when it comes to fashion)
There’s:
- The initial shipping costs
- Return shipping costs
- Costs to get the product back to “as new” condition
Then you’ve got to pay to acquire another customer to come and buy it all over again 😵💫
But wardrobing happens when a customer has a specific time window where a product is useful to them.
They don’t want to buy it and keep it. They want to borrow it and use it.
So...they just buy it and return it 🤷♂️
The rate of return of dresses ranges from between 35 to 75 percent in retailers. The more high-end the retailer, the higher the return rate. The better option?
Work WITH your customers to give them the experience they want. Instead of saying “buy it or nothing,” give them an option to rent a product for the time they’ll actually use it for.
They get access to the product they want (usually at a lower price point).
You get repeat revenue on that same product over time and turn returns from a cost centre into a PROFIT centre for your business.
#ecommerce #circulareconomy #sustainability
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Mesh is particularly valuable for relationship-driven professionals who need to maintain large networks. The app is popular among many industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. Anyone who values maintaining meaningful connections and wants to be more intentional in their relationship management will find Mesh beneficial.
Mesh offers competitive pricing in the personal CRM market. Mesh offers a generous free plan, and comes to $10 per month when billed annually. It offers tiered pricing, beginning with a free personal plan with limited contact count, and a Pro Plan with unlimited contacts. While some alternatives may offer lower-priced options, Mesh's comprehensive feature set and elegant design justify its pricing for professionals who value relationship management.
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