Introducing Not selling liquid, an Amsterdam-based e-commerce agency and recent partner of CIFF. This is the first time that an agency and tradeshow are joining forces and with their extensive fashion knowledge, NSL will be bringing a lot to our table. We sat down with their Creative Director, Len Koster, to get to know our new partners and their unique perspectives on the e-commerce fashion world.
Tell us a bit about Not selling liquid and your role in the team.
We’re an e-commerce agency that focuses (almost) exclusively on fashion brands. We help clients with everything related to their online store – from web design and development to site operations and webshop management to advertising and data analysis – which we call the Build, Manage, and Grow pillars. As Creative Director, I have two key responsibilities. One is managing the creative team and part of the business; I oversee all the development and (re)design projects for all of our clients. The second is growing and establishing Not selling liquid as a brand within the industry, by initiating partnerships like this one and creating an identity that shows who we are.
“Not selling liquid” is a quirky name. Can you tell us the story behind it?
It’s a direct spin-off to how you work with Shopify, since “liquid” is the coding language of the platform. Most e-commerce agencies (only) do design and development, but since our service offer is far more extensive, it’s a bit of a cheeky pun. For people who work in our industry, they’ll get it and smile. For those who don’t, they’ll almost always ask, so it’s a good conversation starter.
What makes Not selling liquid stand out from other e-commerce agencies?
We’re a fashion agency working in the e-commerce world, with an intrinsic love for and interest in the fashion industry. Our team is built up of people who have worked brand-side or in retail, so they understand what the clients need without needing to be told, and have the expertise to do it. This makes collaboration far smoother and more trusting. Visiting fashion weeks, brand showrooms, and the personal relationships we have with brands further deepen our unique stance. We live true to our brand philosophy; “e-commerce is our language, fashion is our culture.”
As a leader in the field, what do you experience as the current challenges in the fashion industry? And what trends or innovations do you see shaping the fashion e-commerce landscape in the coming years?
After the exponential growth of e-commerce during COVID-19, many brands – and the industry as a whole – are facing a challenging time. Online can be the most important revenue stream for brands, but without a developed strategy, they don’t know how to utilise it. For brands that already have an online presence, how do they continue their growth? And brands that didn’t switch to online during that time now need to catch up, but how? All of our clients fall into one of the two camps, so we work with them to get the growth they want (and need).
The future of online is very focused on the customer journey. Brands need to understand who their customer is to know how to reach them directly, from harnessing the available data to honing in on how to add long-term value to their lives to keep them coming back. Clients can shop your brand (and other brands) at multiple places, so give them a reason to shop with you directly.
It’s pretty special that a digital agency is partnering with a tradeshow. How did it come to be?
In line with our philosophy, we like to take an active role in the fashion industry. We’ve already led several activations at Paris Fashion Week over the years, so it felt like a natural (and exciting) next step to take part at CIFF too. On a personal level, I’ve been a visitor of the tradeshow for over 10 years as I used to own a store myself (Afura, Amsterdam). I was already familiar with the organizers and thought that the collaboration could be a win-win situation for both parties, so I initiated the conversation.
Can you share your vision for how this collaboration will elevate the online presence of CIFF brands?
It’s a difficult time for brands who don’t know how to show up online so we’ll bring our expertise to help boost their online presence and D2C sales through our Build, Manage, and Grow pillars. We like working with purpose-driven brands, many of which will be at CIFF, and are committed to giving them the guidance they need to succeed.
We’re curious to see you at the next edition in January. What can brands expect when running into you at CIFF?
The industry can sometimes feel impersonal, so we really want to be in spaces where real-life conversations can take place and focus on human interaction. This can be in the form of a casual coffee or taking part in an expert panel, we’ll see how it goes!
Not selling liquid will be present from the next edition of CIFF in January. If you are interested in their services, use our partner sign-up form to book some time with them: Go to partnership form
