85. Bijou Commerce

Founder: Olly Cooper
Founded: January 2015 (Launched January 2016)
Website: www.bijoucommerce.com

Having a valid e-commerce arm is vital in today’s fashion market – but while over half of all UK retail spend is performed through mobile and an estimated 85% of consumers prefer mobile native apps, just 2.3% of retailers believe their business is optimised for e-commerce.

Bijou Commerce is a business-to-business (B2B) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform that builds native mobile apps specifically for fashion brands. The company’s clients enter two-year contracts, from which Bijou receives a development charge, a monthly service charge and a performance-based bonus dependent on the increase in conversion rate delivered. To date, Bijou has worked with 15 companies across the UK fashion and beauty space with a further 300 planned for throughout 2016.

In March this year, the company raised a £2m funding round, enabling it to make its platform code open so clients could use the software to build new apps and features specifically for their most loyal customers. Bijou hopes to work closely with these clients as they continue to innovate, using machine learning to create a more personalised service. The next 12 months could also see the business begin to explore new opportunities, helping local UK retailers and UK brands launch into new markets.