mpetition from the likes of Adore Me, Karaca A.S., Kcal and Society Stores in being judged the best of the finalists in the young retail entrepreneur award. “I think what appealed to the judges in particular is the fact that we are offering something that is very different to the rest of the way that sportswear has traditionally been sold,” Stevanja told Inside Retail Weekly. “We certainly have approached a traditional category in a completely new way and I think that the sales and our traffic flow clearly show that customers love the way that we’ve approached this and it’s made Stylerunner an instant success.” The awards were adjudicated by a grand jury of judges comprised of global senior retailers including American Apparel chairman, Paul Charron; Shoes of Prey co-founder, Jodie Fox; and former Myer CEO and current head of Edcon, Australian Bernie Brookes. “On a personal note, it’s great to have the hard work of the last three and a half years recognised on a global scale at such a prestigious event, particularly on a forum which recognises some of the largest and most established retailers,” said Stevanja. Harnessing an entrepreneurial spirit is imperative towards driving success across all channels, with customer’s expectations now, ‘higher than ever’, according to Stevanja. “You need to be entrepreneurial to continually question the way things are done and the way you should be doing things in a new way to deliver the customer a better experience,” said Stevanja. “To really drive that kind of culture through every single department and allow every employee to think entrepreneurially and bring ideas to the table. And I think that’s part of what keeps Stylerunner fresh and current and on the top of customers minds. For Stylerunner, 2016 heralds a year of strategic planning for the future. Stevanja is negotiating with potential future investors while implementing the right resources to take the business to a whole new level. “We are looking at a number of upgrades to our mobile sites and in particular user experience upgrades to our website,” she said. “We think these will be new and innovative and we haven’t seen them done anywhere else – we’re working on quite a unique browsing experience on our site.” Bricks and mortar stores are also in the pipeline for the pure play online retailer, with a physical space on the retail Stevanja’s radar. “We are cognisant of it and [it’s] something that we would like to be able to do in the future,” said Stevanja. “We’re obviously hearing a lot about [omnichannel] and the ‘ultimate model for the customer’. And while we raise capital, its something that we would like to be able to do.” Stevanja said the three days at the World Retail Congress, held concurrently with the awards program, were invaluable for meeting and making connections with some of the largest most successful retailers around the world. “It was great to be able to network on that level from a young Australian start-up and hopefully it leads to some exciting partnerships for the future.” Access exclusive analysis, locked news and reports with Inside Retail Weekly. Subscribe today and get our premium print publication delivered to your door every week.