With the plethora of emails I receive on a daily basis, I never paid much attention to my invitations to Zulily. The concept was strange to me. Why did I need to be invited to shop this website with the obscure name? What are events? It all seemed a bit peculiar and quite frankly a bit too complicated for my busy lifestyle. I work full time, am enrolled in grad school, and I have an active family. I want – I need – shopping to be easy and Zulily seemed to make me think too hard.
These Boots Were Made For Walking … Eventually
After some time the frequent emails and attractive deals got the better of me and I took the plunge and bought some boots. But, satisfaction (and the fundamentals of Zulily’s business model) still eluded me as it seemed to take a L-O-N-G time for those boots to arrive on my doorstep. What I didn’t fully realize and what you may not know if you haven’t shopped Zulily before is that they don’t run a storage warehouse. For their flow through business, they don’t place a bulk order for something until its event (otherwise known as sale) ends and they know how many people have ordered it. Then they receive in the merchandise, process it for shipping, and send it on its merry way. From a business sense it is a very interesting concept, but frustrating for someone who wants to wear her new boots right away!
In Through The App Door
After that lackluster experience with my boots, I wasn’t sure I was sold on Zulily. My opinion changed along with the balance on my credit card the day I downloaded the Zulily app on my iPad. Now THIS was the easy shopping I was waiting for! While I still have to wait longer than industry standard to receive my shipments, everything else was so easy and so alluring that I don’t think I ever made it to the mall this holiday season. Just what makes the Zulily app so smart?
Let’s Start From The Very Beginning
In the beginning there were the emails, inviting me to shop, reminding me to shop, and sharing sweet deals. After I downloaded the app, I still receive the emails, but in addition my iPad and iPhone send me the friendly little *ding* reminding me that it’s time to shop Zulily. As someone who lives by my Outlook message reminders telling me where to be at what time, this simple little audible and visual reminder is embedded into my psyche as a necessary task rather than an email I can overlook. Then once I’ve opened the app, 
it is very easy to navigate the events that are available on that particular day. If I’m tempted enough to add an item to my cart, the app has already stored all of my billing and shipping information so I don’t have to enter it again. Lastly, once I’ve made the commitment for one item I’m informed that I can continue shopping on that same order until midnight and only pay one shipping fee. Easy peasy lemon squeezy and all I have to do is wait for the packages to arrive.
The Price of Convenience? About $5 Billion
While there is certainly more to Zulily than its app, providing an easy to use mobile commerce site absolutely helped push Zulily into a very successful IPO last November 
where they raised about $140 million for a current market value of about $5 billion. They also announced plans earlier this year for a new fulfillment center, double in size of their current Nevada facility. Bringing shopping to the busy consumer in an interesting, and easy to navigate way certainly converted me. Oops, gotta go, it’s time to shop Zulily!
Want to learn more about Zulily? Check out these links and let me know what you think!
http://www.zulily.com/?ref=logo&ns=ns_801397681|1392606460506
http://investor.zulily.com/releasedetail.cfm?releaseid=798231
http://www.geekwire.com/2014/fast-growing-zulily-inks-lease-huge-fulfillment-center-48-acres-nevada/
http://www.babble.com/mom/top-50-iphone-apps-for-moms/shopping-zulily/
http://www.forbes.com/sites/katieroof/2013/10/08/zulily-reveals-ipo-plans/
Peaceful Blossoms 
Great post! I have actually never heard of Zulily but your link on BB with the blog post title really intrigued to find out more about your post! So my question is, why Zulily? Are the “sweet deals” really that good that you are willing to wait until they sell out of the product and then ship? Wouldn’t it be more convenient to just purchase it (or something similar) on Amazon, eBay, or somewhere else where you could have your product shipped quickly?
Thanks for commenting! If I am shopping online for a specific item – an electronic device, a book, a piece of music – I would definitely turn to someplace like Amazon or to the brand themselves. What I like about Zulily is that it’s like a virtual trip to the mall. I’m not in need of anything specific but I browse what Zulily has to offer on any given day much like you might window shop, turning in if something appeals to you.
Carolyn,
Very nice post. I had never heard of Zulily before. I have to agree with your comment though. If you are looking for something specific, it seems as if the traditional stores are the way to go. I like their concept and I will look further into it, but just form your description, it seems that you have to be willing/ ready to wait for your merchandise. On the other hand, if you get a nice product at an affordable price, it may be worth the wait…
//P
Carolyn,
Your post explained so many of the questions I have had when I see Zulily pop up on the side bar of my webpage. I like that it is like a virtual trip to the mall in the palm of your hand. I would definitely need to work on my patience before ordering, but sometimes the best things are worth waiting for right?
Great post! – Meredith
Thanks Meredith – I agree I’ve found that now that I understand the process I don’t mind the wait! 🙂
First off, I want to say great headline! The title of your blog post made me smile and it is what intrigued me to check out what your blog was about this week! I too, have become accustom to the great Zulily and their interesting marketing ploys/techniques. I did download the app on my phone but quickly got annoyed with the fact that I could not see everything like I could in my email so I still check the emails daily to see what they may have to offer me that day. I have only ordered from them once and my wait actually was not that long but I know it could have been much longer based on their shipping schedule. Good luck with your shopping 🙂
Thank you for your feedback Bobbi! I haven’t ordered anything lately, but I do look daily 🙂