Muslimah lifestyle products gain momentum

KUALA LUMPUR — The spike in mobile internet usage has boosted the growth of online shopping outlets on social media networks, and this trend is going to continue for a long time.

One important aspect of this trend is the rise in Islamic fashion, or some would rather call it Muslim fashion, where the Muslimah fashion segment has gained traction recently.

The launch of a new website this month, with a mission to provide support for underprivileged youth in Malaysia, captured some attention.

This website goes beyond the norm, offering a human interest angle, rather than just discounts or promotional offerings to garner support and bring sales to their online store.

The site is called goodhijab.com and it caters to Muslimah lifestyle brands, and products and it is driven by the aforesaid social mission.

It goes without saying that the site is attempting something new and laudable, but business is business on the internet and this put into question the viability of the business model.

Last year, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) polled 22,618 digital buyers globally, ages 18 and older, who has shopped online at least once over the past year.

Nearly half (45%) of the respondents said that reading reviews, comments and feedback on social media influenced their digital shopping behavior.

44% also said that receiving promotional offerings influenced their shopping behavior.

The launch of goodhijab.com by SE Good Product Sdn Bhd added another online shop to the long list of Muslimah fashion stores that has mushroomed in cyberspace lately.

It says it brings together local hijab brands, Muslimah lifestyle merchandises and consumers who share the same mission to help underprivileged youth, on a single platform in its shopping website.

There are numerous brands on the market selling headscarves or tudungs, with pricers ranging from RM10 to RM1,000 or even more. However, what is enticing about this new website is the fact that it offers an unmistaken human interest angle that could spark a new way of shopping for the Malaysian Muslimah.

To get more details on what they are really up to, Malay Mail spoke to a representative of goodhijab.com.

The directors were asked on their intent in using a human interest angle for their business model.

“Our business model is a social enterprise model — to have the heart of Mother Teresa and an entrepreneurial mind like Richard Branson. Normal business people always think of profit and loss (double bottom line) but for our business model, there’s triple bottom line; profit-loss-impact to people, economy and planet,” said Good Hijab co-founder and chief executive giver Radziah Mohd Radzi.

Radziah said Muslimah fashion in Malaysia is becoming part of the mainstream. It is a lucrative industry but intensely competitive.

Sometimes consumers shop without thinking, and Good Hijab wants to promote that a lifestyle where purchases matter to other people and make an impact in their lives too.

Radziah said: “We need to influence the prominent Muslimah fashion brands to join our mission who in turn can influence their followers.”

Radziah said sales are picking up and the model is working, since they collected RM1,458 for 12 collections during the website launch.

The company said as a social enterprise, Good Hijab offers various selections of Muslimah attire such as hijabs and also offers a Good Box section which contains Muslimah lifestyle products available on a subscription basis.

The group has a chief opportunities giver, co-founder Ratna Adnan, who told Malay Mail that saying Good Hijab as a social enterprise is absolutely not a catch phrase.

“Our business model is driven to achieve the triple bottom line, as Radziah has explained,” he said.

Ratna said what the company have discovered is that many people, including its consumers are not really aware of the social impact driven business that we have.

“So, it is a challenge for us. What we are trying to do now is to educate the public through visual aid communications as well as by talking to media.

“We believe people will take notice and if not all, some would feel the responsibility to adopt to ‘shop with a cause’.

“This is an on-going effort of Good Hijab,” he said.

This story appeared in Malay Mail printed version on Sept 14