http://www.MarbuOnline.com is the brainchild of Matthew Randall, a 28 year old from Warwickshire more interested in playing rugby than shopping for new clothes at the weekend. He started Marbu to answer a problem he’d found with online shopping: “In some items I’m a medium yet in others I’m an XL - there’s no consistency in sizes across brands. Coupled with this is that us men are inherently lazy with sending clothes back“. Indeed, with industry insiders claiming online return rates for casual wear in excess of 25% , the problem of not being able to physically try garments on is a major concern for online retailers and one which puts a lot of men off. “I set about creating a website that would allow men like me to order more confidently online, providing a unique application that would show the fit and look of a garment before they make their purchase”.
Creating a business to support such a website was not to be plain sailing though, especially in the midst of a recession. “I knew that finance would be hard to come by, but the actions of a certain high street bank almost left my dream in tatters. I had just committed to some premises and then the bank informed me that they would no longer be providing the necessary funding”. Luckily for Matthew, NCGE’s Make It Happen programme provided resources and advice. “The Sir Thomas White Loan Charity was a great find and it was refreshing to speak to people who wanted to listen to your business idea, not just pop the numbers into a computer and let it decide”.
With the opening of a ‘bricks-and-
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Online Menswear Retailer based in the UK. Stocking brands such as Duck & Cover, Drunknmunky, Fly53, Henleys, Junk Food, Zanerobe and Full Circle.
Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/





