Since January 2024, the internationally renowned fashion brand FRAAS has also been offering its growing range of textile accessories for all weather conditions in Switzerland and is celebrating its first successes with its marketplace strategy.
MS Direct has supported the company with its market entry and is taking care of all fulfillment and returns processes in Switzerland.
Ferdinand Hess, Marketplace Manager E-Commerce at FRAAS, explains how the cooperation came about.
Ferdinand, what challenges did you face when you joined MS Direct?
Our aim was to find a partner with whom we could also open up markets in Europe that are not part of the EU. As an EU company, it is not so easy to find a good and uncomplicated solution for supplying Switzerland. All the customs formalities are a very complex story. That’s why we looked around for a partner to support us in this project and finally came across MS Direct.
What were your most important requirements for a partner?
As a supplier of quality products, we naturally had a number of requirements for a Logisik partner. On the one hand, our range is constantly growing and we now offer much more than just scarves and shawls. On the other hand, our product range is seasonal. Scalability in the warehouse and in logistics – even at peak times – was a key criterion for us. It was also important to us that our items are handled with the same care as they are at our headquarters in Wüstenselbitz.
According to our strategy, we primarily target online marketplaces as a sales channel for sales in Switzerland. These have their own requirements in terms of the reliability and speed of shipping as well as returns processing. And as we are active in the fashion sector, returns are a particular challenge. In MS Direct, we have found a partner that meets all our requirements and has advised us transparently and on an equal footing right from the start.
«At MS Direct, we had the feeling right from the start that they understood us and were motivated to find the best possible solution. The relaxed and open dialogue as well as the short response times have characterised the collaboration right from the start. We are more than satisfied with their services and will be able to exploit the full potential of the Swiss market thanks to the reliable fulfilment solution.»
Ferdinand Hess, Marketplace-Manager E-Commerce, Fraas
Why did you opt for the current MS Direct solution?
For us, a local fulfillment solution was the more exciting option than cross-border shipping, as it would relieve the burden on our own logistics and ensure a faster goods cycle for returns. During our discussions, we discovered that MS Direct has a similar logistics set-up to ours at our headquarters. We were therefore confident that their fulfillment solution could reliably meet the marketplace SLA.
At the same time, the connection to their system through our joint partner Tradebyte was very easy and we now benefit from real-time data on our stock levels and order status.
The returns solution from MS Direct has also convinced us. As is usual in the fashion sector, we have a high returns rate as a result of variant purchases. By processing returns on site, MS Direct ensures that our items are back in our warehouse ready for sale as quickly as possible.
Finally, the transparent and detailed breakdown of their cost structure, which largely consists of variable factors, helped us to accurately evaluate our options with MS Direct.
How has the MS Direct solution helped you?
Thanks to MS Direct, we have been able to successfully serve the Swiss market via Zalando.ch since the beginning of 2024. As the first few months have shown us, our products are also very popular in this country. We can build on this in the future.
What are the next steps you are planning with MS Direct?
Following this encouraging start, we are aiming to offer our products on other online marketplaces. Thanks to our reliable partnership with MS Direct, we know that this will be straightforward to implement and that we will be able to exploit the full potential of the Swiss market.
About FRAAS
FRAAS is a textile manufacturer founded in 1880 and headquartered in Wüstenselbitz, Germany, which is known for its high-quality scarves and shawls. Today, the traditional company operates internationally and is managed by the 5th generation of the family. The range has developed steadily over the years and includes various fashion accessories for men and women. FRAAS holds the licence to produce scarves and headwear for the men’s brand bugatti and will also take over the German hat brand Loevenich by 2025. FRAAS produces around six million scarves per year.