Sophie Merritt

History of Burberry

Burberry is a luxury British fashion house established in 1856 by Thomas Burberry. Not only does it manufacture clothing, but also fragrances and fashion accessories. Burberry’s distinctive check pattern is one of the most widely copied trademarks in the world.

The first Burberry store was opened in Basingstoke in 1856, and by 1870 had established itself by focusing on the development of outdoor attire. The brand is most well known for the creation of the trench coat primarily for the First World War, which became extremely popular after this. The iconic Burberry check was soon placed in the lining of the garments and sold more widely. Not only this, but the brand have also been the outfitters for explorers such as Roald Amundsen, Ernest Shackleton and George Mallory, as well as designing aviation garments and sponsoring the fastest flight to Cape Town from London in 1937.

History of BurberryBurberry was an independent company until 1955 when it was taken over by Great Universal Stores (GUS). In the 70s the brand was strongly associated with football firms, hooliganism and later the ‘chav’ stereotype. Fake garments with the distinctive check printed on the outside were sold to the masses, giving the impression that Burberry was no longer exclusive and took away its high desirability. Since then the brand has tried to reinvent itself, with advertisements in a range of different magazines (i.e. GQ, Esquire, Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, etc.), and by using celebrity endorsements from Kate Moss, Agyness Deyn, Emma Watson, Rosie Huntington-Whitely and many more.

Burberry operates under 4 different brands – Burberry Prorsum, Burberry London, Burberry Brit and Burberry Sport, with 2 regional brands recently added (Burberry Black Label and Burberry Blue Label).

Brand ValuesBurberry has always been devoted to providing high quality, long lasting garments for their customers, especially when it was first established and creating outdoors attire for various explorers. Their use of gabardine (a hardwearing, water-resistant fabric) demonstrates this, and their intent to protect their customers and ensure that they have the best quality items. When the brand first began it was also regarded as very gentlemanly, which is still the case today.

In more recent times Burberry has been seen as very classic, chic and high-end. In the 70s when the brand’s unfortunate link with football hooliganism began, their name gained a negative connotation and their customers no longer wanted to be associated with them. In 2006 when Chief Executive Rose Marie Bravo retired and Angela Ahrendts took over the company, the check was placed back on the inside of the garments and British celebrity endorsement helped gain a positive view once again.Burberry value:• High quality• Desirability• Class• Exclusivity• Trust• Charity• Innocence• Devotion• Success

Brand Values

Brand Values

Brand Values: ‘The Foundation’

Brand Values: ‘The Foundation’

Brand Values: ‘The Foundation’

Product Life CycleThe Product Life Cycle is based upon the biological life cycle and is made up of 4 steps: introduction, growth, maturity and decline. However, the product life cycle of a brand such as Burberry is different – instead of Burberry’s products declining completely and people losing interest, they constantly develop their garments to keep a firm grip on their customers.

New lines are always added – different ranges for each season appear, and have new celebrity endorsements each time. This is the development stage of the product life cycle and is what helps maintain Burberry’s success. Not only this, but classic brands like Burberry will always be around; there will always be a demand for high-end fashion and that feeling of exclusivity. Customers will even fight to purchase older stock in the sale, just to get that buzz of buying from a designer. Even older Burberry items are sought after, which proves that the brand wont just decline like an ordinary item on the market (i.e. smart phones).

Target AudienceDespite originally being designed for men, Burberry has a female dominated target audience; they would also have a high disposable income. They are most likely to be around 26 years old and over, with a good career and no children. However, the brand also have their own childrenswear range which means that they may appeal to some parents, although these will probably be more successful business people and those from wealthy backgrounds.

Burberry’s main garments such as coats and dresses have an extremely exclusive and high-end appeal. These would appeal mainly to celebrities and very wealthy customers. Next there are items such as bags and shoes – despite still being very expensive, they are more accessible and affordable than the other garments, which broadens the brand’s target audience. As well as this, the Burberry fragrances are very much in ordinary people’s price range, meaning that the brand does appeal to everyone in some way.

Pricing Strategy

Burberry use competition pricing – the brand price their goods at a similar price to its competitors. For instance, it has a similar price range to other big labels such as Louis Vuitton. This gives a psychological effect on Burberry’s customers; if the brand had a lower price range then they may believe the quality isn’t as good as the competitors.

If Burberry began lowering its prices it may leave people wondering why; if something had happened to make it lose its value. Despite it being extremely expensive, the exclusivity and high-end feel of buying something from a designer such as Burberry is what people are after. The pricing suggests quality and desirability, which is what its customers are after.

Marketing & PR Strategy

Burberry use more of a viral marketing approach – it is not often that you see TV advertisements or billboards promoting the brand, yet there are always banners on fashion websites (as well as print advertisements in the same magazines) which advertise Burberry.

As well as this, the brand appear at fashion weeks around the world without fail, and also host their own shows to showcase new lines. This means that they are always in the press (whether that be fashion magazines, newspapers, blogs, etc.) and therefore have constant coverage.

Burberry rely hugely on celebrity endorsements, and they helped the brand win back their reputation after their downfall during 1970-2000s. Faces such as Kate Moss, Agyness Deyn and Rosie Huntington-Whitely keep the brand fresh and appealing.

Place/DistributionBurberry own 475 stores in 48 countries, which are all located in largely populated cities where they will gain most custom. For instance, there are eleven stores in London alone. These are ideal locations due to the type of people that populate the areas; a huge number of them fall into Burberry’s target audience.

By opening stores in wealthy cities, especially those which are huge tourist attractions, Burberry have the opportunity to make more profit and appeal to the right audience. If there were stores in smaller, less wealthy cities, they would probably not get as much custom, and the brand may also lose its sense of exclusivity and expense. The distribution of stores is very much psychological, and gives people all the right impressions of the brand.

Successes/Failures

Burberry’s management has made smart decisions in investing in revamping its brand as well as expanding it. The company recently purchased its licensed stores in China to operate directly and further expand in the fastest growing luxury market in the world. As well as this, the idea to feature all its lines under one store concept instead of separating the different lines has helped its success.

In 2012 Burberry was the first brand to hit 10 million likes on Facebook, and still remains the most liked brand on the social networking site. It has excelled in the past 3 years, despite all its troubles at the turn of the century, after its association with football hooliganism and chavs from 1970 onwards.

When the brand was strongly associated with the British casual cult, football firms and violence, it saw a huge loss in profit and custom. In 2006 when new CEO Angela Ahrendts stepped in, the company was rebranded entirely which kick started its success story once more.

SWOTStrengths:

• Well established brand• High price point causing

high desirability• Strong celebrity

endorsements• Distinctive check –

instantly recognisable

Weaknesses:

• Damaged name after football hooliganism and association with ‘chavs’

• Not accessible to the working class/those who aren’t as wealthy – could also be seen as a strength (exclusivity)

Opportunities:

• Could open more stores worldwide to broader range of cities

• Could cater for a wider age range (i.e. selling more products such as fragrances which are more accessible)

• Sponsor more events• More celebrity

endorsements• Host more Burberry shows

in different cities

Threats:

• Competition from other big brands (i.e. Louis Vuitton)

• Threat of still being associated with violence/hooliganism – name still has negative connotations

• Not enough stores in smaller cities