The latest edition of Forbes Spain magazine published on its cover the 4 geniuses behind the Hawkers sunglasses brand, a company in which I am an executive and of which I am very proud. Hawkers generated a business model based on the strategy of creating an innovative and user-friendly market, thanks to the opportunities of digital transformation, which has revolutionized the fashion and accessories industry.
In the Forbes article (https://forbes.es/empresas/11061/hawkers-ya-es-historia-del-comercio-electronico-espanol/) it tells how this venture grew exponentially, highlighting figures that exceed any expectation in traditional e-commerce, becoming the reference model today for startups:
- More than 4.5 million sunglasses sold.
- Presence in 50 countries.
- 90% of sales are made through the internet, being profitable and shaking the pillars of the sector.
- From 300 to more than 100,000,000 million euros in turnover in just three years.
These figures have been achieved by leaving behind traditional strategies and betting on a global action plan that has revolutionized the sector. The industry, dominated by giants with years of experience and tradition, showed no innovation for a long time.
The big players in the market did not believe in the feasibility of Hawkers’ business model. Hawkers has taken advantage of the opportunities of inter-connectivity provided by current technologies to provide a new strategy to a market that had fallen behind.
Generally when someone goes to buy sunglasses they go to a store, check the recognized brands, compare prices and make their decision.
We broke all those paradigms, facilitating the creation of a new sales channel through the internet, something that had never been done in the sector before. Through our online store we offer a brand of glasses or lenses with design, class, quality and at an affordable price.
One of the keys to Hawkers’ success has been marketing, focused on the user, through social networks.
Social networks have served as: advertising tool to position the brand, a data collection tool to make key decisions, and a channel to do campaigns with influencers who dominate these platforms. Facebook recognizes us as the company with the best advertising performance in Europe, Middle East and Africa and on Twitter we have managed to break records of organic trending topics.
“Hawkers does not sell glasses, it sells Hawkers” We are a fresh, young, fun, rebellious and groundbreaking brand. We offer to live an experience and be part of a generation: the Hawkers generation. Two important references in the history of modern marketing are: Inditex, the parent company of Zara, and Swatch. The first created a designer clothing market, accessible and close to the consumer. Swatch was a revolution for the watch market. It is a Swiss product, of good quality, with a striking design and at a much lower price than any Swiss watch. This, from a modern point of view, is what we have done at Hawkers. We are even closer to the consumer; a «click» away, we facilitate the decision to purchase a brand of quality, great design and at a price that breaks with the tradition of buying sunglasses or glasses that normally cost at least 100 dollars or 100 euros.
At Hawkers, a young company, we have broken records, attracted attention on lists, won awards, and made the cover of Forbes in Spain. We are on the lips of analysts and experts in the area, because we simply succeed in doing something that had not been done before. We will continue to break paradigms to become the #1 brand in the market.