Online sales plus a smart boutique

Two years ago, sisters Louise and Sharna Darko started running a stall selling fashionable items at the Rooftop Market in Rosebank. About a year or so later, their stall gave birth to a store on Melville's 7th Avenue.

MSC Boutique - short for My Sister's Closet - fast became a favourite with Jozi's fashionistas, who flocked to the shop for trendy fashions.

The store also boasts celebrity clients such as 5FM's Poppy Ntshongwana and reality TV show star Mome Ngcobondwane, who now also stocks her own fashion collection at the shop.

Three years of milestones culminated into MSC Boutique moving to online shopping.

"We courier items to customers who can't get to the store or who live outside Joburg. Ordering through the site is hassle-free," Louise says, just a month after mscboutique.com's online debut.

According to research done by World Wide Worx, an Internet research firm, about six million South Africans have access to the Internet.

According to Google, only a fraction of them buy online. And those who do, tend to shop for electronics and entertainment.

When it comes to fashion, big players such as Zando and 36boutiques take up the small pool of online shoppers. But the Darkos are not daunted.

"We have had great initial excitement on our social networking platforms and we are now waiting for the returns in the form of orders," says Louise.

Source: Sowetan