The Iconic is reshaping the eCommerce industry and earning millions a month in the process. Since its launch in 2011, the Australian online fashion retailer has positioned itself as an innovator — an approach that has been serving them well.

The brand started as an idea birthed from four friends’ brainstorming sessions at inner-city Sydney picnic tables. In just 10 years, The Iconic is now a well-established giant in its own right, attracting more than ten million visitors to its platforms every month.

But The Iconic’s success goes beyond consistently living up to promises of three-day deliveries, free returns, and vast assortments of merchandise.

With its ability to think outside the box, drive to innovate, and use of industry and customer insights, The Iconic has consistently broken new ground and waded through volatile markets with its head well above water.

This presents the question: How was The Iconic able to explore their options and experiment with resources successfully? We believe luck had a small but significant part to play.

The Iconic — being based in Sydney, Australia — was able to maximise on these three readily available local resources that are not easily accessible anywhere else:

1. A Great Environment for Market Research

Australia is an exceptionally diverse country rich in highly liquid populations, making it the perfect environment for market research. Many companies, including The Iconic, rely on these market insights to better understand their customers.

This is why The Iconic has data analytics intrinsically woven into its marketing and merchandising strategies. The Australian brand does not leave anything to chance. The majority of their decision-making relies solely on what the data tells them about their customers, internal shareholders, marketing, and operations.

This allows The Iconic to fully grasp what needs to be done when it comes to delivering on their bottom line.

2. A Landscape that Leverages Technology

Australia has recognised that digital technologies are disrupting the way the world works in the most efficient ways

. For the country to compete in the rapidly emerging global economy, they have to keep leveraging technology.

This was the main influence that drove The Iconic’s founders to do business the way they do — brainstorm, research, create, implement, then innovate. Aussies love to shop online, but online shopping platforms are nothing new. Yet, The Iconic found a way to stand out.

By exploring the efficiency of delivery drones, taking advantage of augmented reality, and using data analytics to help both their customers and their company in making better purchasing and strategy decisions, The Iconic has upped the ante for other online retailers not just in Australia but also around the world.

3. A Savvy Population that Expects a Variety of Options and Experiences

Australia prides itself on having quite the fashionable-forward populace with rising rates of disposable income. With over 1,000 brands and 60,000 items under one roof, The Iconic is pushed to live up to their markets’ expectations and shows them that they do not like to mess around when it comes to serving options.

Another promise The Iconic makes good on is creating a seamless, more personalised shopping experience for every customer. Equipped with the technology and industry know-how, The Iconic persistently sought to cater to consumer demands by integrating the human touch of an in-store shopping experience into its application using documented customer preferences — much like how a salesperson would assist regulars at brick-and-mortar stores.

Now, the lingering question many online shoppers ask remains: How will this purchase look on me?

This sparked The Iconic’s most exciting addition to their platform yet: Visualise — a 360-degree sneaker try-on application that leverages augmented reality and allows for a more personalised shopping experience. Customers get to try it for shoe purchases for now, but it won’t be surprising if The Iconic comes up with one for apparel in the near future.

The Iconic, with its ability to think outside the box and leverage readily available resources, has made an indelible mark on Australia’s online retailer industry.

Thanks to Australia’s market research-friendly population, proclivity to technology, and highly scrupulous markets, The Iconic was able to raise the stakes even higher for themselves — paving the way for an exciting future where most, if not all, other online retailers will follow suit.

This article is the fourth instalment to our “Why Australia has the Right Mix for Business Growth” series, where we explore the uniquely Australian factors that contributed to the success of The Iconic and other global scale-ups like AfterPay, Atlassian, Canva, Prospa, and Sendle.

Tune in next time as we break down how Prospa disrupted the business loans and funding industry in Australia.