CTC Media, a major Russian media company, has signed an agreement with KupiVIP.ru, Russia’s leading fashion flash sales site, on the joint creation of a new brand of women’s fashion items.
The online brand and shop – the first of its kind on the Russian media scene – is scheduled for launch in April of this year. “It will appear as a special section of CTC Media’s existing Internet portal Domashnyi.ru,” Anna Kuralenya of KupiVIP’s press service told East-West Digital News.
The spring/summer collection will consist of over 120 articles of women’s clothing in a variety of models, colors and sizes. “The brand’s concept synergizes the holding’s television projects on beauty and make-overs; it’s feminine, elegant and helps women of any complexion look amazing,” says CTC Media’s press release.
KupiVIP will be completely responsible for organizing production and sales support. CTC Media will handle the new brand’s marketing and promotion in its television projects and digital platforms – which currently reach 18% of the entire Russian internet audience, according to the company.
“Being an e-commerce pioneer may be difficult, so we will start with minimal risks,” said CTC Media CEO Yuliana Slashcheva. “Our partner [KupiVIP] knows this market very well. They are experts at producing and pricing products, while we possess the unique expertise and enormous capabilities to promote the new brand on all available platforms. All this together [will increase] sales margins and allow us to save significantly on marketing costs.”
CTC Media’s TV channels operate throughout Russia and elsewhere in the CIS. The company has three free-to-air television networks in Russia – CTC, Domashnyi and PERETZ – as well as one in Kazakhstan and one in Moldova, with a combined potential audience of over 150 million people. CTC Media, whose common stock is traded on the NASDAQ, also has an international pay-TV service.
Launched in 2008, KupiVIP.ru has successfully brought the concept of online flash sales to Russia. KupiVIP is now a holding of companies organized into three different business units – the shopping clubs Kupivip.ru and Kupiluxe.ru, the online fashion store Shoptime.ru and the B2B service company KupiVIP E-commerce Services. The group has also launched a modeling agency and has backed Trusted Services, an online retail certification company.
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