Prospecting: Jessica London Launches Fashion Blog to Broaden Audience

Jessica London, a cross-channel retailer of apparel for plus-size women in the Redcats USA OneStopPlus.com division, launched a fashion blog in late January called PlusSizesDresses.com. Created to engage and interact with curvy women who love fashion and are looking for dresses that "fit and flatter" their figures, the blog offers fashion tips and insight on all things related to plus-size dresses in a fun and engaging manner.

The launch of a fashion blog is just the latest effort from Jessica London as it tries to rebrand its image to appeal to a broader audience. Plans are in the works for a Jessica London Facebook storefront as well.

"Jessica London customers are embracing social media, so we're continuing to look for new platforms to make connecting with us easy and convenient for them," says John Mallon, vice president/general brand manager for Jessica London. "We already have thousands of fans and followers on our Jessica London Facebook and Twitter pages, so our dress blog was just another step to further the interaction with our customers."

In addition to consumer engagement and branding, there's an e-commerce aspect to PlusSizesDresses.com. Visitors to the blog will find a "Choose Your Dress" tab on the top-line navigation that allows them to shop for cocktail, casual, wear to work, maxi, special occasion and sale dresses. Upon clicking on any of these subcategories, shoppers are taken to Jessica London's e-commerce site to continue the shopping experience. With over 10,000 visitors to PlusSizesDresses.com since its launch, the blog has helped drive double-digit web growth for Jessica London.

"The prospecting value of PlusSizesDresses.com is that it provides a way for us to highlight and share key fashion categories with customers and potential customers — in this case, our expertise in plus-size dresses," says Mallon. "In addition, PlusSizesDresses.com helps drive new visitors and potential customers to our brand website."