Express 2014 Annual Report Download - page 13

enhancements to our online customer experience making shopping easier for customers through features like
express checkout, showcasing our product with bold vibrant images that highlight our product features and
styling, and integrating social content to give customers greater confidence in their merchandise selections. We
have also made significant technology investments focused on mobile experiences, in response to our customers’
increasing time spent on such devices. We are focused on providing a high level of customer service and have
made our shipping and return policies more customer-friendly and competitive with the market.
We also continue to invest in our omni-channel capabilities, starting with features such-as in-store product
availability and enhancements to our mobile app companion shopping experiences that we plan to introduce in
2015. We expect these investments to increase site conversion rates and improve overall sales and margin
performance.
Competition
The specialty apparel retail market is highly competitive. We compete with other brick-and-mortar and e-
commerce retailers that engage in the retail sale of women’s and men’s apparel, accessories, and similar
merchandise. We compete on the basis of a combination of factors, including, among others, style, breadth,
quality, and price of merchandise offered, in-store and on-line experience, level of customer service, and brand
image. See “Competitive Strengths” for a description of how we believe we differentiate ourselves from our
competitors. Our future success will depend in substantial part on our ability to anticipate and respond quickly to
fashion trends, our ability to offer our customers the products they want, where and when they want them,
maintain the strength of the Express brand in the United States, and increase awareness of the Express brand
globally.
Marketing and Brand Building
We use a variety of marketing vehicles to increase customer traffic, sales, and build brand loyalty. These include
direct mail, advertising, e-mail communications, in-store promotions, and increased engagement with our
customers through online, social media and special event programs. We are also investing in highly targeted
marketing efforts, particularly those that employ social media, digital, and mobile tactics, and are focused on
providing increased content to our customers to strengthen the connection between the Express brand and our
target demographic.
In December 2013, we began operation of a 9,000 square foot LED screen, which is affixed to our new flagship
store in New York City’s Times Square. We believe this store, along with the LED screen, and our other flagship
store in San Francisco’s Union Square have generated additional brand awareness, particularly among
international tourists.
We have a tender-agnostic customer loyalty program, Express NEXT, that offers customers the opportunity to
earn rewards in conjunction with purchases of Express product and other engagement with the Express brand.
We believe the Express NEXT program encourages frequent store and website visits and promotes multiple-item
purchases, thereby cultivating customer loyalty to the Express brand. We also offer a private-label credit card
through an agreement with World Financial Network National Bank (“WFNNB”) under which WFNNB owns
the credit card accounts and Alliance Data Systems Corporation provides services to our private-label credit card
customers.
Technology
We use information technology to improve the customer experience, both in-store and on-line, and differentiate
ourselves from competitors. Our information technology systems provide a full range of business process support
and information to our store, merchandising, financial, and real estate teams. We utilize a combination of
customized and industry standard software systems to provide various functions related to point-of-sale,
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