Inside Retail's Ecommerce Top 50 is an annual ranking of the most impressive and inspiring leaders in Australia's online retail industry. The 2024 report features C-level executives with decades of leadership experience, startup founders and digital specialists with a wide range of skills from marketing to logistics. It is available to download here. Over the past few months, we have shared in-depth profiles of this year's top 10, including:
Coming in at number four is Rob Land, founder and CEO of subscription underwear brand Knobby. We spoke to Rob about launching a new Facebook community, working to reduce textile waste, and the next wave of trends in e-commerce. Inside Retail: For those who are unfamiliar with Knobby, can you give us a quick rundown of what the company does and where it stands today? Rob Land: Knobby is a subscription underwear (and hosiery) brand that delivers new designs every month for men, women, and kids. The brand has cemented its position as Australia's longest-running subscription fashion brand. Knobby is a pioneer of bold, creative underwear, selling more than one pair per minute around the world. IR: Over the past year, you've been focused on reinvigorating the Knobby customer experience. Can you give us an example of an initiative you've launched and the impact it has had on your business? RR: We opened our first experimental retail store to understand how people interact with our products and receive real-time feedback. We used this space to strategically launch activations that drove traffic to our digital ecosystem, demonstrating growth in our database and revenue. For example, our Grinch photo activation [in December 2023] Over 500 photos were posted in three days, driving social engagement and brand sentiment. The launch of a new Facebook community led to a decrease in customer inquiries, and our commitment to fulfilling orders quickly means rush requests are dispatched within five minutes and all orders are fulfilled by the end of the business day. Our product team developed free surprise gifts for members and released our first-ever mobile game themed around the team's underwear designs. [in September 2023], attracting 10,000 unique players. IR: You have also launched a sub-brand called Flip Side Project to keep used underwear out of landfills. How is that going? And how do you plan your next steps in this space? RR: This project is that rare gem where every aspect feels just right. Flip Side Project revolves around breathing new life into old underwear. Through our Send-Back program, certain ranges that are not suitable for composting can be exchanged for fresh new underwear. We have an in-house textile shredder that breaks down used products to the required density. These shredded materials are stored in vacuum sealed bags and later mixed with resin and compressed into different shapes and sizes for different uses. The entire process was developed in collaboration with the University of the Sunshine Coast. The Send-Back program is expected to be available to the public later this year. IR: You have always been at the forefront of e-commerce trends, from adopting a subscription model in 2012 to more recently exploring circular design principles.What do you think is the next big change in e-commerce that people should expect? RR: Social commerce will continue to grow, and each platform will try to keep users within its ecosystem. But what I'm particularly interested in is the use of AI-generated models to showcase products. This has many benefits and allows brands to have more ownership and control over their usage. We've already started using this to complement real models, showing how the product styles will look on the body. For one photo shoot, we've reduced our costs by about 60%. We think we'll always need real models and creators, but this helps with quick turnarounds and smaller product releases. IR: What are Knobby's plans for 2024? RR: Our main focus is global expansion and the establishment of additional retail stores centered around the unique Knobby experience. Our new app gives customers a whole new brand experience, reducing friction and providing a fun way to engage with the community and the brand. We're launching an all-new underwear range for subscription, made from sustainably grown wood using a unique closed-loop system. IR: I know making Knobby a great place to work is really important to you. What changes are you making to keep your team happy, inspired and fulfilled? RR: By celebrating big and small victories with genuine passion. It's rarely boring here because we're always taking risks and dreaming big. I think the secret is being able to launch a brand new design every month. That's what keeps us moving forward at a fast pace. Of course, we have all the perks, but that's not our main driver. We want our workplace to be a place that feels like a second home for everyone. We have a great culture of doing things a little differently. Open communication, transparency, growth plans, but ultimately, we're all working towards one big common goal.
