Why This Online Clothing Company Started Sharing Its Profits With Brick-and-Mortar StoresTo calm the nerves of traditional shops and department stores (and grow their customer base), Ledbury made a drastic offering.

When the online-only men's apparel brandLedburylaunched in 2009, it was like many online-only brands: It offered high-quality products at acompetitive price, because it cut out the retail middleman. But then something unexpected happened. "People were walking into department stores and menswear stores asking for Ledbury shirts," says Paul Trible, co-founder and CEO of Ledbury. And somebrick-and-mortarretailers wanted to carry the brand.

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