With backgrounds in set design (Jessica took home an Emmy), and Public Relations (Michelle specialized in fine jewelry and watches). Jessica Cohen and Michelle Orman teamed up to place jewelry on the set of Sex and the City and founded Lup, parent company of the largely successful Luprocks.com.
What is Luprocks.com? Simple, it is a virtual showroom that connects designers to influential media. Nolcha picked the brains of the two entrepreneurs to see how independent designers can become involved.Nolcha: What is the mission behind luprocks.com?
Jessica Cohen & Michelle Orman: We wanted to give designers—from established to up-and-coming—the opportunity to play on an even playing field regarding media placements. By directly connecting these designers with media, we are allowing them the opportunity to forge and nurture relationships that will benefit their businesses, as well as helping them build a buzz about their brand and brand association with celebrities.
N: What are the benefits of a virtual showroom?
N: What are the benefits of a virtual showroom?
JC & MO: By going digital, LupRocks.com offers any-time access to media on the hunt for product for their productions or the pages of their magazines. Costume designers especially have to pull together entire wardrobes with very limited time and limited budgets, with this online resource they are able to browse at their leisure and the “Desperately Seeking” section allows them to post specific requests for their product call listings so that the designers can submit images for consideration. The media we work with love the ease of use and the “do-it-yourself” aspect of the online format.
N: How do you garner your talented designers?
N: How do you garner your talented designers?
JC & MO: We attend many trade shows, comb the pages of our favorite magazines and trade journals and shop in the far corners of the world to uncover the hottest designers. By getting these designers on our radar, we’re able to inform them about opportunities on the site which often times results in them signing up for the site.
N: You are starting to branch out from accessories to apparel, please tell me about that process?
N: You are starting to branch out from accessories to apparel, please tell me about that process?
JC & MO: We started specializing in the fine jewelry industry, and when we went online, expanding to accessories seemed a natural transition. A year or so after our launch, we were able to comprehend the high level of success our designers were having and realized that our target media audience was also often on the hunt for apparel, children’s clothing, beauty and home design. By branching into these other categories—everything with a heavy emphasis on “design”--we are able to become even a more “one-stop-shop” for media utilizing the site.
N: In a competitive marketplace where sales in stores are dropping by at least 2% why do you feel the on-line retail business is still surviving?
N: In a competitive marketplace where sales in stores are dropping by at least 2% why do you feel the on-line retail business is still surviving?
JC & MO: Online retail is still surviving mainly because of its ease of use. Shoppers are able to compare and contrast prices, which assuages any guilt about spending money unnecessarily, and now that basically everything is available with the click of a button, people don’t have to travel to Brooklyn, for example, to get their hands on a one-of-a-kind piece of handmade jewelry, but can order this online from the comfort of their own homes.
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