An italian online fashion retailer is giving fashion houses like Prada and Ferragamo a run for their money as online shopping continues to boom.
The Bologna based fashion e-shop Yoox, has decided to float on the Italian Bourse by Christmas. But fashion giants Prada and Ferragamo have recorded some of the worst results ever this year.
As a result they have to wait until at least the first half of 2010 for trading to get better and use the better figures to attract potential sharebuyers.
Yoox sells top fashion clothes and accessories and also runs online retail sites for designers, including Emporio Armani and Valentino.
Brokers attribute Yoox's success to its different business model. Unlike Prada, it has low operating costs thanks to cheaper production and retail operations.
And so online retailers like Yoox have resisted the spending slump, taking the lead ahead of bricks-and-mortar companies. 