Lovers of streetwear brands will soon have a place online to call their own, thanks to a new Richmond-based tech startup.
DropAlley.io, co-founded in May by Willis Lam, Steven Valdez, Matt Thomas and Joe Sadaka, focuses on innovating how fashion is released to the market using product launches directly from brands. The platform is essentially a pre-launch waitlist for brands' products that Valdez said will focus on meeting the online expectations of the customers in their primary market — Gen Z consumers looking for streetwear exclusives.
"The platform takes consumers on a journey through the pre-drop, during the brand drop and post-drop to create an efficiency that benefits the fans and the brands," he said.
Valdez said the team began working on validating the platform earlier this year, after seeing an emerging trend where brands began losing customers' trust and failed to keep them engaged with the products.
"These brands are challenged to remain connected to younger consumers... Especially today, when the brick-and-mortar experience is becoming less relevant," he said. "There's a need to find a way to attract, engage and share the story behind the product for this younger consumer segment."
"We're continuing to work on solving problems for our target brands and the fans of those brands," he added.
Valdez said the team decided not to rush the platform to market, instead working to ensure they have a validated product and correct market fit. DropAlley is slated for launch in Q4 of this year. The team has been able to bootstrap the startup's funding, and Valdez said DropAlley intends to look toward raising a seed round in early 2021.
"In the last three months, we've been on the edge of our seats as the online commerce landscape changes in front of us," he said. "It's our mission to be out in front of other major players innovating for Gen Z customers and the brands that serve them."