As a "global online destination for fashion-forward, free-thinking girls," Nasty Gal has gained a lot of recognition since their start in 2006. Their success has grown tremendously to cult-status through their online presence and internet marketing strategies; including Tumblr, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest accounts. Based in downtown Los Angeles for the last few years, the operation has grown significantly since the founder, Sophia Amoruso, originally sold vintage-only pieces off of E-Bay.
As a Nasty Gal fan for a few years now—I use the word "fan" loosely because I consider myself more of a victim – I immediately jumped out of my chair and told my roommates about their first mobile app that was launched in August. "You HAVE to download the Nasty Gal app…it's $15 off the first purchase!" Of course, I also immediately tweeted about it too. There are not too many retailers I would get THIS excited about creating a mobile app…but for anyone who is familiar with Nasty Gal, sharing an even faster and easier way to get the Nasty Gal fix is just apart of the addiction.
They have been able to track me down through e-mail, because I have been subscribed to them for a while and even recently flag e-mails to mark their sales. But, I did forget about them for a little while (to be honest) until I originally saw an ad on Facebook. I don't remember the last time I ever thought something on Facebook was cool to download or buy. Multiple boxes of orders shipped later…I wish I could forget about them again. But they are always updating their app with discounts and promotions, which largely features an all-new collection that was the culprit for this creation. You can shop and order directly from the app, which is no doubt very convenient...but you can also save an entire "closet" of options, as well as post desired items to the mass array of social media platforms they encompass. The check-out process is dangerously easy enough with the design off the app, but you can also browse through their lookbooks.
This is a hard offer to refuse for customers of Nasty Gal, since they have created a millennial- friendly culture within their brand through their transparent social media efforts that you can be apart of too. After my experience in LA two summers ago interning in the marketing and PR department at a luxury brand that was currently in the process of re-branding, it was interesting to see the creative online-tactics going on in the industry. It was rarely in-your-face, pushy, or necessarily even illustrating the infamous "elite" factor: but just adding content to this massive open forum for people who like to share common interests. Nasty Gal's fun, unique, sexy image of femininity leaves their target audience of women in their late teens to early 30's always wanting more of their products and promotions but also caters to a bigger picture of the road they've paved inside the fashion industry. Proudly apart of their target audience, their app re-vamped my interest in them and has also taken it to the next level with the way they've wedged into this niche market. I am not just buying their clothes, but also engaging in conversations and spreading awareness of their brand. And looking at their blog. And reading more and more about their company. Because that's what their target audience does…not necessarily limited to being only fashion or pop-culture or music obsessed – and that's why it works. Yet, sometimes the tech-savvy, smart-phone toting audience is overloaded with more of the same that it was a smart decision to use their mobile app to promote their new products and differentiate themselves as their own entity. Sophia Amoruso embraces that grabbing the attention of consumers often comes down to one small graphic thumbnail on a screen. The design and photography are very high-quality for an app; elements that Amoruso has found to be a very effective piece in the formula. In an interview from Style, she states : "Today, I liken everything to that thumbnail. Every small thing that we do should be a small presentation of the bigger picture. It should be really high-resolution. The DNA should be baked into everything."
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