UK Catalogues v US Catalogues (or should that be catalogs)

When it comes to retail and shopping, the US has always been seen as the world leader, the place where the consumer is King. But is that still the case, particularly when comparing UK catalogues with their US counterparts?

Shopping with a US catalogue such as JC Penny or Macys does undoubtedly have a certain level of excitement attached to it, the products you order somehow feel that bit more special because you know they have had to be shipped half way across the globe. Not to mention the fact that we’ve all seen they famous brands discussed in TV Shows such as Friends, so by shopping with these catalogues or department stores we perceive ourselves as being UK versions of Rachel or Monica. But is this really the case or are UK catalogues ready to take on the big US catalogues.

It’s true that in the past UK catalogues were not that sexy, they were all function and little excitement. They essentially revolved around the ability spread the cost of your purchases, that was their main selling point and they cared little for whether the products within the catalogue actually excited customers. In the US they have always known the importance of exciting the customer and now we in the UK have finally recognised its importance too.

All the major UK shopping catalogue groups have either launched sexy new catalogues that emphasise the high fashion and desirability of their clothing. Littlewoods launched very.co.uk and JD Williams launched Simply Be and Simply Yours. The UK realised that you could no longer expect customers to buy products simply because you allowed them to spread the cost, the Internet had blown this closed shop wide open, making catalogue companies have to try much harder to get our business.

Very have even enrolled the help of style icons such as Holly Willoughby and Fern Cotton to give their fashion ranges a boost of glamour and style. It is moves like this that has seen UK catalogues catch up with high street shops and become many womens preferred shopping destination.

So whilst 20 years ago you would have been quite right to say that US catalogues we streets ahead of UK catalogues, today the UK is leading the way meaning there is no longer any need to pay those expensive shipping costs to get your products delivered from the US.