professional thesis %22how to sell contemporary brands?%22 - laura hargreaves

LauraHargreaves SMIB2015

PROFESSIONALTHESIS“SELLINGCONTEMPORARYFASHIONINWESTERNEUROPETODAY:WHOLESALE,RETAILANDONLINERETAILING?”

ConfrontationoftheexampleofMarcJacobswithacustomerstudy

LauraHARGREAVES ESSECBusinessSchool SMIB2015

Howtosellcontemporarybrands? 2

TABLEOFCONTENT

TABLEOFCONTENT...............................................................................................................................2

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT...........................................................................................................................4

ABSTRACT.............................................................................................................................................5

INTRODUCTION.....................................................................................................................................8

WHATISFASHION?...............................................................................................................................9

1. DEFINITIONANDHISTORYOFFASHION....................................................................................................9

2. VALUECHAINANDSUPPLYCHAINOFTHEFASHIONINDUSTRY....................................................................10

3. THEFASHIONINDUSTRY:CURRENTSTATEOFTHEMARKET-FOCUSONTHEEUROPEANMARKET........................11

4. STRUCTUREOFTHEMARKET–FASHIONBRANDSCATEGORIES.....................................................................12

5. WHATISAFASHIONBRAND?..............................................................................................................14

A. WHATISABRAND?...................................................................................................................................14

B. WHATISBRANDINGANDWHYISITIMPORTANTINFASHION?...........................................................................16

AFOCUSONCONTEMPORARYBRAND,BETWEENLUXURYANDPROXIMITY.......................................18

1. DEFINITIONOFLUXURY......................................................................................................................18

2. HOWDOESITWORK?........................................................................................................................20

3. CONTEMPORARYFASHION..................................................................................................................23

A. WHATISACONTEMPORARYBRAND?...........................................................................................................23

B. THEMARKETOFCONTEMPORARYBRANDS...................................................................................................28

C. THECURRENTSITUATIONANDCHALLENGESFORCONTEMPORARYBRANDS........................................................32

MARCJACOBS.....................................................................................................................................36

1. THEDESIGNER..................................................................................................................................36

2. THEBRANDINTHERECENTYEARS.........................................................................................................36

DISTRIBUTINGFASHION......................................................................................................................39

1. DEFINITIONOFDISTRIBUTION..............................................................................................................39

2. WHYISDISTRIBUTIONSUCHACHALLENGEFORCONTEMPORARYBRANDS?....................................................41

A. THEENDOFWHOLESALE–FUTUREISRETAIL................................................................................................43

B. BUTREALLY?............................................................................................................................................48

C. TOWARDSANOPTIMALSOLUTION...............................................................................................................53



CONCLUSION.......................................................................................................................................71

TABLEOFILLUSTRATIONS....................................................................................................................72

FIGURES................................................................................................................................................72

TABLES..................................................................................................................................................73

BIBLIOGRAPHY....................................................................................................................................74

APPENDIX............................................................................................................................................78

CUSTOMERSSURVEY................................................................................................................................78

A. QUESTIONS.............................................................................................................................................78

B. RESULTS..................................................................................................................................................83

INTERVIEWS...........................................................................................................................................92



ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

IwouldfirstliketothankmythesisadvisorProfessorAnne-FloreMAMANLARRAUFIE,AcademicDirectorof

theStrategyandManagementof InternationalBusinessAdvancedMaster andProfessor at ESSECBusiness

Schoolforkeepingmeontrackandgettingthebestoutofthisthesis.

IwouldalsoliketoacknowledgeClémenceNEUKIRCH,RetailMerchandisingDirector,MyriamBENNANIand

AliénorWESTPHALEN, RetailMerchandisers andFaustine LABATUT andMarionFOY, RetailMerchandising

internsforwelcomingmeintheRetailMerchteam.

IamextremlythankfultoallthepeoplewhoacceptedtobeinterviewedattheMarcJacobsheadoffice:

- HélèneRYMER,AreaManagerforUKandScandinavia

- CarineHANVIC,RetailOperationsManager

- AlricBROWNE,VisualMerchandisingManager

- GiuliaGASPARINI,AccountExecutive

- GiacomoDIFRANCESCA,SeniorVisualMerchandisingManager

- JacquesDESBUISSON,MarcJacobs’sPRManager

- AliénorWESTPHALEN,RetailMerchandiser

Thankyouforsharingyourexpertiseandyourgreatinsightsandvaluableguidance.

I am also grateful to the sales teams who supported me throught this venture. Thank you Pierre-Hubert

MOUTON, Printemps DepartmentManager, Lin-Baptiste ZHANG, Galeries Lafayette DepartmentManager

and Hugo OUALID, Galeries Lafayette Department Assistant Manager for taking the time to answer my

questionsandshareyourvision.Moregenerallyspeaking,IwouldliketothankthewholeGaleriesLafayette

teamfortheirhelpandgenuineattention,foralwaysbeingsowelcomingandfriendly:theyhavebeengreat

assetstothisthesis.

Finally, this accomplishment would not have been possible without everyone involved in the field survey,

especiallytheMarcJacobsinternteam,whoofferedsupportandspreadthesurveytotheiracquaintances.

Withouttheirparticipationandinput,thesurveycouldnothavebeensuccessfullyconducted.

Ialsoplaceonrecord,mysenseofgratitudetooneandall,whodirectlyorindirectly,havelenttheirhandin

thisventure.



ABSTRACT

AccordingtotheCollinsDictionary,Fashionisa“styleinclothes,cosmetics,behaviour,etc,especiallythelatestor

mostadmiredstyle,amannerofperformance,awayoflifethatrevolvesaroundtheactivities,dress,interests,etc,

thataremostfashionable”.Butmostofall,fashiontrendsarerootedinbiggertrendsthatcanbesocial,economic,

societal, and it has been from Roman ages to modern times. In 2015, the European clothing industry alone

representeda169-billion-eurointernational,diversemarketthatfollowsacharacteristiccyclicschedule,cadenced

by Fashion shows inmajor Fashion capitals. A Fashion brand is a “category of products that are allmade by a

particularcompanyandallhaveaparticularname”,“aparticularkindortypeofsomething”.Thatis,itisnotsimply

theaccumulationoftangibleelementsnoratrademarkbutwhatisinpeople’smind,basedontheproductquality,

thepricepoint,thedistributionnetworkandthebrand’simage.Brandsarecategorizedbasedondifferentcriteria-

themostimportantofwhicharetheirpricepointandaesthetics-intothe“MassMarket”,“Intermediaries”andthe

“HigherEnd”Categories.Amongsteachcategory,brandswillhavedifferentstrategiestoestablishtheirimageand

putmoreorlesseffortonbuildanidentityoftheirownbasedontheircorevaluesandvisionofFashion.Luxuryis

part of the “High End” category and refer to brands known for their exclusivity, craftsmanship, great-quality

productsandoriginaldesign.Inthelate1990s,astheofferintheFashionindustrywidenedtowardsanaffordable,

accessible, stylishhigh fashion,agapappeared thatneithermass-marketnor luxurybrandscouldbridge: that is

whencontemporarybrandswereborn,withTheoryin1997andMarcbyMarcJacobsin2001.In2015,theFashion

Magazine described the phenomenon as “labels with a designer aesthetic and more accessible price points”.

Competition is now fierce on a segment that is still poorly defined. Elevating their brands can also be quite

challenging, along with affirming their positioning between luxury and accessibility. Building an adequate

distribution network is fundamental to both build strong brand identity and ensure accessibility and sustain

profitability.

Adistributionchannelisdefinedas“customercontactpoint”,apointofinteractionbetweenabrandanditsclients

byAnthonyKent&al. (2016)and include individualstores,departmentstores,conceptstores,onlinestoresand

outlets.Thesetypesofstorescanbeclassifiedinto2categories:thedirect(retail)distributionthatbelongstothe

brandand indirect(wholesale)distributionthat involvesathirdpartytomanagethedistributionprocess.Howis

distributionkey to find themuchneededbalancebetweenaccessibilityandexclusivity, specific tocontemporary

brands?In“TheFutureofRetailistheEndofWholesale”(STEPHENS,2015,p1),onlineshoppingissaidtooffernew

perspectives:brickandmortarhastoreinventitselfandwholesaledoesnotbelonginthisnewmodel.Thepricing

systemofwholesale ismuch criticizedbecause failing at establishing theoptimal pricewouldbedetrimental to

eitherthebrand’smarginsorprofits.Besides,brandsarenotinchargeoftheirwholesalers’discountpolicy,which

can leadtoblunderingsituationswherepricesdiffer fromonestoretotheotherandfuelscompetitionbetween

thepointsof sale, thusharming thebrand’s image.Furthermore, controllingandanticipating stockscanbevery

challenging.Finally,brand’sdistinctivenessisdrowninamyriadofbrands,allstrugglingtostandout.Ontheother

hand, in retaildistribution, thebrandhas controlover the in-storeuniverseand themessage sent to theworld:

retail stores carry thebrandDNAwith them.Yet,wholesale can sometimesbeaverydecentoption. First, fora

brand to open its retail store requires solid financing, which is not often the case, especially for young



contemporarybrands thatarestill trying togainvisibilityandrenown.Wholesalemightactuallymaketheir lives

easierastheyworkonbuildinguptheirreputation,theirvisibility,relievethemfrommanagingtheinventories,the

logistics etc anddrive volume. Forexample, a contemporarybrand canaccess thedepartment store’s customer

base and clarifies its positioning. Finally, wholesale is sometimes the preferred option in certain regions or

countriesandavoidingitwouldmeangivinguponconsequentsales.Moreover,nowthatonlinehasbecomesucha

majorpartthewayoflivingandbuyingoftheyoung,internet-savvycontemporarybrandscustomers,hardlycanit

beignoredbyfashionbrandsthathavebeenreluctanttoembracethedigitalrevolutionformanyyears.Contrary

tocommonbeliefs,digitalallowsbrandstofurthercontroltheirimageandtoincreasetheirbrandawareness.Itis

alsoanopportunityforbrandstoaccessandkeeptrackofvaluablecustomers’data.Yet,ithassomelimits,suchas

thelackofsensoryappreciation,inherenttoluxuryandFashionandthelackofhumancontact.

Attheendoftheday,online,retailandwholesalehavegotdistinctfunctionsthatallservetheoverallnetwork,to

reinforce a brand, face decreasing in-store traffic and support sales. Digital accompanies customers along their

shoppingexperience,fromtheirsearchonlineanddiscoveryofthebrandtotheactualactofbuyproductsinstore

thatbecomesbrandwindow.Storesserveasbrandenhancers,onlineassourceof informationandengagement,

wholesale as volume driver: they come together for a tailored offer delivered by a smooth, future-oriented

distribution network that feeds customer’s engagement thanks to an aligned brand story and a comprehensive

distributionstrategythatpromotescustomerexperience.

DansleCollins, lamodeestdéfiniecomme«unstyledevêtements,decosmétiques,decomportementetc.tout

particulièrementledernierstyleleplusenvogue,unefaçond’agir,unstyledevie,desactivités,unefaçondese

vêtir,descentresd’intérêtàlamode».Maisavanttout,lestendancesenmodesontprofondémentancréesdans

uncontexteetdescourantssociaux,économiques,sociétauxetcefût lecasdepuis laRomeAntiquejusqu’ànos

jours.En2015,l’industrieduvêtementenEuropes’estaffirméecommeunmarchéinternationaliséetdiversifiéde

169 milliards d’euros, qui suit un calendrier aux cycles caractéristiques, rythmés par les défilés dans les plus

grandes capitalesde lamode.Une«marque»demodecorrespondà«unecatégoriedeproduitsqui sont tous

fabriquésparunemêmesociété,souslemêmenom»,«quelquechosedeparticulier».Autrementdit,ilnes’agit

pas seulement de l’accumulation d’éléments tangibles ou d’unemarque déposéemais également de ce que la

marqueévoque,cequ’ellesuscitechezlesconsommateurs,enfonctiondelaqualitédesproduits,delagammede

prix,duréseaudedistributionetdel’imagedelamarque.Lesmarquessontcatégoriséesselondifférentscritères-

dontleprixetl’esthétiquedesproduits-en«Grandpublic»,«Intermédiaires»et«Haut-de-gamme».Auseinde

ces catégories, chaquemarque adopte une stratégie propre pour fonder son image demarque et fera plus ou

moinsd’effortspourconstruireleuridentitéautourdeleursvaleursetdeleurvisiondelamode.Leluxefaitpartie

delacatégoriedemarques«haut-de-gamme»etfaitréférenceàdesmarquesréputéespourleurexclusivité,leur

savoir-faire,leurartisanat,l’excellentequalitédeleursproduitsetleurdesignsingulier.Alafindesannées90,alors

que l’offrede l’industriede lamode s’élargissait versunemodeplus accessible etmeilleurmarché, un fossé se

creusaitentre lesmarquesde luxeet lesmarquesgrandpublic: lesmarquescontemporainesétaientnées,avec

Theoryen1997etMarcbyMarc Jacobs4ansplus tard.En2015, le«FashionMagazine»adécrit cesmarques

comme«deslabelsàl’esthétiqued’undesignermaisàdesprixplusabordables».Lacompétitionestférocesurce

segment,quipeineencoreàêtredéfiniconvenablement.Magnifierunemarquereprésenteundéfi,demêmeque



d’affirmer son positionnement, entre luxe et accessibilité. Etablir un réseau de distribution adéquat est

fondamental pour construire une identité demarque solide, assurer l’accessibilité à lamarque et entretenir la

profitabilité. Un canal de distribution est défini comme étant «un point de contact avec le client», un point

d’interaction entre lamarque et ses clients, par Anthony& Kent (2016) et peut prendre la forme demagasins

individuels,desgrandsmagasins,deconceptstores,desmagasinsenligneetdesmagasinsd’usines.Cesdifférents

typesdemagasinspeuventcorrespondreàunedistributiondirecte(retail)quandlecanalappartientàlamarque,

ou indirecte si elle impliqueun tiers. Enquoi ladistributionest clépourassurer l’équilibreentreaccessibilitéet

exclusivité, propre aux marques contemporaines ? Dans «The Future of Retail is the End of Wholesale», le

shopping en ligne est présenté comme offrant de multiples perspectives pour les marques : la distribution

physique doit se réinventer et le wholesale n’a pas d’avenir dans ce nouveaumodèle. La politique tarifaire en

wholesaleestvivementcritiquéedanslamesureoùnepasréussiràfixerleprixoptimald’unproduitseraitnéfaste

soitauxmargesdégagéesparlamarque,soitauxvolumesdeventes.Parailleurs,lesmarquesnecontrôlentpasla

politiquederéductionsdeleurdistributeur,cequipeutconduireàdessituationsconfusesoùleprixd’unmême

produitdiffèred’unpointdeventeàl’autre,créantainsiunecompétitionentrelesmagasinsetnuisantàl’image

demarque.Deplus,ilestdifficiledecontrôleretd’anticiperlesstocksnécessaires.Enfin,laparticularitédechaque

marque risqued’être noyéedans unmyriaded’autresmarques, qui peinent toutes à se démarquer.D’un autre

côté,danslecasd’unedistributionretail,lamarquecontrôlel’universdemarqueauseindumagasinetlemessage

envoyé aumonde : lesmagasins retail véhiculent l’ADN demarque. Néanmoins, la distributionwholesale peut

s’avérer être une solution plus que convenable. Tout d’abord, l’ouverture d’un magasin retail nécessite

d’importantsfondsdontnedisposentpaslesmarquescontemporainessouventjeunesetquicherchentavanttout

à se faire connaître et à gagner en visibilité. Le wholesale peut leur faciliter la tâche afin de construire une

réputationsolide,lessoulageantdanslemêmetempsdelagestiondesstocksetdelalogistiqueetgarantissantun

certainvolumedevente.Parexemple,lesmarquescontemporainespeuventavoiraccèsàlaclientèled’ungrand

magasinainsiqueclarifier leurpositionnement.Enfin, lewholesaleestparfois lameilleureoptiondanscertaines

régionsoudanscertainspaysetnepasyavoirrecoursreviendraitàrenonceràdesventes.Parailleurs, ledigital

occupe désormais une part prééminente dans lemodede vie et d’achat de la clientèle jeune et connectée des

marques contemporains et il peut difficilement être écarté par desmarques demode, initialement réticentes à

rejoindrecetterévolutiondigitale.Contrairementauxidéesreçues,ledigitalpermetauxmarquesdecontrôlerleur

imageetd’améliorerleurreconnaissancedemarque.Ilestégalementl’occasiondetoucherunenouvelleclientèle

etd’enapprendreplusàsonsujet.Cependant, ilprésentedes limites,notamment lemanquedecontactavec le

produit,inhérenteauluxeetàlamodeetlemanqued’interactionsavecleséquipesdevente.

Enfindecompte,ledigital,leretailetlewholesaleontchacundesfonctionspropresquiserventleréseaudanssa

totalité,contribuentàrenforcerlamarque,àfairefaceàlabaissedetraficenmagasinetàsoutenirlesventes.Le

digital accompagne le client toutau longde sonexpérience,depuis la rechercheen ligneet ladécouvertede la

marque jusqu’à l’achat final en magasin, qui devient alors la vitrine de la marque. Les magasins retail servent

désormais d’ «intensifieurs de marque», le digital de source d’information et d’engagement, le wholesale de

moteurdeventes: ilsparticipentensembleàuneoffrepersonnalisée,délivréeparunréseaufluide, quifavorise

l’engagement du client grâce à une histoire demarque cohérente et une stratégie de distribution d’expérience

client.



INTRODUCTION

Amongst all the challenges the Fashion industry has to take up at themoment, as highlighted by Bain &

Companyinthebelowtable“Keystrategicquestionsforluxuryplayersgoingforward”,distributionisoneof

themost relevant one contemporary brands should address. Indeed, the questions on how to rethink the

retailnetworkandhowtomaximizetheeffectivenessofalldistributionchannelsseemparticularlyrelevant

forcontemporarybrands,dividedbetweenluxuryandaccessibility.

Indeed, their strategy should be alignedwith their customers’ expectations. Thismeans online is ought to

take a preeminent part of their distribution, fully integrated in a uniform omni-channel network. As

distribution in the Fashion industry is holding attention, many believes the advent of wholesale is

synonymousoftheendofwholesaleanditisespeciallyforluxurybrands.

But towhatextenddocontemporarybrands face the samechallengesas luxurybrands,especiallywhen it

comes todistribution?How candistribution grant contemporarybrandsboth visibility andexclusivity?Are

wholesale,retailandonlineretailingreallyanunworkablecombination?

To answer these questions, interviews of Marc Jacobs’ team members, a survey of customers and

observationsmadeinstoresarecomparedtogetasenseofwhatdifferentpartiesthinkofthatdistribution

issueandassesswhetherbrandsaregoingintherightdirection.

Figure1:KeyStrategicquestionsforluxuryplayersgoingforward(Bain&Company,2015,p29)



WHATISFASHION?

1. DEFINITIONANDHISTORYOFFASHIONGeorgSimmel(1957)in“ThePhilosophyofFashion”saidFashionwasaboutthe“charmofnewness”,about

trendsandaboutknowingthemaheadofthemasses.AccordingtotheCollinsDictionary,Fashionisa“stylein

clothes, cosmetics,behaviour,etc,especially the latestormostadmiredstyle,amannerofperformance,a

wayoflifethatrevolvesaroundtheactivities,dress,interests,etc,thataremostfashionable”.InFrench,the

word “Mode” refers to a way of living, of behaving specific to a particular moment in time and space

(“Manièrede vivre,de se comporter, propreàuneépoque, àunpays”), a temporarybehaviourorwayof

thinking deemed appropriate in a particular milieu (“Manière passagère de se conduire, de penser,

considéréecommedebontondansunmilieu,àunmomentdonné”)andfinally,adistinguishingfeatureof

piecesclothing,associatedwithaspecifictime(“Aspectcaractéristiquedesvêtementscorrespondantàune

périodebiendéfinie“).Whateverthedefinition, itseemsthatwhatcharacterizesFashion is itstemporality,

thefactthatitisdeeplyanchoredinaspecifictime,location,population…asifcontingencywasanintrinsic

dimensiontoit.Fromthere,weunderstandthataspecifictrendcanbeappropriateinatimeandspacebut

notnecessarilyelsewhereorinanotherperiod.TheideaoftrendthatisessentialinFashiondirectlyfollows

onfromthisandseemstoechoeGeorgSimmel’simportancefornovelty.Butmostofall,fashiontrendsare

rootedinbiggertrendsthatcanbesocial,economic,societal.

Asearlyasinprehistorictimes,proofswerefindthatFashionwaspartofhumanlives.Evenifclothing’saim

wasaboveall functionalandmeanttoprotectthehumanbodiesfromexternalaggressions,quicklyclothes

serveaverypurpose.Tribesstarteddistinguishingthemselveswithclothes–whichweremainlyanimalskins

andfurs–ofdifferentcoloursandshapes,adaptedtotheirwaysofliving,theenvironmentandownlikings.

Thesearchforaestheticismisslowlyemerging.InbothAnticEgyptandRomanEmpire,clothesallowthevery

differentsocialclassestobeeasilydistinguished.Forexample, in the

AncientRome,slaveswerenotallowedtoweartogas,thatcouldonly

bewornbyRomancitizens.Backthen,eventheywouldusedifferent

colours for different professions: senators would wear their violet

stripped white tunica laticlavi, soothsayers their golden togas when

purplewastheEmperor’strabeacolour(cfFigure1).

Figure2:Examplesoftogas(Source:latogeetleglaive.blogspot.com)

Fashionclearlyevolvedinthe14thcentury,especiallyinFrancewhereitbecameluxuriant–sometimestacky.

Intheking’scourt,thepointistobenoticed,thankstorareandexpensivefabrics,boldcoloursandshapes.



Trendsemergeinthe18thcenturyandtravelacrossthecountrythankstothefirst“magazines”.Startingfrom

the French Revolution, Fashion trends embody the social changes that occur in a society that faces deep

renewal,especiallytheroleandrightsofwomen(Ukonkwo,2007,p13-p57).

ThepremisesofFashionasweknowittodayappearintheearly20thcenturywithWorth’HauteCoutureand

the firstFashionshows.Throughoutthecentury,as technological revolutionsoccur,brandsaredeveloping,

reaching more and more people. The Fashion industry is born, an integral part of our societies, with its

unbridledpaceandubiquitousadvertising.

2. VALUECHAINANDSUPPLYCHAINOFTHEFASHIONINDUSTRY

What’scalledFashiontodaygathersapparel,accessories–handbags,smallleatherandothers–andshoes.In

ordertoofferthisrangeofproductstotheircustomers,fashionbrandsrelyonofteninternationalizedsupply

chains, from design and sourcing to distribution, vigorous marketing campaigns and after-sales services.

Fashioniswhatiscalleda“buyer-driven”business:thismeanstheconsumersshouldbeputattheheartof

thevaluechainandiscentralfromthestrategydefinitiontothecollectiondevelopmentandtheperformance

assessment. It isnot somucheconomiesof scaleandvolume thatwilldrawprofitsbut ratherappropriate

design, marketing, distribution network (DUKE CENTER OF GLOBALIZATION, GOVERNANCE AND

COMPETITIVENESS,2011,p11).

CreativityissoimportantintheFashionindustrybecauseitconstitutesthestartingpointofthevaluechain.

Nonetheless, designers now work hand-in-hand with marketing teams, trends setting agencies and their

buyingdepartmenttoensuretheproductsarefeasibleandmeetthemarket’sexpectations.Thedesignofthe

products is one of the most important reasons why they will stand out months later on the shelves and

participates inbuildinga strongbrand identity.Yet, this canonlybeachievedwithappropriatequalityand

thus,aperformant inboundprocessofsourcing.Themostcommonrawmaterialsusedare leather, textiles

thatcaneitherbenaturalsuchascottonandlinenorman-madesuchaspolyesterandviscose:eitherway,

thefashionhouseshavetokeepinmindthatthequalityofthefinishedgoodsensuesfromthequalityofthe

rawmaterialstheyselected,whichthusdeterminesthepricepoints.

Theproductionandassemblyaimsatassemblingfabricsintothefinishinggoodthatwillbesold.Thisstepcan

befairlycomplexandincludemanydifferenttypesofoperations,fromcutting,sewingandknittingtotreating

the materials by bleaching, dyeing or printing. The vertical integration of the manufacturing step mainly

depends on the segment the Fashion brand is positioned in: because haute-couture requires highly-skilled

workersforoutstandingcraftsmanship,manufactureismostofthetimeintegratedwhenlower-endbrands–

evenpremium–oftenresortstolicensersforthewholeorpartoftheirmanufacturingprocess(Wang,2015,

p15).

Brands will then sell their products using either their own distribution network or resorting to other

distribution channels, such aswholesale partners, corners in department stores, websites… The degree of

controlbrandsmaintainontheirdistributionwillnecessarilyaffect thesenseof rarityassociatedwith their



image.Evenbeforetheproducthasarrivedonthemarketandisreadytobesold,marketingcampaignsaim

atsupportingthesalesandsendamessagefromthebrandtothecustomersaboutthecollection.Withthe

developmentofmedia andnew technologies, thewaysofmarketing theproducts are infinite andFashion

brands have now understood the importance of socialmedia, onwhich they focus on and relymore and

more.Dependingonthepositioningofthebrand,thelaststep–thatisservicesandafter-salesservices–can

bealmostinexistentorfundamental(Wang,2015,p15).High-fashionbrandsusuallyguaranteelowpricesbut

minimal customer services whereas for luxury or even just high-quality brands, customer service is as

importantasthequality itself: thisgoesfromofferingdrinks incosyareas inthestorestoveryflexibleand

efficientreturn,replacingandrepairingpoliciesthecustomersfeeltheyareentitledtoaskfor.

All thesupplychainsoftheFashionaresomewhat intertwinedandultimatelygather intothe international,

diversetoday’sFashionmarket.

3. THEFASHIONINDUSTRY:CURRENTSTATEOFTHEMARKET-FOCUSONTHEEUROPEANMARKET

The Fashion industry has indisputably become

globalandhasgrownintoadynamicand leading

industry of the European economy, especially in

countries such as Italy or France, where Fashion

andLuxuryarepartof thecountry’s identityand

culture. Players can be drastically different

though, fromSpanish Inditexand itshigh-fashion

Zara to 35.7 billion euro revenues LVMH, the

French conglomerate of very diverse luxury

brands. The overall industry employs about 5

millionpeople,dedicatedtohavetheindustry,its

savoir-faire and creativity radiateworldwide and

workingtogethertosustainitsgrowth.

In2015,theclothingindustryaloneinEuropehad

a turnover of 169 billion euros, with 4 billion

euros of investments and employed 1029

thousandspeoplein120111differentcompanies

throughout the continent (EURATEX, 2015, p1).

Theglobalizationoftheindustrycanbeobserved

ateverystepof itsvaluechainasmanydifferent

countries are involved, from theproduction to the selling. 36%ofmenandwomenapparels are imported

while40%ofwomenapparelsareexported.SoutherncountriessuchasSpainandPortugalalongwithEastern

Table1:MainTradingPartnersinTextile-ClothingoftheEuropean

Union(EURATEX,2015,p2)



Europecountriesaretheindustry’smanufactures,evenifitisworthnoticingthatItalyhasremainedasakey

manufacturer,knownforitscraftsmanshipandhigh-qualityrawmaterials(EUROPEANCOMISSION,2011,p1).

Mostdistributionandretail companiesareestablished inWesternEuropeandaresellingup to60%of the

productiontolong-standingcommercialpartners,suchasSwitzerland,theUSAandJapanaswellasemerging

markets.TheseexportsaccountedforatenthoftheoverallEuropeanexportsandrepresentedatotalof260

billioneurosin2015(EURATEX,2015,p2),asdetailedinTable1.

Inspiteoftheseeminglyunwaveringstrengthofthesector,manydifferentchallengeshaveariseninthepast

fewyearsandshouldbegrabbedwithbothhands. If forSMBs’biggestchallenge isaccessingfinancing,the

industry in its entirety is facing growing pressure of counterfeiting, care for environmental considerations,

emergence of new competition in newly developed countries, unrestrained renewal of technologies and

everythingthatcomeswithamoreliberalandglobalmarket.MorespecificallyinFrance,a-0,4%growthwas

recorded,mostlyduetodecreasedtrafficbecauseoftheterroristthreat.Anothertrendworthnoticingisthe

habitoflookingfor“gooddeals”,adirectconsequenceoftheeconomiccrisis:consumershaveahardertime

understandingtheinitialpricesofproductsandtendtowaitforsalesperiods.

A study of the Commission’s Communication and Information Resource Centre for Administrations,

BusinessesandCitizens(EUROPEANCOMISSION,2014,p1)hasshownthatstrategiesandbusinessmodelshave

needed transforming, adapting to maintain their competitiveness: it is now essential to embrace

technologies,make their supply chains resilient and eco-friendlier, work towardsmore customers-focused

strategies and rethink their exile for a use of more local players. Competition is fierce online and the

developmentofcross-channeldistributionshouldbeseenasanopportunitytoattractcustomersintostores

andenrichtheircustomerexperience.

Dependingonthebrand’spositioningandwhatitdeemsthemostimportantinitsvaluechain,supplychains

canvaryalotfromonetotheotherthusfinishingupinadiversifiedmarket,fromFashioncolossustolocal,

intimatelabels.

4. STRUCTUREOFTHEMARKET–FASHIONBRANDSCATEGORIES

Itcanbefairlyeasytogathersomeluxurybrandsunderthesamecategorylabel:Dior,AlexanderMcQueen,

Oscar dela Renta are alike and comparable. Yet, we find some other brands also considered as luxury

somewhatdifferentfromDiororVuitton,forexampleBurberryandArmani.Sameappliesto lessexpensive

brands:itcanbehardtoclearlydefinethecharacteristicsofeachcategory.Indeed,theyareveryimportant

because the stakes differ from one to the other, especially because customers will identify to brands

depending on their positioning and thus, the category they belong to. It is of paramount importance in

departmentstoresforthecustomerstoshopeasily.



''Wesegmentourstoretomakeiteasierforthecustomertoshop,''-BurtonTansky,presidentofSaksFifth

Avenue.''Youtrytoputlikebusinessesadjacenttoeachother.''(GROSS,1987,p1)

Most likely,categoriesaredefineddependingonthepricepointsoftheproductsbutaestheticsalsocomes

underconsideration,asfollows(APPARELSEARCH,2014):

MassMarket

- BudgetalsocalledMassMarketcorrespondstothe lowestendoftheFashion industry, intermsof

pricesandquality.Productsareverydiverseandoftenstronglyinfluencedbywhathasbeenseenon

therunway.Actually,budgetbrandsarequitefrequentlyaccusedofsimplycopyingluxurydesignand

thenselling thematmuch lowerpriceandquality toappeal to themasses.Because theconsumer

base is so broad, they can produce important volumes distributed throughout the world, thus

enjoyingeconomiesofscaleanddespitelowmargins,makeprofits.Typicalmassmarketbrandsare

Swedishgiant,H&MandSpanishZara.

- Moderatebrandshaveahigherpricepointthanbudget,suchasGapandLevisandmanydepartment

stores carry this category as it allows them to reach a lower customer segment, who do not

necessarilywanttospendtoomuchonclothing.

Intermediaries

Thefollowing3categoriesareoftenmingledandfoundinterchangeable.Thelinesbetweenthe3arefineand

blurredandtendtodisappearslightlytoreunite“Contemporary”and“Bridget”intoalargercategory:

- Betterrefers toproductsof improvedqualityanddesigncomparedwithModerate,atahighprice

point.Bridgebrandscanbedirectinspirationsforthedesignofthiscategory,sometimesconsidered

asthelowerendofdesignerwork(atlowestprices).

- Contemporarybrandsaremoretrendytoappeal totwentyandthirty-years-old,atrelatively lower

pricepoints.Itisanexpandingcategory,knownforitsstreetwearandfashionableproducts,aligned

withdesignertrendsbutmoreaffordable.

- Bridgecancorrespondtothesecondlinesofdesignerbrands,withequivalentdesignbutslightlyless

qualitativerawmaterials.Theirlowerpricepointmakesthemmoreaffordable,withnocompromise

onstyleandwithacceptablequality.

HigherEndCategories

- Thedesigner category is known for its remarkable rawmaterials, details, designs, customersmust

paythepricefor.Indeed,itissoldforamuchsteeperpricepointsthanpreviouscategories.Because



costisnotsomuchofaproblemwhenconceivingthecollection,designerscangivefreereigntotheir

imaginationandcreativityreallybringsaddedvaluetotheproducts.

- HauteCouturereferstosyndicatedmemberswhomanufacturemade-to-measurepiecesbutmostof

the time it extrapolates to the far upper-end of the industry. Craftsmanship and creativity are an

absolute must and explain the popularity of Haute Couture on red carpets. Haute Couture often

showcasesfortheotherproductsofahouse,beingready-to-wearoraccessories.

Theaforementionedcategoriesbeingsodifferent,theycanobviouslynotreachthesamecustomersandtheir

customer base sizes considerably vary from one to the other, as simplified on Figure 2. Amongst each

category,brandswillhavedifferentstrategiestoestablishtheirimageandwillputmoreorlesseffortonbuild

anidentityoftheirownbasedontheircorevaluesandvisiononFashion.

Figure3:“DifferentBusinessModelsforEachMarketTierinTheLuxuryIndustry”(XERFI,2015,p75)

5. WHATISAFASHIONBRAND?

a. Whatisabrand?

Abrandisa“categoryofproductsthatareallmadebyaparticularcompanyandallhaveaparticularname”,

“a particular kindor typeof something” andused to refer to the “mark that is burned into the skin of an

animal(suchasacow)toshowwhoownstheanimal”(MERRIAM-WEBSTER’sLEARNER’SDICTIONARY).

In“LuxuryFashionBranding:trends,tacticsandtechniques”,UcheOkonkwo(2007)stressestheimportance

ofthenameofthebrand,usuallyconsideredasthebranditself.Abrandnamecarrieseverythingwithit: it

canremindyouofthecreatorofthehouse,ofthecountrythebrandwascreated- intimatelyrelatedtoits

identity-andofthebrandDNA.

Nevertheless, it seems thatbrandsaremuchmorecomplex thata trademarkanda setofproducts.When

thinkingofabrand,whatoftencomestomindisalogo,slogan,setofcoloursbutalsoqualityandvaluesthat



willmakeabranddifferent fromanotherone.Brandconcept is showing throughthename, thecountryof

origin,theoriginofthebranditself,itshistory,itsstory,visualimage,logo,colours,sounds,shapes,languages

and total offerings. For example, Dolce and Gabbana is known to be very luxurious, to cherish its Italian

originsandthebig Italian families,especially the Italian“mama”are recurrentcharacters in theshowsand

ads.AsforChanel,itisatypicalexampleofabrandforwhichthecreatorissotightlylinkedtotheidentityof

thebrandthateverycodeofthehouseissomewhatexplainedbythem:Cameliawasherfavouriteflower,for

instance.

Oneof themost important characteristics abrand shouldhave–evenmore so today– is too cultivate its

uniqueness, the motivations behind its very own existence. It is known that Fashion deeply reflects the

changes insocietyandthe interpretationthedesignerhasontheseevolutionswillvery likely influencethe

branditself.MarcJacobsInternationalisdeeplyrootedinthe90’sundergroundculture,whenartmetfashion

andtheemergenceofoutsidersandgayandpopculturesinNewYorkCitywereandremainedMarcJacobs’

favouritesourceofinspiration.Indeed,backthen,awholenewgenerationdidnothaveavoiceinaFashion

industry dominated by aging prestigious European luxury brands and dull monochrome American fashion

brands,when its ideas of art,music and culturewere starting to be heard.MJwas part of it and rubbed

shoulderswiththisyouth,itsaudience.Thisgoesbacktothedefinitionofa“vision”inthestrategicmeaning

oftheword:itisaboutclarifythecorepurposeofabrand,whatitstandsfor,itsviewpointoftheworldithas

beencreatedinandhowthiswillhelpachieveitsobjectives.

Knowingwhatcomesintothedefinitionofabrandisnotsufficient,atleastnotinthelong-run.Ifcustomers

have identifiedwith themessage a brand conveys, it has to remain the same, the brand’ valuesmust be

consistentthroughouttheyears,regardlessofalltheeffortsabrandcanput intobeingmodernandhowit

embracestoday’ssocialstakes.

Going back to the Marc Jacobs example, his core values, carefully cultivated throughout the years, are

irreverence,passionforoutsiders,fortheodd,fortheugly,assingerMarilynManson,Cherandtransgender

directorLanaWachowskiwhostarredinhisFall2016campaign.

Fromherestartstogrowtheideathatabrandisfarfrombeingthesimpleaccumulationoftangibleelements

(logo,packaging,colours,advertising…)norjustatrademark,itisnotevenexactlywhatyouwantittobe:the

brandiswhat’s inpeople’sminds, it iswhatcanbeseenbutalsosomuchmore, it istheentireexperience

customerslivewhenenteringincontactwithyou.



b. WhatisbrandingandwhyisitimportantinFashion?

Figure4:Elementsthatcontributetothesuccessofaluxurybrand

Thegraphabove(Figure3)sumsupthenecessary–yetnotsufficient–criteriatomakeabrandprosperous

and enduring: some are inherent to luxury (delivery of homogeneous high-quality products, valued

craftsmanship,identitybuiltaroundthebrand’sheritage…),othersarepartofthecompany’sstrategy(price

positioning,controlleddistribution).Finallymasteringtheartofbranding(creativityandinnovation,kindling

emotions,visibility…)genuinelymattersintheFashionworld:astrongbrandidentityiskeytobedifferent,to

stick in people’s mind rather than being one amongst others, be blended into the vast ocean of fashion

brands.Well-conductedbrandingisstrategicasitisaveryefficientwayofcommunicatingthebrandmission

andvision,whatthebrandstandsfor,whatitisbestknownfor,theemotionsittriggers…

First,brandingisaboutdeliveringamessage,builton3keyelements:

- Creativity:Originalityandinnovationofthebrandarethemessagethathastobedrivenhome.

- Clarity:Simplicityandclearnessofthevalues,thevisionofthebrandiskeytospeakdirectlytothe

customers’mindsandhearts.

- Consistency:Everythingthatisbroughtintothebrandshouldbequestionedregardingitsconsistency

withwhatmakesthebrand’sidentity.

In her book “Luxury FashionBranding: trends, tactics and techniques”UcheOkonkwo (2007) explains that

brandinginvolvesstrategicthinkingandawilltoinvestinthefuture:byhavingastrongconstantpersonality,

well-defined values and long-term vision that remain steady, desire grows in customers’minds and brand

equityisbuilt.

Whatmakesaluxurybrandsuccessful?

Uniqueness

Consistentpremiumquality

Well-manageddistribution

Craftmanship

Heritage

Clearbrandidentity

Adequatepricing

Appropriatevisibility



Brandingthenallowstobuildafullcustomerexperience,togatheracommunity.Itisaboutcreatingasense

ofbelongingaroundcommonvaluesandcreatingaconsistentlong-lastingrelationshipwiththecustomers.

Customersarenowoverwhelmedwithoptionsandproducts thatarealikeoreasily comparable.Whatwill

makethemleantowardsabrandinparticularistheperceptiontheyhaveonit,theemotionalappealforthe

culture that is associated with the brand. Because they know what they are buying into, they feel

comfortable,theycantrustthebrand,becomeloyalandoncetheyfeelstronglyconnectedtothebrand,they

startpromotingitthemselves.Brandingfurtherinvolvescreatingan“ecosystem”,acontextwherecustomers

live a value added experience. As the ecosystem grows, more and more people enter this system and it

becomesmorechallengingnottodriftapartfromthebrandpersonality.Yet,theidentityofthebrandandits

longevity are at stake and in order tomake an impact, themessage delivered by the brand and how it is

deliveredshouldremainthesameregardless.

Forexample,let’sconsideraluxuriousbrandknownforitspremiumqualityproducts,soldinveryfancystores

withqualitycustomerservices.Inthiscase,alltheseelementsarepartofthebrandidentityandnoneshould

be neglected: assuming the brand opens a new store, in a new country, with new staff, the customer

experience,atmosphere, levelof service, tidinessof thestorehave tobe identicalas in theoriginal stores.

Customers are also buying this whole experience and shall it be incomplete, it wouldmake a dent in the

overallbrandimage.

Ultimately, the aim is for the brand to be deeply established in consumers’minds, who acknowledge the

consistencybetweentheproductquality,thepricepoint,thedistributionnetworkandtheimage(cfFigure4).

Itisonlythenthattheconditionsofpurchasearemetanddemandiscreated.

Figure5:“KeyPurchasingCriteriaforLuxuryGoods”(XERFI,2015,p75)



AFOCUSONCONTEMPORARYBRAND,BETWEENLUXURYANDPROXIMITY

AmongstthevarietyofFashionbrands,onerecentcategory-calledcontemporarybrands-hasemergedand

isnowunderthespotlight.Theirpositioningisnoteworthybecausetheyhavebridgedthegapbetweenmass

marketandhigherendasmentionedin“Structureofthemarket–Fashionbrandscategories”,whichwillbe

dwelled on further on. Contemporary brands claim to be somewhat luxurious, which is why the luxury

industryanditsfunctioningistheobjetofPart1and2ofthissection(“Definitionofluxury”and“Howdoesit

work”).Because thedefinition itselfof contemporarybrandscanbe trickyandhazy,examplesof themost

representativecontemporarybrandswillsupporttheargumentandenlightenonthemaincharacteristicsof

thosebrands.Finally,contemporarybrandsarefacingchallenges,eithercommonwithluxurybrandsbutalso

veryspecificones,includingthechoiceoftheirdistributionchannels.

1. DEFINITIONOFLUXURY

In DrMortelmans‘ “Sign values in processes of distinction: the concept of luxury” article (2005), themain

characteristicsofluxuryproductsareclearlyidentifiedandasfollows:

Firstly, luxury products are rare: because owning luxury goods is so tightly linked with the feeling of

exclusivity, of belonging to a circle of “happy fews”, they have to be somewhat inaccessible. This relative

scarcity comes from the combination of restricted production and restrained distribution; it benefits the

brand’s imageand it fuelsdesireandsenseofcomposure.Theneedforexclusivity issometimestakentoa

pointwheredesignerslaunchlimitededitionofoftennumberedproducts,availableinlimitedquantities,fora

limitedtimeonly, inveryspecificstores.Forinstance,theManoloBlahnikxRihannadenimshoescollection

wasonly sold inManoloBlahnik’s stores in London,HongKong andNewYork and in theParisian concept

store,Colette.

Thesecondelementresultsfromtheuniquenessofabrand’sdesignandtheimportanceofFashiontrends.

Care for aesthetics is inherent to Fashionand Luxury, in general and thebrand’s styleplays ahuge role in

makingitluxury.AlexanderMcQueenwasknownfor

therichnessofitsdesignandextravaganzaandeven

ifhis–unwearable-creationswereoftenputdown,

no one ever questioned the fact that what he did

wasluxury(Figures5,6,7).

Itgoeswithoutsayingthatthefinestqualityisan

unnegotiable requirement for luxury goods to be considered as such. Mortelmans (2005) points out that

quality is a two-tiered criteria. Indeed, high quality rests on both finest raw materials and outstanding

FigureFigure7Figures6,6,7:IconicPiecesFromAlexanderMcQueen'sShows(Source:

http://fashion.hellomagazine.com)



craftsmanship.Asanexample,ChanelcreatedtheParaffectionin1997,asubsidiarythatgathers12“Ateliers

d’Art”,suchasMichel(Frenchmilliner),Lesage(Frenchembroidery)andBarrie(Scottishknitwear)tosupport

theirknow-howandguarantee thebestquality to theircustomers.Besides, luxurybrandsnowcontroland

trace the origin of raw materials, especially exotic leathers, to avoid quality issues and abusive use of

extinctivespeciesskins.

Mortelmans (2005)alsopointsout thatmanyauthorsagreeonpricebeing the fourthelement todescribe

luxury fashion. Yet, he argues that the high prices observed in luxury are direct consequences of the

aforementioned characteristics: because raw materials are available in limited quantities, they are more

expensive,whichitreverberatedonthepriceofthefinishedgoods.Asforthesenseofscarcity,itsimplygoes

backtothelawofsupplyanddemand:ifsupplyislowcomparedtodemand,pricesautomaticallygoup.

Yet, if these 3 (or 4) are undeniably common to luxury goods, they do not quite definewhat luxury is in

people’sminds.MarcJacobsoncesaid:“Ithinkthereissomethingaboutluxury–it’snotsomethingpeople

need but it’s what theywant. It really pulls at their heart.” This echoes PhD Anne-FloreMaman, in her

conference“TheOnlineSemioticsofHistory&HeritageofFashionLuxuryBrands”attheGEMODEInstitute

(2015): luxury isnotabouttheproductsonlybutalsoabouta lifephilosophyclosely linkedtoculture,with

respecttowhichcustomersdefinetheirownpersonality.Luxuryisanaspirationthatcustomerssharewhen

theyrelatetoyourhistory.

ThehistoricalheartofluxuryislocatedinWesternEurope,thathasremainedakeyplayerintheworldwide

luxuryindustry.Indeed,the62,5-billion-euros-salesgloballuxuryapparelmarketisdominatedbyFrenchand

Italianbrandseven if theUSAareakeygrowthdriverandthe largestglobalmarket.Despite itsstagnation

overthepastfewyears,WesternEuropestillwasthelargestregionalluxurymarketin2014withits34%of

globalpersonalluxury,leadbyItaly(15billionsalesin2014)andParis(thataccountsfor2/3ofthe15billion

salesinFrancein2014),ascanbeseenonFigure8.Yet,luxuryshoppingtourismhasseverelysufferedfrom

terrorist threat in Europeand luxurybrandsnow look fornewwaysof creating salesopportunities: online

platforms can no longer be overlooked and should help reinforce luxury brand equity,without for all that

sinkingintotrivialisation(BAIN&CIE,2015).

Figure9:"NYC,ParisandLondoneachaccountformorethan€10billionofluxurysales"–PersonalLuxuryGoodsMarketsin€billions(BAIN&

CIE,2015)



In the end, far from being idle fancies, these elements described byMortelmans are central in the value

chains of today’s luxury brands and contribute to the performances described by Bain&Company (2015).

Control over both raw materials and distribution is achieved through integration, which leaves room for

manoeuvreintermsofmeetingcustomers’demandandhelpssustaintheiractivities,activitiesthatfollowa

peculiarcycle.

2. HOWDOESITWORK?

AsdescribedinChevalierandMazzalovo’s“LuxuryBrandManagement:aworldofprivilege”(2012),onevery

specific characteristicon theFashion industry ishow itworks in cycles,how it is cadencedby seasonsand

howitreliesoncyclicaltrends.

Aspreviouslydiscussed,theentiresupplycycle lasts18months,fromchoosingrawmaterialstoremovalof

thecollectionfromtheshelves.ButFashionalsofollowsayearlycycle,dictatedbythe4seasons.Let’shavea

closerlooktotheFashioncalendar,whichissummarizedbelow(Figure9).

Fabricsarechosen6monthspriortotheshowtheywillbeusedfor.Shallthebrandwantheexclusivityofa

design,apatternorafabric,theyshouldplaceordersofsufficientquantitiestotheirsuppliers.

Onceinthecreationstudio,thecollectioniscreatedinthefollowingmonths,untiltheFashionshowwhere

editors,buyersandcelebritieswillgoto,duringFashionweeks.Theseshowsusuallytakeplaceinoneofthe4

Fashioncapitalsoftheworld,beingNew-York,London,MilanandParis,eventhoughsomebrandstrytodrift

fromnormsandsettleinnewFashioncapitals,suchasLosAngeles,TokyoorSydney.Aftertheshows,buyers

lookintothecollectionandselectitemstheythinkcouldsell intheirstores,basedonbudgetstheydecided

on,foreachbrands,beforetheshows.Piecesshouldbewiselychosenbasedontheknowledgeofcustomers

tastes,theirmarketingeneralandfuturefashiontrends.Theclothesarriveinstore6monthsaftertheshow–

which is now strongly criticized by some designers who think the lead time should be reduced. Both the

internalretailandwholesaleteamsandretailbuyersattendashowroom,rightaftertheFashionshowtohave

a closer look atwhatwalk the runwayandpickwhat they think could sell. Thepiecesexhibited can come

Figure10:FashionCycleforaFall-WinterCollection(ChevalierandMazzalovo,2012)



straight from the runway or have been made for the sole purpose of the showroom. At this time, the

production cycle formostof thesepieceshasnot startedyet. Indeed, right after the showandbefore the

buyerssendtheirfinalbuys,theclothesaremademoresuitableforregularbodytypesandmorewearablein

dailylife.Yet,somepiecescomingdirectlyfromtheshowaredisplayedinstore(quiteoftenusedforVisual

Merchandising,torecreatetheatmosphereoftheshow):ready-to-wearandcollectioncoexistinstores.The

collectionsremain instoreuntil thenextsalesperiod,whichmeans2collectionsaresoldat thesametime

andSpringandFallwillbeondisplaymuchlongerthantheothertwoseasons.

Therecanbefrom2upto6collectionsayear,dependingontheFashionhouse,the4mostcommonones

being:

- TheSpringcollection,showninSeptemberandsoldstartingFebruary/Marchthenextyear,

- The Pre-Fall collection’s showroom usually takes place in November and is sold starting May the

followingyear,

- TheFallFashionshowoccursinFebruary,collectionandarrivesinstoresinAugust,

- The Resort collection is presented during a showroom in June and available on the shelves in

November.

Thesketchbelow(Figure10)clarifiestheFashionCalendarandthediscrepancybetweentheshowsandthe

salesinthestores.

Yet,someFashionbrandshavecreatedtheirowncalendarandpresentmorecollections,withmoreFashion

shows.Forexample,Chanelmanagestolaunch2extracollections:“HauteCouture”and“Metiersd’Art”,to

praise the Paraffection and their partners for their expertise and craftsmanship.On the other hand, some

Figure11:TheFashionCalendar(ImageSource:https://primperfectblog.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/seasons-of-hope-

logo.jpg)



more intimate brands sometime cannot afford a proper Fashion show and resort to presentations where

modelsarenotwalkingdownarunwaybutratherstandingtoshowtheclothestotheaudience.

After the Fashionmonth, shows are compared and recurrent styles will appear to be the coming fashion

trends. Inspirations for theshowsare frombeingtheconcernof thedesigneronly.Onthecontrary,a long

phaseofresearchisneededwiththebrand’smarketingteamsandtrendforecastingagencies.Designerswork

ondrawingfromexternalsourcesofinspirationaswellasreinventingthecodesoftheirownhouse.Theycan

reusepreviousdesignsthatareknowntosellwell,whichhelpsoutwithbuildingastrongbrandidentity.

Forexample,fortheFall2016MarcJacobsfashionshow,theyreusedtypicalMarcJacobsfeaturessuchasbig

ornaments,theyplayedwiththeclothes’proportions:somepieceswereexactlythesameasinpastseasons

exceptre-colouredinblack,tomatchthegoththemeoftheshow(cfFigure11).

Buttrendscancomefromvariousexternalsources.Eachyear,Pantone,expertescolours,picksthecolourof

theyear.In2013,asthecrisiswascomingtoanendandbetterdayswereloomingahead,thePantonecolour

oftheyearwasEmeraldGreen,thatrepresentedwell-being,harmonyandhope.Thisyear,Pantoneoptedfor

two colours: rose quartz and serenity, meant to bring mindfulness, protection against daily stress,

peacefulness.Also,pairingaroseandabluerepresentstheworldgoingtowardsmoregenderequalityand

genderblur,thataremajorsocialevolution.WhenParisiantrendforecastingagency,PeclersParispredicted

Caribbeaninspirationsstrongin2016aftertheopeningofCubaandtighteningofrelationshipswiththeUS.

ChanelCruiseshowtookplaceinthestreetsofLaHavanainMay2016.Also,perpetualreinventionofwhat

hasbeendoneinthepast,fortrendsthataretightlyassociatedwithadecade,suchassuedeandthe70’s,

CK’slargesweaterandminimalismofthe90’s:getinspirationfromthepastandmakeitmoremoderntwist,

associateitwithotherreferences.

How about contemporary brands? They do follow the same schedule and share some characteristicswith

luxurybrandsbutasdetailed lateron,what isatstake isveryuniqueandspecifictocontemporarybrands.

Examplesofcontemporarybrandsandprofilesoftypicalcustomersareusedtoletinononthiscategoryand

tobetterunderstanditschallenges.

Figure12:LooksfromMarcJacobs'FA16FashionShow(Source:https://i.ytimg.com/vi/pYJqMnOnMiQ/maxresdefault.jpg)



3. CONTEMPORARYFASHION

a. Whatisacontemporarybrand?

IfmuchhasbeenwrittenontheFashionindustryandespeciallyLuxury,notsomanypapersfocusonacertain

type of brands that has emerged in the fast years called contemporary fashion brands. Yet, contemporary

brandsare flourishingaround theglobe, theynowstart todrawmoreandmoreattentionas their success

grows.

“Contemporarycanbeseenasunsettling,abitdisturbing”

PierreMouton,MarcJacobsPrintempsManager

In 2015, the FashionMagazine described the phenomenon as “labels with a designer aesthetic andmore

accessiblepricepoints”(SCHAEFFER,2015,p1).Bythis,theywerereferringtobrandssellingproductsforupto

$600,makingthemmoreaffordablethanusuallyluxurygoods,butmostly,asegmentintheFashionindustry

moreandmoremoneyisbeingspentin:“Entercontemporaryfashion.Youmayneverbeabletoaffordthat

$50,000Birkin,butafterafewweeksofsaving,a3.1PhillipLimPashlibagmayjustbewithinreach.”

“Theywantexclusivequalitylabelsthatarenotmassproduced,yetareaffordable.”AnaCanadas,visual

merchandisingmanagerforonlineretailerFarfetch.com(SCHAEFFER,2015,p1)

AsemphasizedbyMarcJacobsPrintempsManager,PierreMouton,contemporarybrandstobeadisruption

totheformalworldofluxuryFashion.Thesebrandsarebolderandchangetheluxurycriteriaforcustomersto

identifywiththebrands,namelybecauseofmusesandbrandambassadors.Accordingtohim,customersfeel

moreemotionallyconnectedtotheseaccessibleandmoreaffordablebrands.

Despitethemultitudeofcontemporarybrandsonthemarkettoday,commonfeaturescanbebroughtout:

- Thefirstandmostimportantoneispricerange.Asmentionedbefore,contemporaryfashionbrands

aremeanttobemoreaffordablethanluxurybrandsandthus,theirpricepointsareset lowerthan

thoseofluxury.

- Becausetheyaresometimesseenaresomewhatluxurious,theydeeplybelieveinhigh-qualityfabrics

and well-made products, again not going for the same level of expertise and details than luxury

fashionbuttakingastandagainstdisposablehigh-fashion.

- Contemporary brandsmust have an added value in terms of design and aesthetic, as their visual

identitywillhavethemstandoutofthecrowd.Asdetailedlater,theircustomersareusuallyyoung

andfashionable,andlookingforacertain,trendystyle,inabrandtheycanstillrecognizethe“hand”,

thesignature.Actually,whenaskingcustomerstogradethewordsthatbestdescribecontemporary

brands fromthewords“luxurious”, “expensive”, “trendy”, “accessible”and“ofgoodquality”, they

attributedagradeof4.15outof5to“trendy”.



‘Pieceswillhaveinterestingconstructiondetailsandagood-qualityfinish.Thecollectionsareinlinewith

seasonaltrendsbutalsoincorporatesignatureitemsthatconsumersimmediatelyrecogniseandassociate

withthebrand.’

AnaCanadas,visualmerchandisingmanagerforonlineretailerFarfetch.com(SCHAEFFER,2015,p1)

As the offer in the Fashion industrywidened towards an affordable, accessible, stylish high fashion, a gap

appeared that neither mass-market nor luxury brands could bridge: the demand for high quality yet

affordable clothing wasmet. The contemporary Fashionmarket was born. The first contemporary brands

appeared in the late 1990s as real, identifiable brands, recognized as such, contrary to the diminished

versionsofdesignerbrandsbridgebrandshadbeeninthepast.Theorywascreatedin1997and4yearslater,

MarcJacobslaunchedhisowncontemporarylabel,MarcbyMarcJacobs.Sincethen,thesegmenthaskepton

developingtillthefinancialcrisislegitimateditsexistenceandmadeitoneofthemostpromisingsegmentsof

theindustry.Today,contemporarybrandshavebroadenedtheirtargetstodifferentcustomersegmentsand

donotlimitthemselvestopeoplewhocannotaffordluxurybrandsandaretiredoffastfashion.Throughout

theyears,theyhavecomeupwiththeirowntouch,theownstylerecognisedinitsownrightandpeopleturn

to themnomore through spite but genuinely for their identity. Somedesigners had evendecided to fully

associate their names with contemporary brands, for instance Alexander Wang, Etienne Deroeux and

Jonathan Simhkai or create a new line dedicated to another customer segment than their usual customer

base,suchasIsabelMarantEtoileorAthebyVanessaBruno.

Whenaskingpotentialcustomersaboutcontemporarybrands70%ofthemsaidtheyknewwhatthiscategory

refers to and gave the first words that came to mind (Figure 12). The idea of modernity, freshness was

broughtoutalongwiththetrendiness.Thechallengingpositioningwasalsohintedbecauseboth“expensive”

and “affordable” werementioned equally. Overall, it seems like the interviewees were able to somewhat

definecontemporarybrands,whethertheybuyfromthemornot.

Figure13:CustomersbrainstormingonContemporaryBrands



Inthepastfewyears,asthiscategoryofbrandsgrew,segmentswithinthecontemporarybrandsemerge:it

nowrangesfromcontemporarytoadvancedcontemporary,sometimescalled“designercontemporary”.This

accessible luxurydisplays slightlyhigherpricesbut still fits in thecontemporaryprice rangeandmatch the

“spirit” of this category.On this,Marc Jacobs’ CEO Sebastian Suhl declared thatMarc Jacobs International

“had opportunity in “price points above $500 in contemporary. […] There’s a market out there for that”

(FRIEDMAN,2015,p1)regardingbothclothingandhandbags.

“Thereyouhaveit:Thewhitespaceabove$500and—Iwouldguess—$1,200,whichisusuallyabout

where“accessibleluxury”comesin,isthe“advancedcontemporary”space.”

MarcJacobs’CEOSebastianSuhlforWWD(FRIEDMAN,2015,p1)

If there is anopportunity, as Suhl seems tobelieve,whatare the typical contemporary customers like?To

whodoes the intermediary categoryappeal to?Togetabetterunderstandingof the typical customers for

contemporarybrands,let’sresorttopersonae.

“Contemporarybrandsappealtoboththeluxuryshopperandthenewbreedofaspirationalshopper”

ShereenBasma,women’scontemporarybuyeratHarveyNichols(MDUDU,2013,p1)

ForPierreMouton,thereisnosuchthingasonesingletypicalcontemporarybrandsbecausetheycanappeal

tomanystyles,differentpurchasingpoweranddifferentageranges.Acustomerwhotraditionallyshopsat

luxurybrandscanalsobeacontemporarybrandcustomer inthesamewayassomeonewithverydifferent

shoppinghabits,withamorelimitedbudgetforclothingandaccessories.Onthatmatter,intervieweeswere

askedtogive3wordsonwhotheythoughtwasthetypicalcustomers(Figure13).Thewordstheygavewere

thengatheredintoconsistentgroupsasfollows:

Figure14:Brainstormingoncontemporarybrandscustomers



Basedoncollected information,twoprofilesofwhatcontemporarybrandscustomersaremore likelytobe

likeweredrawn:

Persona1

Demographiccharacteristicsandsociologicalfactors

Age/Education 20-25

Subcultures GenerationY,livesaconnectedlife

Socialclass Uppermiddleclass,canbesuburbansometimesbutveryurbanlifestyle

Referencegroups Bloggers,influencers,fellows,socialnetworks,top-models

Familystructure Workingparents,canbedivorced,siblingsornot

Psychologicalfactors

Personality Careabouthowshelooks,extravert,donottakestylisticrisks

Personalvalues Socialrecognition,style,opentotheworld,global,socialnetwork

Motivations

Socialrecognition,senseofbelonging,aspirational,fittingin,“wannabe”,cannotafford

luxurybutsometimesbuyoneof2piecesaftersavingforawhiletogetasenseofsocial

elevation

Psychographics

Person’slifestyle Verysociallife,friends,«socialite”

Relevantactivities Shopping,spendingtimeswithfriends,travelling,goingout,

Interests Fashion,trends(shefollowstrendscarefullyandwaitstillsheissureitisabigtrend)

CBpatternsforsegmentmembers

Decision-making

style

Canbe compulsive in a group, only if she knows for sure it is trendyor if it is amore

expensivepiece,shewillsaveupforquitesometime,sethermindto itandthenbyit

but in this case, it has to be a piece that will be socially recognized as trendy and

expensive

Shopping

behaviour

Followshermodelsandtrends,mixesfast-fashionwithfewpiecesfromcontemporary,

buysonsales

MediahabitsUses all the possible network she canuse,will post pictures of her latest acquisitions,

usesInstagramandSnapchatthenFacebook



Persona2

Demographiccharacteristicsandsociologicalfactors

Age/Education 30-35,greatschool,successfulbusinesswoman

Subcultures GenerationX

Socialclassupperuppermiddleclasstoupperclass,eitherthankstoherfamilyorsheworkedher

wayup

Referencegroups FriendsandFamily,sometimespopularbloggersshediscoveredinherlate20s

FamilystructureUsuallyhaveakid,notnecessarilylivingwiththefatherofthechild/children,boyfriend

orhusband

Psychologicalfactors

Personality Modern,urban,alittledifferent,stylish,dynamic

Personalvalues Socialrecognition,style,opentotheworld,global,connected

MotivationsCan afford looking for a different proposition than luxury brands, more trendy

sometimesbutnotreadytosacrificequality/mixandmatch

Psychographics

Person’slifestyle "Socialite”,middlemarketstorewithrealhighfashionclout,

RelevantactivitiesGooutwithfriends,travela lotwithfamilyandfriends,on“fleek”,goonweekendsto

thecountryside,worksalotandhasnanniesbutenjoyqualitytimewithherkids

Interests Fashion,work,familyandfriends,art

CBpatternsforsegmentmembers

BenefitsoughtTobedifferent,lookforsomethingshemightbethefirstoneinhergroupoffriendsto

discover,bragalittleaboutit

Decision-making

style

“Loveatfirstsight”,muchmorecompulsive,cangoforsimpleunderstatedpiecesevenif

abitexpensive,shedoesnotuseCBasawaytoaffirmsocialstatus

Shopping

behaviour

Followtrendsbutknowswhatshelikesandwhatsuitshersolooksforthisfirst,mixesa

bit of fast-fashion with pieces from contemporary and luxury, does not wait till sales

periodifshereallylovesapiecebutishappytomakeagooddeal

Productusage Dailyuse

Mediahabits

Use social network to stay connectedwith her friends and family from abroad and to

followthetrends,alsopostsabouthertravels,familyetc.butcanbedetachedfromit,

usesInstagramandFacebook



b. TheMarketofcontemporaryBrands

To better illustrate what contemporary brands are, identity cards were created for few examples of

contemporarybrands,whicharequiterepresentativeofthiscategory.Thisdescriptionisnotexhaustivebut

covers different price points, countries of creation (as illustrated on the graph below) and designs

(SCHAEFFER,N.(2015).

Where was It

created?Paris,inleMaraisneighbourhood

When? 1984

Bywho?Morrocan-born Evelyne Chetrite and husband Didier, Evelyne happens to be Maje

designer’ssister

Story?Brand’smotto?

Womanswear,Menswear and accessories - cult followingwithwomen charmedby its

insouciant, seasonless separates and rock’n’roll aesthetic. Focusing on details that are

elegantandeffortless,Sandro’sspecialtyispersonifyingthatcovetedbrandofFrenchje

nesaisquoiandinsouciantedginess.

Whataboutnow? 266Storesworldwide,inmajorFashioncapitals:NYC,Japan,CoventGardenLondon

Howmuch?Separatestotalbetween100€-400,furgoodsupto1800€,leathergoodsaround500and

moreaffordablesmallaccessories

Figure15:CountriesofOriginofContemporaryBrandsExamples



Where was It

created?London

When? Createdin1978thenRelaunchedin2008

Bywho? LucilleandRichardLewinthenrelaunchedbyformerTopshopDirectorJaneSheperdson


Womenswear,Menswearandaccessories

Womenswear:Cleanersilhouetteswithamorebolddetailingandsophisticatedpalette:

maincoloursareolivegreen,camel,tearoseandblack

Menswear: Contemporary design with modern utility, versatile, neat features,

appropriateforworkandleisure

Whataboutnow? Morethan120storesworldwide,includingFrance,Ireland,Switzerland,USA

Howmuch?

57mRevenues(2013)

Tanktopstartingoffat50€upto450€jacketsandcoat

2300€forfurpieces

Leatherpiecesataround500€

WherewasItcreated? London

When? 2002

Bywho?Maia Norman, avid sportswoman and surfer from California

CreativeDirectorAmyPowneyjoinedMotherofPearlin2006


Focus technical sportswear with an inspiration from the London artfor the prints

Inspiration from social photographers and fashion photography from the 80s and 90s

Strongnaturalfemininityofthewomeninathleisureclothings

Whataboutnow?

80 stores worldwide – in Asia, Australia, Eastern Europe, Middle East….

300-400€ printed sweatshirts and canvas sneakers up to 1 300€ for crystal-encrusted

coats

11–50employees



Where was It

created?Stockholm

When? 1996

Bywho?Founder and Creative Director Jonny Johansson has a strong interest in photography,

art,architectureandcontemporaryculture


Fashion house with a multidisciplinary approach that involves creation process

Acne Studio has become a well-respected ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories,

magazines, furniture, books and exhibitions brand

Carefordesignandattentiontodetail,fortailoringandamultiformuseofmaterialsand

custom-developedfabrics

Whataboutnow?40+ Stores in addition to the Stockholm headquarters, with flagship stores in Paris,

London,NewYorkCity,LosAngelesandTokyo.

Howmuch?120meurosRevenues(2013-14)

$150-250tops,withcoatsforaround$1200

WherewasItcreated? LosAngeles

When? 1996

Bywho?CreatedbyScottSternberg

RelaunchedbydesignersNiklausHodel,FlorianFederandMatthiasWeber


Originallyfoundedasaminimalistmenswearcollectionthenitssuccessledtothelaunchofa

womenswear collection in 2007

Combination of American and European inspirations for a classic American athletic brand

thathonouroutsiders

Uniform dressing, including shrunken schoolboy blazers, narrow oxford-cloth shirts, and

impeccablycuttrousers

Combination of American and European inspirations for a classic American athletic brand

thathonouroutsiders

Howmuch? Pricesfrom$125fort-shirtstoalmost$2000foratrenchcoat



WherewasItcreated? Paris

When? Createdin1945andrelaunchedin2009

Bywho? CarventhenGuillaumeHenry


Combination of hyper-femininity and urban sportiness

Attentionfordetailssuchasstrongcut-outsandprints

DesignerGuillaumeHenryrecreateda“coolgirl’slabeldujour”withoutrenouncingthe“old

school”spiritinspiredbycreatorCarven

Howmuch? From$300sweatshirtsanddressesforjustunder$1000

WherewasItcreated? Milan,Italy

When? 2009

Bywho? 39-year-oldDJ-turned-designerMassimoGiorgetti,passionateaboutFashionsinceyoung


Inspiration from indie music, contemporary art and the online revolution

Strongsenseoffreedomandexpressionofcreativity

“More-is-more”philosophyanddesign,withrichandstrongcolours,prints,shapes

Whataboutnow?5 flagships (Milan, Hong Kong, Dubai, Singapore, Tokyo)

Stockistsinover110countries

Howmuch? Separatesaround$400anddresseswithelaborateprintingupto$1000

Very few studies have been conducted to evaluate the market size for contemporary brands in Western

Europe.Togetabetter ideaofthepopulationwhocouldpotentiallybuythesebrandsandhowmuchtheir

purchaseswouldrepresent,thefollowingevaluationwasled:

- Populations in the 3 main countries of interest – namely Italy, France and Great Britain – were

roundedupandanestimationofthepopulationlivinginthemainurbanareawasderivedfromit.

- Thepopulation isestimated tobe split into5agegroups:0-20,20-40,40-60,60-80andabove80.

Thatofinterestwhenitcomestocontemporarybrandsis20-40.

- TheFrench“ObservatoiredesInégalités”(2016)assessesthat20%ofmeninFranceearnmorethan

3000€eachmonthandthat10%ofwomendo.Thesenumberswereextrapolatedtotheothertwo

countries.

- Thepricerangeforcontemporarybrandsisroughlybetween150€and1500€:theaveragemonthly

spendingisthusseta500€.



Followingthesehypothesis,thetotalcustomertargetreaches675000people,livinginthe3mainmarketsof

Western Europe, being Italy, France and the United Kingdom; this accounts for amonthly 337,5million €

spendinginthese3countries,aspresentedinthetablebelow.

Aspromisingandtrendyasitis,thecontemporarycategoryisnotyetuntroubledandstillhasobstaclesofits

own.

c. TheCurrentSituationandChallengesforContemporaryBrands

Thechallengescontemporarybrandsaremultipleandfirstlieinitsintricate,notconsensualdefinition.

As previously discussed, different categories have even emergedwithin the contemporary category, giving

evidenceofthelackofclarity.Indeed,let’sgobacktothethree-tiereddefinitionandcriteriaitwasbasedon:

design, price and quality. Some brands seem to respect some criteria more than others, which leads to

questiontheiraffiliationstothecategory.

Alltheaforementionedcontemporarybrandsroughlyfitintothepricedefined;exceptforsomeextraordinary

pieces,notrepresentativeoftheoverallcollections(forexamplethebelowoversizedshearlinggoldenjacket

fromAcneonFigure15).

Table2:MarketSizingforContemporaryBrandsinFrance,ItalyandtheUnitedKingdom

Figure16:Fall2016AcneStudioJacket(Source:www.acnestudios.com)



That’swhere the shoe pinches, especially the lower-end of the category in terms of price point. The “The

French ContemporaryWave That's Reshaping Ready-to-Wear” article (Business of Fashion Editorial Board,

2016, p1) is very enlightening on the case of the SMCP group (Sandro – Maje – Claudie Pierlot). The

outstandingperformancesofthegroup–Sandro’sturnoverwentfrom15millionin2007toanestimated200

millionin2011–arebasedonawell-oiledstrategyidentifiedbyBusinessofFashion.SMCPhasbuildadistinct

brand image, inspired by luxury brand images, thanks to store opening on high streets and in popular

neighbourhoods, refined interior decorations and superior customer service. They have also created their

own stylistic identity that follows trends set on the runway, adapted for their own brand. The last

characteristic of their strategy is the most critical for SMCP to actually match the full definition of a

contemporary brand: the operationsmanagement. Indeed, to accomplishwhat they did in the past years,

SMCPhasgivenuponhigh-qualityproductionandmanufacturetheirproductsinlow-labour-costcountries,

includingChinaandtrytofunctionlikefast-fashionZaraandH&Mintermsofsupplychainmanagement.This

applies to other brands such as Zadig et Voltaire andMichael Korswhenothers like Carven pay particular

attention tomanufacturing locally and promote French craftsmanship, as reported by JacquesDesbuisson,

MarcJacobs’sPRManager.TibifounderandcreativedirectorAmySmilovicdeclaredonthatissue:“Itoldmy

husbandthatIfeltlikeweweredrivingthecarthroughatunneloffog(…)ZaraandTopshopwereopening

up everywhere, and I didn’twant to comedownon price because the qualitywould be compromised.”

(SHERMAN,2016,p1).

Whenitcomestodesign,itisoftenacceptedthataFashionbrandhasastrongaestheticsignaturewhenfast

fashionbrandsstartcopyingit.Thiscanhappeninthecaseforcontemporarybrands:theAcnejacketabove

has its own high-fashion cheaper version at Zara. Yet, a Business of Fashion article (SHERMAN, 2016, p1)

somewhatsuggestsotherwise,quotingHughMullins,formerNeimanMarcusVP:“There'sasamenessofthe

product.Thereisn'tthedifferentiationthatthereis inthedesignermarket”.Brandswerelaunchedinthe

contemporary segmentand today, it is feared that themarket is reachingsaturation,making itharderand

harder tocatch theeyesof customers.Asmentionedbefore, someof the lower-endcontemporarybrands

havesuccumbedtothesiren’scallofchoosingprofitsoverquality,somewhatfallingintofast-fashion.Inthis

way,anotherchallenge,tightlylinkedtomarketsaturation,isthequestionofpositioning,whichalsoaffects

thehigher-endofthecategory.Forexample,afteryearsofdithering,Leon’sandLim’sKenzoisgoingbackto

its “topof the contemporary” origin, backing down from luxurywithout compromising their creativity and

uniqueness. If Kenzomanaged to made up its mind, the ongoing hesitations tend to confuse people and

clarificationisneedednottoloosethecustomerbase.

Lastly,elevatingtheirbrandscanbequitechallenging,alongwithaffirmingtheirpositioningbetweenluxury

andaccessibility.This iswherethedistributiondilemmakicks in, inordertofindtherightbalancebetween

building strong brand identity and ensuring accessibility and sustaining profitability. 19-year-old

contemporary brand Tibi got to gripswith this question,moving for fading brand to one of the swankiest



brandsonthemarket.Theygaveuponprintsbecause“It’snotadefiningcharacteristic.Wearegoingtobe

aboutwhatIwanttobeabout.”(SHERMAN,2016,p1)andturnto“Clean,modern,feminineandrelaxed:If

everypiecewedidencompassedthose,theneverythingwasgoingtobewhereourDNAwas”.Theirshiftin

designwasnotwelcomewithopenarmsbybuyersatfirst,especiallydepartmentstoreswhowouldnotagree

to move them into the more fashionable area of the store. But Tibi held on and started building the e-

commerce platform, a reputation, consistentlywith the new identity they decided on. Slowly, they built a

distribution network based on direct retail in well thought out locations, on department stores that now

promote theirbrandasdemandedandononline retailing. Elevating theirbrand,making it bothaccessible

and somewhat exclusive took time and appeared to have been arduous but it is also not discretionary to

sustainprofitability.

This delicate position, between exclusivity and accessibility, of reachable luxury was perceived when

interviewingcustomers.Theywereaskedtoassesstheluxuriousdimensionofcontemporarybrandsbasedon

their exclusivity, the goods quality, design and prices. If the level of design clearlymatches that of luxury

brandsandif65%oftherespondentsagreedthatthepricesmakecontemporarybrandsluxurious,exclusivity

andqualitycollectedabout60%ofnos(Figure16).Regardingthequalityofthegoods,theresultsmightbe

slightlyflawedandworthtemperingbecausetheSMCPandtheKoopleswerethemostwidelyknownbrands

andasseenbefore,thequalityoftheirproductscansometimesleaveabittobedesired.

As for exclusivity, for contemporarybrandsnot tobe as exclusive as luxurybrands is actually part of their

strategy but it the brand image should not suffer froma lack of exclusivity. But this “stuck in themiddle”

position can be addressedwith astute distribution that lives up to the customers’ expectations. Themost

recurrentelementsappreciatedbycontemporarybrandsconsumersareshowedinFigure17andarerelated

tothestoresfeatures, theproductprices, theservicesandobviouslytheproduct itself.This iswhatbrands

shouldworktowards,thatisgreatlevelofpersonalisedservice,comfortableatmosphereandawidevariety

ofhigh-quality,good-value-for-moneyproducts.

Figure17:Assessmentofwhatmakescontemporarybrandsluxurious



Figure18:Featuresofcustomers'favouritestore

MarcJacobsisanexampleofacontemporarybrandthatistakinguptypicalcontemporarybrandschallenges,

primarilybecauseoftherecentrepositioningofthebrandandthemergerofthetwolines.



MARCJACOBS

1. THEDESIGNERMarc Jacobs was born in a well-to-do New-York background in

1963andraisedbyhisgrand-motherintheposhUpperWestSide.

It isherwhofirsttaughthimhowtosewandknit,supportinghis

growing interest for Fashion and Design and enrolled him in the

High School of Art and Design so he could pursue his dream.

Duringhishighschoolyears,hemanagedtogetajobatCharivari,

an avant-garde concept store, with a sharp sense of trends.

Following the steps of his rolemodel Perry Ellis, he entered the

ParsonsSchoolofArtandDesign.Hissenioryeardesignproject–a

collectionofbrightpinkoversizedsweaterswithgiantsmileyfaces

on,hand-knittedby Jacobs’ grandmother caught theattentionof

RobertDuffy,formerbuyeratBergdorfGoodmanandexecutiveat

ReubenThomas.With the samecollectionhewon thePerryEllis

Gold Thimble Award and Design Student of the Year award in

1984.ThefirstMarcJacobslabelislaunchedin1986byJacobsand

Duffy,withnosignificantfinancialsupport.

In 1988 they both joined Perry Ellis, as Artistic Designer and President, which reached amilestone in the

historyofMarc Jacobsasabrand. Indeed, their1992Grungecollectionprovokedapublicoutcry, received

unanimouspoor reviews in thepressand in the industry ingeneralandgot the two laidoff. Yet, it isnow

consideredasoneofthemostimportantcollectionsofthe20thcenturyandsetthescenefortheMarcJacobs’

legend.With irreverence, boldness and imperfection as core values,Marc Jacobs –with the unconditional

helpofDuffy–launchedhisbrand“MarcJacobsInternational”in1993totalktoachicandliberatedyouth,

underthewingofAnnaWintour,VogueEditorinchiefherself.

2. THEBRANDINTHERECENTYEARS

In1997,DuffybrokeredamajordealwithBernardArnault,PresidentandfounderoftheLVMHgroup:Marc

Jacobs International became the first American LVMH investment, thus getting access to highly qualified

teams, LVMH resources and suppliers. The first Marc Jacobs store was opened in NYC onMercer Street,

paving the way for brand expansion both in the US and abroad till the $1-billion-100-stores-worlwide

companyitistoday.Itisworthpointingoutthatthetwolines–MarcJacobsandMarcbyMarcJacobs–had

beendriftingawayfromeachinthelate2010sandthemuchneededstrategicrepositioningofthecollections

Figure 19 : Marc Jacobs at work (Source:

www.marcjacobs.com)



(Figure19) ledtotheabandonoftheMarcbyMarc lineandthereworkingof theMarcJacobsbrand in its

entirety.

While implantingthesuccessivestrategicchanges,MarcJacobs’ imagegota littlecomplexbutthebrand is

tryingtoestablishitselfasadesignercontemporarybrand,characterisedbyastrong,easilyidentifiablestory

thatisreflectedinemblematicpieces.Eventhoughcontemporary,MarcJacobs’visionhasremained“luxury”

andithaskeptitsemotional,irreverentside,deartothecustomers’hearts.

The products sold in theMarc Jacobs corners and stores range from Ready-to-wear and Shoes to Leather

Goods,WatchesorcosmeticsandFragrances,aspresented inFigure20.WomanReady-to-wear,shoesand

accessories, jewellery and tech items are managed internally whenMen RTW, kids Little Marc RTW line,

sunglasses, fragrances, cosmetics and watches are licenses, ordered to external suppliers, such as Kendo,

Coty,FossilorSafilo.

AlltheMarcJacobsproductsareproducedandrenewedasfrequentlyastheFashioncalendardictatesso:the

twomaincollections,namelyFallandSpringareprecededbythePre-FallandResortcollectionsrespectively.

Figure20:MarcJacobsrepositioning(Internalsource)

Figure21:MarcJacobsProductOffering



Today,thechallengeforMarcJacobsistotodeliverareconciledandconsistentoffertotheircustomers:for

thepastyears,theleathergoodsandaccessoriestendtobeverycontemporarybutoutofstepwiththeshow

inspirationsandaveryinspired,artisticready-to-wearcollectionthatcansometimesbealittleexpensivefor

theyoungercontemporarybrands’clients.

Finally,todistributetheseproducts,MarcJacobsreliesonaninternationaldistributionnetwork,onwholesale

retailers,company-ownretaildoorsandane-commerceplatform.The4retailpointsofsales inEuropeare

the Saint Honoré flagship, located on the well-known Parisian Rue Saint Honoré, the two corners in the

Galeries LafayetteHaussmanndepartment store and theMount Street store of the British capital in fancy

Mayfair. Themost profitable store in theworld – especially considering its size – is theGaleries Lafayette

Accessoriescorner,managedasaretaildoor,butfarfromlimitingitsdistributiontoretailstores,MarcJacobs

reliesonawell-developedwholesalenetwork,mostlydepartmentstorescorners,intheFranceprovinces,in

EuropeandMiddle-East.

Distributionwill now be lingered on because themost adequate combination of distribution channels is a

controversialmatterandcontemporarybrands’differsfromluxurybrands’idealsolution.

Ashortdescriptionof thedifferent typesofdistributionwillhelpunderstandwhat’sat stakeandwhat the

optionsare.Commonbeliefswill thenbeconfrontedtoMarc Jacobsteamviewsandcontemporarybrands

customers’opinions.



DISTRIBUTINGFASHION

1. DEFINITIONOFDISTRIBUTION

AnthonyKent&al.(2016)definedachannelasa“customercontactpoint”,apointofinteractionbetweena

brandand its clients. FabrizioMosca (2016) specifies thatadistributionchannel combinesorganizations so

theproduct reaches the finalcustomer,constitutesapointofaccess to theproduct for theendconsumer,

whoisputinasituationfavourabletoapurchase.CompaniesintheFashionindustrycanresorttodifferent

typesofchannels,asdescribedbelow.

IndividualStores

Thefirstdistributionchannelthatusuallycomestomindisthestore,whichreferstoasingle-brandchannel

thatoffersadirectaccesstotheproductsofabrand,wherecommunicationiscontrolledfromAtoZbythe

brand. The stores often are flagships, known for their ideal illustrious locations. There, the brand DNA is

unrivalledandcustomerexperienceisatitsutmost,sincethebrandcontrolseveryaspectofthejourneyin-

store,fromthelayouttothesmells,thewindowsdecorationsandthestaff.Thefirstmotivationforopening

flagshipstoresisvisibilityratherthanreapingoutstandingbenefits.

Yet,forobviousfinancialconsiderations,franchisesareoftenapreferredoptionsinceitallowsthebrandto

maintain itscontrolontheassortmentandthe imageconveyedbythestore,yet itdoesnot requireheavy

investmentinbrickandmortar.Openingastoreinmallsisalsopossibleandquiteattractive–giventhatthe

offer as it seems to ensure a minimum traffic: this is called a self-standing store. Products can also be

distributedinmulti-brandstores,ownedbyindividualswhobuyfrombrandsoftheirownchoosing,basedon

thepricerangeandtypesofclothingtheywanttobeselling.

DepartmentStores

Departmentstoresarelargemulti-brandgeneraliststores,cherishedbybrandssincetheyprovidetrafficand

visibility.Departmentsometimeshavetheirownbuyersinchargeofpickingtheproductssoldintheirstores,

amongstawidevarietyofbrands,usuallyrangingfromhigh-endofmedium-end.Otherwise,theybasetheir

businessonthemanagementof“shop-in-shops”:thiscorrespondstoaconcession,acornerinabiggerstore,

fullymanagedbythebrand,intermsofstaff,displaysandassortment,inthelimitedspacethatitrents(for

example,MajeinlesGaleriesLafayette,MoschinoinlaRinascente).

ConceptStores

Concept stores gather a refined selection of products of many different kinds that fits their image, their

identity, their vision: they sometimes organize events and entertainment but mostly work on building a

strongidentityfortheirownbrand,ratherthanforthebrandstheysell.



OnlineStores

Thefastestgrowingchannelisunsurprisinglytheinternet:thebrandcaninteractdirectlywithitscustomers

orsellitsproductsviaanonlinemulti-brandsellingplatform,suchasNet-A-Porter.Eitherway,theaccessto

information is immediate, facilitatedandgoesbothwaysasbrandscanalsoget immediate feedbacks from

theircustomers.Themainchallengeremainsthatbrowsingisoftenhardlyturnedintobuying.

Outlets

Asforoff-priceretailing,productsfrompassedseasonsaresoldatadiscountedpriceinbrandoutletstores,

sometimeslocatedinoutletvillagesorcentres,inordertogetridoftheremainingstocks.

Alltheaforementionedtypesofstorescanbeclassifiedinto2categoriesofchannelscalleddirectandindirect

channels.Anindirectchannelinvolvedathird-party(retailcompanies,onlineretailersordepartmentstore)in

chargeofmanagingtheprocessofdistributingtheproductstothecustomers,forthebrand.Intermediaries

arenowneeded,addinglinkstothesupplychain.Ontheotherhand,adirectchannelbelongstothebrand

thatisinchargeofdistributingandsellingitsowngoods,withnointermediaryofanykindbetweenthemand

theirend-consumers.Inreality,brandsdonotmakeaManicheanchoicebutratherturntoacombinationof

thetwo,dependingontheirownneedsintermsofdistribution.Thekeythoughistomakesurethecustomer

experienceandbrandimageremainconsistentthroughoutthenetwork,regardlessofthefactthatthebrand

fullycontrolsthechannelornot.Furtherprecisioncanbemadeondirectchannelsthatcanbedescribedas

selectiveorexclusive,ashighlightedbyChevalierandMazzalovo(2012): it isselectivewhenthegoodsand

servicesaredistributedthroughavoluntarilyrestrainednumberofstoresanditgetsexclusivewhencontrol

overthechannelsissotightthenumberofstoresiskeptverylow.

An indirect distribution strategy secures steady inflow ofmoney and limits the financial investment in the

retailnetwork-thusfreeingitupforothersourcesofspendingsometimesmorecrucialforfashionbrands,at

the different stages of its existence. Yet, it has been noted that brands tend to turn to direct distribution

rather(orfavouritinamixeddistributionstrategy)asitgivesthebrandfullcontrolonwhatissoldtotheir

customersandhow.Theyarealsoinapositiontogetfeedbacksdirectlyfromtheircustomers,gettoknow

themandtheirexpectationsbetter inordertomakewiserdecisions inthefuture. Intermsofselectivity, it

depends on the degree of exclusivity the brand is looking for and the challenge here is to find a balance

betweenproductavailability,brandexpansionandgrowthandover-exposure.

PatrickTHOMAS,presidentofHermesdeclaredin2011:“Iamwaryoftheparadoxofluxury:themoreoneis

desired,themoreonegrowsbutthemoreonegrows,thelessdesirable” (BERGHAUS,2014,p158),giving

prominencetothecriticalimportanceofchoosingtherightdistributioninbuildingalong-termstrategyfora

Fashionbrand.



2. WHYISDISTRIBUTIONSUCHACHALLENGEFORCONTEMPORARYBRANDS?

Inbrandingwediscussedhowgatheringpeoplearoundthecorevaluesofabrand iscrucial toensure long

lastingresultsbuthowcanthisbeachievedwithsomanydifferentwaysofdistributing?Howdistributionis

keytofindthemuchneededbalancebetweenaccessibilityandexclusivity,specifictocontemporarybrands?

Asthenetworkgrows,asthebrand’scontroloveritsdistributionnetworkloosens,howcanitmakesurethe

initialideaofwhatthebrandisintendedtoberemainsthesame?

Anotherquestionariseswhenconsidering the internet: ina sense, itdoeshelpwithmaking contemporary

easilyreachable,evenfromremoteareaswherenostorehasbeenopenedyet.ButasProfessorAnne-Flore

Maman highlighted in her her speech on “the Online Semiotics of History & Heritage of Fashion Luxury

Brands”,exclusivityandgreatservicequalityisinherenttothedefinitionofluxuryandcontemporarybrands

claim to be somewhat luxurious. Internet is a mass media that creates new buying rituals: it no longer

involvesinteractionwiththeproduct,withthefabricandcontroloverthebrandimageisatrisk.Yet,internet

isnotoptional forbrands targetingat young,dynamic, connected customersand theperceptiononwhole

distributionnetworkneedsrethinking.

This has been the subject ofmany discussions but two articles posted on the Business of Fashionwebsite

stood out andwill be the starting point of this argument. The article “Andrew Rosen talks trouble in the

contemporarymarket” (SHERMAN, 2016, p1) is very enlightening as Founder and CEO of Theory, Andrew

Rosen - often thought of as the creator of contemporary brands in 1997 - mentions both the difficulties

contemporary brands are facing but also how he sees the rework of the distribution network as an

opportunity.Firstly,withno innovationandnowproductsbrought to themarket,a contemporarybrand is

doomedbecausecustomersnowhavesomanyoptionstochoosefrom.Yet,thedirechangescontemporary

brandsareforcedtomakeactuallyaffecttheentireindustryandonewayofaddressingthesechallengesisto

buildstrong,differentiateddesignandbrandidentity:“Ifyoucreateacultureandareabletoexecuteavery

strong aesthetic and to be authentic to that, then I think you can be successful”. But the contemporary

marketisallthemoresubjectedtoupsanddownsthatitreliesonwholesalemorethananyothercategories

andwholesalebusiness is drivenby customers’moodand shift in tastes.Rosenandothers in the industry

consider wholesale and any sort of intermediaries to be obsolete: “Clearly, one of the things that has

dramatically changed our industry is vertical retailing. Today, it’s even more dynamic than it used to be

becauseIdon’tneedaretailer,Idon’tneedamagazine,Idon’treallyneedanyonetoreachmyconsumer.I

can reach [her or him] directly myself”. By this, hemeans that a brand can now be fully autonomous to

manage its communication and brand image. On one hand, social media reach far more people than

magazinesandconstituteagreatcommunicationplatform:“YourInstagramisalsocurrency”.Ontheother,

thebrand’slifestyleanduniversearefullyinjectedintheretailstoreswherecustomershaveaccesstoawide

rangeofproducts.



ThisisreminiscentofanotherBusinessofFashionarticlecalled“TheFutureofRetailistheEndofWholesale”

(STEPHENS,2015,p1)writtenbyDougStephens,founderofRetailProphet,aconsultingcompanyspecialized

incustomerexperienceandstrategydevelopment.

“E-commercewillrapidlyreshapetheentireeconomicmodelofretail,spellingtheendofwholesale”

DougStephens,founderofRetailProphet(STEPHENS,2015,p1)

ThefirstobservationStephensmakesresemblesthatofRosen:thewholefashionindustryischanging,some

whoadaptandembracechangeswillsurvive,theotherswillsoonpayfortheiroutdatedprofitabilitymodel.

The main reason for this is the expanding prominence of the internet, with online retailing estimated to

representuptoathirdofthetotalbusinesswithin10years.Thatis,onlineretailingwillbecomeanessential

distributionchannel,thuslesseningtheroleofphysicalstoresasweknowthemtoday,whichwillnolonger

bethefavouredwayofsatisfyingcustomers’wisheswhenitcomestoshopping.Becauseonlineshoppinghas

becomesoseamlessandofferscompletenewperspectives, itmeansbrickandmortarhastoreinventitself

andoffersadditionalvaluetothesoleactionofbuying.AccordingtoStephens,wholesaledoesnotbelongin

this newmodel and the customer experience enhancement neededwill only occur in the retail store. The

saleswillnolongerbethemainfocusoftheretailstorebutrathercommunicatingastrongbrandimage,an

atmosphereandenhancingkeyproducts.Theywillservetheentiredistributionnetworkandencouragesales

somewhereelse,especiallyonline.

Intheir“LuxuryGoodWorldwideMarketStudy(Fall–Winter2015)”Bain&CompanyItaly(2015)statesthat

brandretailandonlineplatformsaredevelopingandevencallsthephenomenona“retailizationof luxury”.

Networkexpansionisusuallyachievedthroughphysicalcompany-ownedstoreopenings,alongwithanomni-

channel developmentwithonlineplatforms. E-commercepenetration ratehasdoubledbetween2012and

2015,dominatedbybigonlineplayersspecializedinonlineretailingandphysicalretailerswhohaveopened

their e-commerce platforms. Yet, they insist on the fact thatwholesale remains the dominant distribution

channelthatrepresents66%ofthepersonal luxurygoodsmarket,as illustratedonthegraphbelow(Figure

21).

Figure22:“Wholesalestilldominatesamongstdistributionchannels,butcompany-ownedretailgrowsfaster”

(BAIN&COMPANY,2015,p16)



Is wholesale really the ugly duckling of distribution to point the finger at? To what extend is retail the

preferredsolution?

a. TheendofWholesale–Futureisretail

TheEndofwholesale

Criticismswereraisedonwhetherwholesaleshouldbeusedornottosellcontemporarybrands.

Indeed,thefirstcriticismmadeagainstwholesaleretailingisrelatedtopricingandwholesalerevenuemodel.

First,whenconductingabrandvaluation,resortingtowholesaledistributioncanbeharmfulforthebrandas

the revenuemodel fromwholesale isdeemeduncertainandunreliableon the long-term. In fact, theprice

paidbythefinalconsumerinwholesaleshouldcoverboththebrandandthewholesaleretailer’smargins.

Let’shaveacloserlookathowthepricingsystemfunctions,asdetailedintheForbes’“HowFashionBrands

SetPrices»article(Forbes,2012).WhatForbescallsthe“Keystonemarkup”isthemultiplicationby2applied

totheproductpriceeverytimeaprotagonistjoinsthe“distributionchain”,thatis,ifaproductcostsX€tobe

produced,itwillbesoldatleast2X€tothewholesalerandthislatterwillinturnselltheproductfor4 X€to

theconsumer.Thefollowinggraphshowsanexampleofthe“keystonemarkup”,fromtheForbesarticle.

Indeed,thetwomainsuccessivestepsofawholesaletransaction:

- The first step is a B2B transaction, from the brand to the wholesaler, of a product sold for the

wholesaleprice.Thevolumesoldtothewholesalerdistributorshouldbothmatchitscapacityofsell-

outandmeettheanticipatedcustomers’demand.

- TheothermainstepisaB2Ctransaction,fromthewholesalertotheconsumer:itcorrespondstothe

final retail transaction in which the wholesaler sells the brand’s products to the end-user.

Wholesalers usually carry a varietyof brands they selected tomeet their customers’ demand. The

final price set by the retailer should be consistent with the overall product offer and usually

consistentwith the overall product offer and usually framedby pricing recommendations. Indeed,

the times two multiple mentioned in the article is just indicative as the final prices should also

accountfortheinventorycosts,diverserisksandfuturemarkdownsappliedtoit.Finally,thenature

oftheproductitselfconditionsthemultiple.Forexample,MarcJacobsusuallymultipliesthecostsby

2.66forleathergoodsandotheraccessories.

Figure23:Howtoexplainwholesaleprices(Forbes,2012,p1)



Failingatestablishingtheoptimalpricewouldbedetrimentaltoboththebrandandthewholesaler,whether

it is too low –margins do not permit sufficient profits - or too high –making the brands not competitive

enoughandthusriskingharmingprofits.

AnotherissuerelatedtopricingwasraisedbyCarineHanvic,MarcJacobsRetailOperationsManager.Asshe

pointedout,brandsaretryingtomovefromWholesaletocompany-ownedRetailinordertohavefullcontrol

overthedistributionnetwork.Becausewholesalechannelsdonotbelongtothebrand,departmentstoresor

multi-brandstoresareinchargeofthediscountpolicyfortheirstores.Thiscanleadtoblunderingsituations

wherepricesdifferfromonestoretotheother,intheverysamecity,sometimesintheverysamestreeteven

(think“LePrintemps”and“LesGaleriesLafayette”ontheBoulevardHaussmanninParis)!Forexample,prices

canbedifferentinthe4differentParisianstores,evenoutsideofsalesperiods,thosesalesperiodsnotbeing

necessarilysimultaneous.Thisfuelscompetitionbetweenthepointsofsalewithinthebrandnetworkitself,

whichcanbeharmfultothebrandimage.Forexample,thePrintempsHaussmanndepartmentstoremanages

itsdiscountpolicyinfullautonomyanddecidedtodiscountMarcJacobs’carry-overbest-sellersstyleswhen

theusualguidelineistousesalesperiodstopushslow-sellers(seeFigure23).Finally,wholesalersandbrands

agreeontargetsbeforehand,failingthatthebrandischargedpenaltyfeestomakeupfortheprofits ithas

madeattheendoftheyear;thesefeescancometoseveralthousandsofeuros.

Figure24:ProductsdiscountedduringpromotionalperiodsatGaleriesLafayette(Retail)andat

Printemps(Wholesale)



Besides these pecuniary considerations, wholesalers gather valuable information in case they wanted to

launchtheirownbrandsandcollections,todiversifytheirrevenuesstreamandnottodependsomuchonthe

brands they distribute. This is all the truer that they have a deep understanding of theirmarket and their

customersandcontroloverthespaceattributioninstore:oncetheirbrandsarelaunched,theycandecideto

assignthestrategiccornerstothemtothedetrimentofotherbrands(WINSER,2015).

Moreover,whatconfusescustomersandwhatwasbroughtoutbyPierreMouton,managerofthePrintemps

corneristhatwholesalers–havingnocontroloverthestockspastthebuysperiod–canhaveverydifferent

offersthanothers.Thatisalsoaverybigconcernforsmalllocalstoresbecausetheiranticipationprocesshas

to be optimized so they are neither short on stocks nor over-stocked. Indeed, once the pre-buys are

completed, there is a risk wholesalers will lack depth and width on products (meaning the stock for a

particularproductisnotsufficientandthevarietyofproductsisnotwideenough,respectively).Reorderingis

very cumbersome and adding new products to the initial buys linesheets impossible: the level of

communicationneededinthiscaseisoftennotmet,whichitcanendupinveryconfusingsituationsforthe

customersandthus,missedsales.

Finally,asaddedbyHanvic,themainproblemencounteredbycontemporarybrands–andluxurybrandsin

general– isthattheirdistinctiveness isdrowninamyriadofbrands,allstrugglingtostandout. Itdoesnot

help that the staff is hired by the wholesale stores, rather than by the brands themselves: they are not

directlymanaged by the brands,making it harder to train them and follow up on their knowledge of the

brandDNA, the collection inspirationsand sellingarguments.Customers can “zap” fromone corner to the

other, leaving no chance for the brands to trace them. The lack of customer retail management system

implementationdoesnot allow customer loyalty. The idea thatwholesalemakes itmoredifficult to retain

customersandtoimplementstrongbrandconceptissharedbybothAccountExecutiveGiuliaGaspariniand

VisualMerchandisingManagerAlricBrowne.

Inthissituation,wholesaledoesnotseemtobethefirst,undeniablepreferredsolutiontoturnto.Butwhat

exactlymakesretailsoappealing?

AlleyesonRetail

In “Luxury Brand Management”, Chevalier & Mazzalovo (2012) compare the Retail model versus the

Wholesalemodel.Theirstudyshowedthatmanyluxurybrands,suchasLouisVuittonorHermes,believethat

the idealdistributionnetworkonlyconstitutesofretailstorestheyownandthatdistributetheirbrandand

their brand only. Some brands take it to the pointwhere their products are sold uniquely in their stores,

located in the main Fashion cities in the world. This guarantees an unequivocal positioning, uniform

throughout thenetwork, fullyownedandcontrolledby theheadoffices. In this case, retailmerchandising,

retail operations and supply chain areoptimised. Inventory ismanaged smoothly by automatically sending



best-sellers or carry-over styles to the stores and prices are made homogenous throughout the network:

discountperiodsaresomewhatsimultaneousoratleastcoherentinallthestoresandtheonlydifferencein

pricesisduetocustomduties,extratransportationcostsorexchangeratescompensation.

Themainconcernthatcompany-ownedmono-brandretaildistributionaddressesisthatofthebrandimage

andidentity.Throughanumberofvariouselements,abrandcancontrolthemessagesenttothecustomers,

its representation in people’s minds. Those elements are very well described in Uche Okonkwo’s “Luxury

FashionBranding”(2007).ThefirstelementnotedbyOkonkwoisretaillocation,thathastobeappropriateto

reachsalesandservicesexpectations.Itislargelyrecognizedthatsomelocationsareassociatedwithspecific

characteristics,someareknownforbeingchic,othersfortheircoolnessoredginess.That’swhy,regardlessof

howwellthecompanyisdoing,establishingabrandinthewrongneighbourhoodcanbedetrimentaltothe

brand image since it isnot consistentwith thebrandpositioningand itwouldnotbeeasily accessibleand

drivetrafficofthetargetedcustomers.Carefullylocatedstoresareusuallylargeenoughtobeflagshipsthat

carrymostofthecollectionandserveasabrandwindowtotheworld.

Second,thestoreconceptistheoneofthemostobviouswaysofconveyingthebrandDNAandithastobe

perfectly coherent with everything that is said in the press about the brand in order tomeet customers’

expectations. Control over the brand’s image is a constant concern for luxury brands and so they need to

makesurethatthestoreconceptsendstherightmessagetothecustomers,throughdesign,atmosphereand

eachandeverydetailthathelpssellingtheirproducts.Storedesignincludesboththephysicalarrangementof

piecesoffurnitureanddisplayanddecorationfeatures(choiceofcoloursandlighteningforexample).Besides

theaestheticalaspectofstoredesign,thereisalsoastrategicdimensiontoit:ithelpssettingthebrandimage

butmostly,itsuggestsapathforthecustomerstofollowinstore,meanttoincreasetheconversionrate.The

atmospherereferstothecustomer’sexperienceandthesensationsprocuredbythetangibleandintangible

elementsofthestore.Thatisthereasonwhynothingshouldbelefttochance,forthematerialsandfabrics

usedtothemusicplayedinstorebecausetheywill-consciouslyornot–stickinpeople’smindsandbuildup

intothebrandimage.Finally,itisreallyallabouthowtheproductsaredisplayedinthestore,whichiscalled

merchandising.Merchandisingincludesretailmerchandising,that ismakingsurethattherightproduct isat

therightplaceattherighttimeintherightquantityandvisualmerchandising,thatisproductsdisplayingin

store and follow-up on the different levels of sales each display generates. This contributes to pushing

productsthatareeitherslow-sellersoronthecontrary,productsseenaspotentialbest-sellersbythebrand.

Alongwith the sales teamand according towhat they believe in, retail and visualmerchandiserswork on

optimizing the sell-out thanks to the products arrangement and astute products associations that create

stronglooksandimprovebranddifferentiation.Asamatteroffact,merchandisingintermsofofferingwidth

isthefirstelementscustomersconsiderimportantwhenbuyinginaretailstore(Figure24).



At the end of the day, the aforementioned elements a brand has control over in its own retail store

participateinbuildingthebrand’suniverseandinsendingamessagetothecustomers.Thestoreinitselfisa

window, a communication driving force. When customers enter the store, they also enter in the brand’s

bubble.Thisissupportedbythewelcomingandsellingritualsfollowedbythesalesteam,justasanextension

ofthebrand’suniverse.Thegreatlevelofservicedeliveredintheretailstorealsoaimsatstrengtheningthe

experiencebybeingpersonalizedandcarriedoutthroughoutthestore.Thelevelofserviceshouldbeoneof

the prevailing concerns of the staff as it comes second on the list of elements that matter the most to

customers(Figure24)1.

Lastly,Marc JacobsPressManager forReady-to-wear inEuropeandMiddle-East, JacquesDesbuisson sides

with the idea that retail stores carrywith them thebrandDNA. Theyare visitedby customerswithhigher

purchasingpower,morerefinedstyleandpreciseideasofwhattheyarelookingfor.Comingbythestoreis

moreofahabit toeitherdiscover thenewproductsorbuyaveryspecific stylepreviously seenduring the

show,showedinthemagazinesoronsocialnetworks.Becausemanagingcustomerrelationshipandbuilding

a strong sense of community around the brand is fundamental, retail stores pay particular attention to

creating and sustaining customer loyalty. This is achieved thanks to a great level of service and a tight

relationshipwithasalespersoninparticular–atMarcJacobs,allofthemcarrybusinesscardswiththematall

timessotheycanbethepreferredintermediary.Asanillustration,rightaftertheSpring2017FashionShow

inNewYork,theMarcJacobsRetailMerchandisingteamsentahandfulofpicturesoflooksfromtheshowto

theSaintHonoré store forpre-orders. Fewdaysafter,oneof the salespersonand the storemanagerhad

1Intervieweeswereaskedtogradeeachcriteriafrom1to5.Scoresabove4werecomptedanddisplayedforeachelementof

they-axis.

Figure25:Mostimportantelementsforcustomerswhenbuyingforcontemporarybrandsinasingle-brandretailstore



receivedordersoftensofthousandseurospreorders,whichactuallyinfluencedtheentirebuysfortheretail

network.This ideawasalsodiscussedwithAlienorWestphalen,Marc JacobsRetailmerchandiserwho is in

chargeofmanagingthemerchandisingofleathergoods,accessoriesandlicencesforallfourretaildoors.She

summeduptheadvantagesofretailbysayingitoffersalargerassortment(firstcustomerpriority)andmore

services (second priority) formore loyal customerswith greater purchasing power and it allows for larger

margins.

b. Butreally?

Wholesalecansometimesbeaverydecentoption

Yet,aspreviouslymentioned,theBain&Companystudy(Bain&Company,2015,p16)ontheLuxuryGood

MarketshowedthatWholesalechannelformatstillrepresents66%oftherevenuesgeneratedbythewhole

industry.Itthusseemshardtobelievethatthistypeofdistributionisgoingtogoawayovernight!

First, forabrand toopen its retail store requires solid financing,which isnotoften thecase,especially for

youngcontemporarybrandsthatarestilltryingtogainvisibilityandrenown.ChevalierandMazzalovo(2012)

state that a mono-brand store retail network might be the ideal option for well-known powerful luxury

brands, suchasHermesorLouisVuittonbut thathardlycanbrands–especiallycontemporary– reach this

kind of financial profile. In this case, resorting towholesale channels turns out to be an appropriate low-

investmentformofdistribution.Indeed,openingaflagshipstoreisnottheuniversaloptimalsolution:brands

thatarenotpopularenoughyetcannotmakeenoughmoneyoutofittocoverfortheircapitalexpenditures.

Furthermore,wholesalemightactuallymake their liveseasieras theyworkonbuildingup their reputation

sinceitrelievesthemfrommanagingtheinventories,thelogisticsetc.

But what truly matters for a contemporary brand is that wholesale offers visibility, it gives the brand a

platform for the customers to access and discover their products. The most convincing example of this

strategyisthatofBritishWhistlesthatisexpandinginternationallythankstodepartmentstores,asdescribed

onBusinessofFashion(WANG,2014,p1):“Wehaddecidedthatwewouldtestthebrandwithinapremium

departmentstoreinalloftheterritoriesthatwefeltappropriate”-FormerWhistlesCEOJaneShepherdson

(SheresignedonSept,13th2016).

ThishasbeenthestrategyfollowedbyWhistlestoenterinternationalmarkets,formanyyears.Thebrandcan

be found in iconicdepartment stores, suchasPrintemps (Paris, France)orKaDeWe (Berlin,Germany).This

hasallowedthemtogetaglimpseofhowthemarketreactstotheirbrand,withouttooheavyofafinancial

investment.Besides,ithasembracedtheEuropeanconcessionstandardinordertomanagetheircornerand

inventorythemselvesandtocontrolthebrandimageevenwithinadepartmentstore.

Thisstrategy isbacked intheLandSecurityRetail’s“Fashionretail2014:Thefutureof fashionretailing ina

digitalage” (2014) report. SeveralC-levelmanagersagreeonsaying that thecurrentmarket is competitive



andentrybarriers arehigh. Fornewplayers, it hasbecomeharder to createa Fashionbrandand toopen

stores thatare viableon the long-run. In themeantime, “thebig chains thathave survived the recessionare

strongerthanever”:growingcontemporarybrandscanrelyondepartmentstorestobeaplatformthatoffersboth

visibilityandcredibility. Indeed, if ahigh-enddepartment store trustsabrandenough to carry it, thebrandcan

accessthedepartmentstore’scustomerbaseanditwillsendamessagetothecustomersthatthebrand’soffer(in

terms of quality, design etc.) is consistentwith the department store’s image. Co-founder of TheoryAndrew

Rosenaffirmsthattraditionalretailbringscredibilitytobrandsthatcannotnecessarilyaffordotherwaysof

makingtheirbrandvisible.Contemporarybrandscanbenefitfrombeingdistributedbypowerfulwholesalers:

“Havinganinfluentialretailerormagazineauthenticatewhatyou’redoingisimportant”.(SHERMAN,2016,

p1)

When discussing the importance ofwholesale,Marc Jacobs Account ExecutiveGiulia Gasparini highlighted

thatwhenchoosingawholesalertobedistributedby,brandsusuallytakeintoaccounttheenvironmentthat

thewholesalestorewillbring.Forexample,thefloorthebrandislocatedonsayssomethingaboutthebrand

itself. Actually, the locationof the brand in a store helps clarifying the positioning of thebrand, especially

basedon thebrands it is surroundedwith. Inasmallmulti-brandstore, thebrandandproductselection is

consistent so customersunderstand the categoryofbrands they shopping fromstraightaway. In caseofa

repositioning orwhen it needed reaffirming, these elements should be carefully taken into accountwhen

choosing and negotiating with the different wholesalers. Below (Figure 25) shows that the Marc Jacobs

LeatherGoodscornerinGaleriesLafayetteissurroundedwithmanyofdirectcompetitorswhenthehigh-end

luxurybrandsarelocatedatthebottomofthefigure.

Themultiplicityanddiversityofbrands carriedempowerwholesalers to takea littlebitof riskand feature

smallbrandsinexclusivity.Bytakingthis–measured–risk,theycanalsoattractnewcustomerswhocannot

accessthebrandanywhereelse.

Figure26:theMarcJacobscornerinGaleriesLafayetteAccessories(Paris)



Regarding the lack of brand DNA, let’s keep inmind that

brands choose their wholesalers and a clear

communication is key for the relationship to benefit both

parties.Inthatsense,Rosendeclared:“Itcan’tbeathird-

partyconceptanymore(…)Weneedtobothbe invested

in theoutcome,not tradingwith theother”. (SHERMAN,

2016, p1) Brands and wholesalers should work hand-in-

handtoincreasesales,intheinterestofthemall.Doingso,

a rapportof trust buildsupbetween themand thebrand

trusts its wholesaler to choose the appropriate

merchandising and to correctly train their staff, in accordance with the brand’s expectations and

recommendations. An example described by Alric Browne, Northern Europe Visual Merchandiser at Marc

Jacobs was that of Harrods (cf Figure 26). Harrods is in charge of managing all their corners, the

communicationcampaignsforeachofthebrandtheycarryandtheirownstaff. InthecaseofMarcJacobs,

HarrodswantedtochangeVisualMerchandisingonaweeklybasisbecausetheyconsideredthesalesnotto

besatisfying.TheMarcJacobsteamhadtoexplainthatproductssometimesneededtimeonthefloorforthe

customerstoclickjustrightandgavethemguidance.

AnotherexampleisleBonMarchéinParis(Figure27).Thedepartmentstorehasastrongidentityitselfbut

manages to enhance each brand it carries and they all work together on special events or exclusivities to

make the customer experience unique and boost traffic. During the Paris exhibition in September 2016,

brands were asked to come up with exclusive products following the theme of the French capital. The

importance of the department as it iswas expressed by the interviewees, 26% ofwhom visit department

storebecauseofthestoreitself.

MostimportantlyandassuggestedbytheBain&Companystudy(Bain&Company,2015,p16),wholesaleisa

volumedriver. Itmixesmany customers eachday, of different ages, of differentorigins etc.Ononehand,

departmentstores’locationisstrategic,trafficishighallyearlongandbecausepeoplecancomeinandoutas

Figure27:MarcJacobsBeautycorneratHarrods

(London)

Figure28:Drawingofthedifferentcornersonthefirstfloorof"LeBonMarché"(Paris)



theywant,departmentstoresappeartobelessformalthan

company-ownedretailstores.Contrarytothelatter,thereis

no rituals and so some customers might find it less

impressive to come and visit a department store. Recently

hired AreaManager for UK and Scandinavia Helene Rymer

considers departments stores to be more “open”, which

drawsanother typeofcustomers,oftenmore“zappers”. In

fact,63%ofdepartmentstoresshoppersvisittheforseveral

brandscarried(Figure28).

Ontheotherhand,smallmulti-brandstoresalsodesacralize

the purchasing ritual, without for all that giving up on the

levelofservice.Onthecontrary,Rymersaidneighbourhood

storesareknowntocreateloyaltyanddeliverpersonalizedservice.Quiteparadoxically,theysometimesseem

closer to the customersas they renew theiroffer frequently andaccording to their customers’wishesand

demand.Whether it is the big department stores -with their ownnetwork - or the neighbourhoodmulti-

brandwholesaler,thekeyfeaturewhenitcomestocontemporarybrandsisaccessibility.Theymightnotbe

theoptimalchoicetoimmersethecustomerinthebrand’suniversebuttheyarenotdetrimentaltoit–ifwell

chosenbythebrand-andareeasilyaccessiblebythecontemporarybrandscustomers.

Finally,theimportanceofwholesaleandthevolumesitdriveslargelydependsongeographicsbecauseeach

country and region have their own habits. Marc Jacobs Account Executive Gasparini and VMManager Di

FrancescabothmentionedthattheUKisadepartment-stores-drivenmarketandbrandsarebuildingentire

stores within department stores. Same happens in Scandinavia because people there look for the most

convenientoptionandturntothenumeroussmalldepartmentstores.InItaly,ifpeoplegotoretailstoresfor

ultra-luxurybrands,theypreferdepartmentstores,suchaslaRinascenteforcontemporarybrands.InFrance,

theynoted2phenomena:ononehand,intheprovinceswherebrandshavenotnecessarilyestablishedtheir

ownstores,departmentstoresandwholesalersturnouttobethebestsolutionforcustomerstoaccessthe

contemporary brands they like. Marc Jacobs Galeries Lafayette corners manager Lin-Baptiste Zhang cited

multi-brand stores in southof Franceor in Courchevel that sell refined selectionof luxury products, being

everybitasgoodastheirParisiancounterparts.Ontheotherhand,Parisiandepartmentstores–lesGaleries

Lafayette,lePrintemps,leBonMarché–arelargelyvisitedbytourists,mostlyAsians,whotendnottovisitin

theMarcJacobsflagship,wherethefrequentationispredominantlylocal.Thebelowtablewasincludedina

reportoncurrenttrendsforhandbagsandleathergoods.Aspartofthisstudy,thecustomers’portfoliowas

lookedintoanditrevealedthatthesplitbetweenlocalcustomersandtouristsis45%versus55%.Inreality,

thetrafficisnotassuchineverypointofsale:intheGaleriesLafayette–aretailconcessionmanagedbyMarc

Jacobs–thetouriststrafficrepresentsupto70%oftheoveralltrafficandthesituationislikelytobesimilarin

Figure 29 : Customers’ motivations to visit a

departmentstore



le Printemps – awholesale point of sale, justmeters away from the Galeries Lafayette, on the Boulevard

Haussmann.Thisphenomenonisbalancedoutbyan80%localfrequentationintheSaintHonoréflagship.If

the situation is slightlymoreeven in Italyand in theUKbecause localsdovisit laRinascenteor Selfridges,

wholesalerHarrodsforinstanceismostlyfrequentedbyshoppingtourists.

Retailalsohasitslimits

Asdiscussed,ChevalierandMazzalovo(2012)havepointedoutthatamono-channelstrategythatreliesonly

oncompany-ownedretailstorescanonlybeachievedandsustainedbyverystrongluxurybrands.

Inthiscase,mostoftheretailstoresareusuallyflagshipstores,onwhichsalesdependexclusively:exclusivity

istakentotheextreme.Thisseemsproblematicandevenunwantedinthecaseofcontemporarybrandsthat

claimtobeaccessibility(andneedtobeso!).

In a studywith a very explicit title – “Luxury Brands HaveGradually Transformed into Retailers”, Les Cahiers

FashionMarketing(2015),aninformativeonlinemagazinededicatedtoeconomicsandmarketinginFashion

voicetheiropiniononthe“retailization”phenomenon.Adecreaseinin-storetraffichasbeenobservedand

they explain it – amongst other things - by the increasing number of store opening, regardless of the

stagnating number of customers. They specify that while the conversion rate – that is “thepercentage of

userswhotakeadesiredaction”,heretheactionofbuying-hasremainedsteady,thecostsofowningabrick

andmortarretailstorehasmarkedlyincreased,morespecificallytherentsonthehighest“invogue”streets

oftheworld.Inotherwords,luxurybrandshavebecomeretailersbecauseitseemsliketheirmainfocusand

priority isnow tomanage their retail network,driftingaway from theother fundamentals, suchasdesign,

renewal,innovationetc.

Further,retailisnotaflawlesssolution:

- Chevalier&Mazzalovo(2012)calledtoattentionthefactthatwithoutenoughbrandvisibility,there

isagoodchancethata“retail-only”strategywillbeastalematebecauseneitherflagshipstrafficnor

salescantakeoff.

- What is greatly dreaded aboutwholesale distribution is for a brand to be seen everywhere, over-

exposed to the point where customers get fed up with it. As it turns out, this is not specific to

Figure30:DemographicofMarcJaocbsclientsandClientMix(Source:HandbagsTrendsreportSpring2017

-MerchandisingMarketBrief)



wholesale.Thismarketcongestioncouldoccurwhenopening toomanystores thatareusuallynot

flagships but many small stores in malls and in centre cities. As indicated by Marc Jacobs Press

Manager,JacquesDesbuisson,hyperbolicstoreopeningineverycity,ineveryneighbourhoodcaused

thebrandtheKooplestosaturatetheirmarket, resulting ina lossofdesirability fromtheiroriginal

customers.Indeed,customers’longingforthebrandhadwornoff.

Maybe the problem is not really the opposition between Retail versus Wholesale because both need

redesigning, especially now that online is amajor part of the equation and brands should notmake them

competebutrathercombinetheminsuchwaythateachoftheirpitfallscanbeavoided.

c. Towardsanoptimalsolution

Onlineisamust

Although undeniable, luxury brands first showed reluctance to join the digital revolution. Indeed, they

considereddigital a threat against their prestigious andexclusive image (OKONKWO,2007, p178). Besides,

Fashionisabouttextureandaesthetics,abouthowclotheslookwhenworn,aboutclothingcut…Itishardto

conceivethatallthiscouldbebroughttotheinternet,regardlessofhowgoodthezoominis!Ifbrandingisso

importantandheavilyreliesonthebrandenvironment,onthefeelingsthatinteractingwithabrandcauses,

thenitmakessenseluxurybrandshadahardtimeunderstandinghowtheinternetcouldpossibleservethem.

Furthermore, digital allegedly did not allow the usual level of customer service (or any), contrary towhat

luxurybrandshadestablishedintheirstores.Thatiswhybrandstiptoedintothedigitalrevolutionandtried

torelyaslittleaspossibleone-commercetosupporttheirsalesandratheruseditasacommunicationand

marketingplatform(XERFI,2015,p33).At theendof theday, thishesitancytogoonlinewasthereflectof

their fear of loosing control over their hard-won brand image. Besides, RetailMerch, AlienorWestphalen

added that the luxury industry did not necessarily see the opportunity straight away, especially on how it

couldtransmititsfundamentals.

Yet,“thosewhopredictedfashionwouldneversellonlinehavehadtoeattheirwords”(WINSER,2015,p1)

andwhoeverwouldrejectdigitalasawholewouldbeshootingthemselvesinthefoot!Thisisallthetruerfor

contemporary brands as the targeted customers are young and either digital natives or got to digital at a

young age: digital is thus part of their lives, deeply implanted in their way of living – and buying – and

contemporarybrandswouldmissoutonsalesbynotresortingtothistypeofdistribution.

“Onlyfiveyearsago,mostretailersbelievednowomanwouldbuyadresswithoutbeingabletotryiton.

Nowweknowthatnotonlydotheybuyonline,theytradeuponline.”

Adirectorofdepartmentstores(LANDSECURITIESRETAIL,2014,p23)

Thefirstreasonforthisisthatthedigitalrevolutionhaschangedcustomers’behaviour,intermsofaccessing

information,browsingandultimatelybuying.In“Thefutureoffashionretailinginadigitalage”,thedigitalis



described as “themost significant change that has ever been in this market” (LAND SECURITIES RETAIL,

2014,p17)byachiefexecutivewhoworksintheFashionindustry,whoalsobelieves“thearrivalofdigitalis

theequalofthelate1970sforsupermarkets”,showinghowinnovativeandradicaldigital is. Inthesurvey

conductedamongstconsumers,91%ofthemsaidtheynowshoponline,41%visittheirfavouritewebsitesat

leastonceaweek,morethanhalfofwhom,severaltimesaweek.Overall,theyevaluatethewaydigitaltools

havechanged theway theyshopata6.4outof10. In fact,digitalhas led todrastic change inconsumers’

behaviourastheycannowtechnicallyavoidgoingtostorestoshoponceandforall.Theyfeelliketheydonot

relyon retailers somuchand that the ratioofpowerhas shifted to theirbenefit: “Ihave theweb. Idon’t

regard shoppingasa leisureactivityasmuchas Idid.Myattitude is: if a retailerwantsme tobuy from

themtheyhave togivemeaverygood reason. If theydon’t, I’ll lookatotherwebsitesuntilonedoes.”

(LAND SECURITIES RETAIL, 2014, p17). Consumers are increasingly internet-savvy, as a result of the

multiplicationof technologiesgrantingaccess to the internetand improvedonlineplatforms.Even if luxury

shoppers still tend to favourstores rather thanonlineplatforms for theirbuys, theyhaveshowedcuriosity

and interest fore-commerceandare ready tomake itpartof their shoppinghabits. It is thus strategic for

Fashionbrandsnottomisstheboat!(XERFI,2015,p33)

ThisphenomenonofcustomersturningtoonlineshoppingisespeciallytrueinEurope,astheXerfi’s“Luxury

Apparel Brands –World (2015 – 2020)” (2015) reveals. Actually, online luxury fashionmarketwill reach a

predicted780millioneurosintheUK,687inFranceand113inItaly,whichcorrespondstoanaverage19%

growthsince2014overthesethreecountries.Thisalltotalstoanestimated1580-million-euromarket(2076

whenaddingGermany),aftertheUS(3279)andbeforeJapan(846).ItisworthnoticingthatFranceandItaly

aretheonlinemarketsgrowingthefastest,asillustratedbelow(Figure30).

Figure31:Onlineluxuryfashionmarketsize(2014-2018F)(XERFI,2015,p68)



Theimportanceofbecomingdigitalisallthetruerforcontemporarybrandssincetheircustomersareknown

to be young, digital-native, connected customers, who heavily rely on the internet for their “shopping

sprees”.Asshownonfigure312,onlineshoppingcamesecondex-aequowithdepartmentstoresaftersingle-

brandcompany-ownedstoreswhentheywereaskedtheirfavouriteplacestoshopforcontemporarybrands.

Forbrandstokeepupwiththedigitalprogressesandacceptthechangesinshoppingbehaviourisamatterof

maintainingtheircustomers’bases(MCKINSEY,2014,p2).Todoso,brandscanmakeuseoftheinternetin2

mainways:asasellingplatform,throughane-storeorasamarketingchannel.Knowingthat74%of luxury

shopperswithamobilephonehaveasmartphone,that50%ofluxuryshoppers’searchesaremobileand20%

ofcustomerssaidtheyresearchedluxuryproductsbeforemakingapurchase(MCKINSEY,2014,p5),mobile

platformsisthemainfocusformarketingcampaigns,asnoticeableonthediagrambelow(figure32):

2Intervieweeswereaskedtopickasmanydistributionchannelestheyfeltrelevant,outofthe5optionsthey

weregiven.

Figure33:"Wheredoyouusuallygoshoppingforcontemporarybrands?"

Figure32:Overviewofthemainmarketingchannels-Numberanddirectionof

arrowsrepresentstheinterestofhigh-endfashioncompaniesinthismarketing

channel(XERFI,2015,p105)



McKinseyyetwarnsthatthereisnouniversalstrategyintermsofdigitalinvestmentandeachbrandshould

adapt according to their customers, brand identity and existing distribution strategy. They have identified

threecompanyprofilescalled“digitalarchetypes”,asfollows:

- “theplugged-inpro”:theirretailstrategyisdiversifiedsincetheydistributetheirbrandthroughboth

monoandmulti-brandstoresandmakeafulluseofdigital,asamarketingtoolwithsocialmediato

onlinesellingplatform.

- “the selective e-tailer”: they control their distribution network tightly by only resorting to mono-

brandsites.Theyseedigitalasanewway for themtoreachnewaspirationalcustomers thanks to

communication andmarketing campaigns and restrict the selling to few inconsequential products

only.

- “the hesitant holdout”: Usually these small companies limit their distribution to mono-brand

company-ownedstoresanddeemdigitalasawindowfortheirproducts.

For example, Marc Jacobs (both the brand

and the designer) has adopted digital in its

entirety, thanks toawebsite (Figure33) that

isacommunicationande-commerceplatform

aswell as ablog and social networks (Figure

34)MarcJacobsisverykeenonusing.

Like so, theymake sure their contemporary-

branddigital-savvycustomerswillbereached

thankstotheir360-degredigitalstrategy.

Figure35:MarcJacobspersonalInstagramandInstagrampromotionoftheResortcollection(Source:MarcJacobs

InstagramandTheMarcJacobsInstagram)

Figure34:MarcJacobswebsiteinvitingcustomersforthelaunchofthe

Resortcollection(Source:www.marcjacobs.com)



Ultimately,whatever the brand’s degree of digitalisation, going digital is first and foremost aboutmeeting

customers’ expectations towards their favourite brands, especially in a customer-centric strategy. The

advantagesforthemarevarious.Thefirstreasonwhypeoplebuyonline is timesaving, thatwaspicked49

outof209.Thesecond–asforretailstores–isthechoicesavailable.Peoplewanttohaveaccesstoavery

widerangeofproducts,getasenseofwhatisofferedandchoosefromit.Theyarealsoattentivetovalue-

per-money and feel the internet allow them to look for the best deals. Often, websites offer favourable

prices,outsideoftheclassicpromotionalperiodsoftheyear.Theyfindtheshoppingonlineconvenientand

enjoy the global availability of products. Websites that grant international shipping mean they can get

productsfrombrandswhodonotownastore–retailnorwholesale–aroundthem(seeFigure35).

Yet, concerns should be addressed by brands to offer seamless experience on their website, especially

becauseabadexperienceonawebsitecouldharmtheoverall imageof thebrand.Whatcustomersdislike

themostaboutonlineshoppingifthattheycannottouchtheproducts.Thiscouldbegoodnewsforphysical

storesbecausecustomerscouldsatisfy theirneedto feel theproductsbyvisitingthem.Bothdeliverycosts

and timing come second, right before the disadvantages of low service and lack of human contact,which

againcanbesolvedbyavisitinstore(Figure36).

Figure36:"Whatarethemainadvantagesofbuyingonline?"



Farfromsolelybenefitingthecustomers,digitalcanalsoservethebrands.Indeed,mostpeopleinterviewed

atMarcJacobsagreedthattheinternetshouldbeseenasanopportunityforcontemporarybrands.Thefirst

(andmaybemostparadoxical)argumentisthatitallowsbrandstocontroltheirimageandtoincreasetheir

brandawareness.Becausetheycreatetheirowncontentontheirwebsiteandsocialmedias,theyaregiven

the chance to differentiate themselves from their competitors. Besides, as both Desbuisson and Browne

specifieddigitalpermitsamore targetedcommunication, fora specificandknown-beforehandaudience. It

providesthebrandwithotherwaysof reachingout to itscustomers:withvideos, themessage isdelivered

differently.Forexample,MarcJacobsFashionshowisbroadcastedliveontheirwebsiteandthevideocanbe

watchedformonthsaftertheactualshow.“It-products”canalsobepushedwhenintegrated inauniverse,

withrecognizablemusesinthevideoforexample.Thatway,usingallthedigitaltoolsattheirdisposal,Marc

Jacobsmanagedtogetthe“BestInstagrammer”awardatthe2015Fashion2.0Awards.Brandscanthusbuild

a360-degreecommunication, throughamulti-channel strategy thatcombines traditionalmediaandonline

channels(XERFI,2015,p105).

AccordingtoBrowne,thisdigitalpresenceenablesreachinganothertargetthanwithtraditionalmedia.This

ideaofreachingnewmarketswasmentionedduringHeleneRymer’sinterview.Forher,thesenewpotential

customers take advantage of the internet and digital platforms to discover new brands, to explore them

withoutfeelingjudgedinordertodesacralizethemandavoidtherituals,propertoluxuryandcontemporary

brands.Forexample,checkingoutpricesonlinenottohavetoaskforitinstorecanbethefirststeptowards

anactualvisitinstore.

Just like that,digitaloffersvisibility tobrandsand it isnowclear thatcontemporarybrandsare looking for

waystobevisible,tobeaccessibletotheircustomers.Thewidepublicisuniformlyawareoftheproductsand

servicesoffering,inreal-timeandbedraggedintostoreswhenthebrandbecomesmoreandmorepopular.

Figure37:"Whatarethemaindisadvantagesofonlineshopping?"



Some contemporarybrands caneven start by constructing a solidonlinepresence that includesmarketing

ploys and flawless ecommerce experience until there is less

uncertainty,untiltheyhavegainedenoughpopularityanddemand.

Inthisscenario,digitalplaystheroleofwholesalebecausethereis

noheavyinvestmentinbrick-and-mortaranditservesatimproving

thebrand’s visibility: itmakes iteasier toexpand tonewmarkets

with limited capital investments. When interrogating customers,

87% said they had discovered brands online and in half of the

cases,itledtovisitstothephysicalstores(Figure37).

Further, a global audience visiting their website is also an

opportunity for brands to access and keep track of valuable

customers’ data. In particular, their buying habits in terms of

volume bought, frequency, types of products, their path on the

websiteaswellastheirdemographicscanbegatheredandanalysed.Thepopularityofcertainimages,videos

andarticlescanbeevaluatedbasedonthesalesthey ledto(WINSER,2015,p1).Contemporarybrandscan

havedifferentcustomers’profilesandknowingthemindepthcontributestoadaptingmarketingcampaigns,

improvingthebrand’swebsitetobettertheexperiencedependingontheirneeds(McKinsey,2013,p9)and

eventailortheproductsofferingandpricing(OKONKWO,2007,p178-224).

Another point was raised by Retail Operations Manager, Carine Hanvic on how digital can facilitate

commercial transactions,especiallywith internationalcustomers.She

took the example of Chinese customers who visit the Galeries

Lafayette in Paris.Manyof themuse theWechat application, that is

very popular amongst the Asians, to ease the act of buying, with

pictures and references. Local buyers can get products in “live” for

theircustomersbackinChinaandcandosoinstantaneously,showing

theproductonavideo.Farfrombeingtheonlyintroductionofdigital

intothetraditionalbuyingprocessinstore,manycustomerscomeand

ask for products they saw on social networks, on websites or with

inspirations from their favourite influencers. At Marc Jacobs, Press,

Merchandthesalesteamworkhandinhandtocoordinatebecauseif

a blogger has worn a Marc Jacobs bag and if it was published on

WeChat, the teams can adapt reordering accordingly and manage

merchandising to anticipate greater demand. For example, this

happenedwiththe2000-euroFall2016Collectionhandbag“StMarc”

(Figure 38) that sold out in just few weeks after being worn by

celebritiesandcommentedononWechat.

Figure 39 : "St Marc" bag Campaign

(Source:http://www.nawo.com/marc-

jacobs-fall-2016-lookbook-at-neiman-

marcus/)

Figure38:"Haveyoudiscoveredbrandsthanksto

digital?"



Thatbeing said, digital is hardly abedof roses: first, offering visibility gathering informationoncustomers

passing through a website does not mean they are the right customers – they could just be visiting the

websiteoutofcuriositywithnointentionofpurchasewhatsoever–andmetrics,ifnotanalysedwisely,could

bebiased.Second,eventhougheffortshavebeenmadetosetupthebrandDNAandatmosphereonline,ina

different,complementarywaytothestores, itstillcannotofferthesensoryappreciationthat is inherentto

luxury.Ifcontemporarybrandsfeaturetheirhigh-qualityluxury-alikeproducts,theyneedtomakesuretheir

customers can touch, feel and try themon. Besides, the contactwith theproducts is not theonly typeof

contactmissingwhenbuyingonline: the lackof human contactmeans there is no salespersonable touse

sales techniques to convince a hesitant customer or to lead to impulse purchase. This also negatively

influence customer retention because surfing online makes it easier from customers to “zap” from one

website to the other. As said before, great customer service is crucial in store and brands still find it

challengingtoreachthislevelofservice(Ukonkwo,2007,p78-97).Themaindifficultyturnsouttobedealing

with round the clock operations, which means anybody shopping on the website at any hour should get

suitableassistance (in theirmother tonguemost importantly) if needed.This is yet contradicted in Forbes’

“TheFutureofSellingFashion”(WINSER,2015,p1)whoseauthortrustsdigitaltoensure“superiorlevelsof

customerserviceonafarmoreconsistentbasis.”Lowhumancontactisnotseenasanimpediment,onthe

contrary,butanopportunitytofocusandattain“outstandingandpersonalisedservice.”

Finally, asbroughtbyVisualMerchandisingManager,GiacomoDi Francesca, theprocess integration isnot

straightforwardespeciallywhenitcomestoe-commerce.HethinkssellingReady-to-wearonlineinparticular

isarduousbecausereturnsarehardtomanage,especiallybecausethepostsalescustomerexperienceshould

beasexemplaryasthepurchasesoitdoesnotimpairbothcustomerloyaltyandthebrand’simage.Thatis

whathewouldpersonally recommendsticking toaccessoriesandproducts lesssensitive topotential sizing

disappointment.

Althoughlimiting,thefactorsshouldratherbeseeingaschallenges,morethanlimitsasaddressingthemand

taking the most out of digital could serve contemporary brands’ distribution network in its entirety. The

messagethatshouldtobedrivenhomehereisthatdigitalisderigueurandcontemporarybrandswouldbe

mistakennottoseizethegreatopportunitythatliesahead.Yet,digitaldoesnotmakesensewhenstanding

onitsownandcanonlybebeneficialandrelevantwhenintegratedwiththerestofthedistributionnetwork.

Makingthemostoutofthe3distributionchannels

Usingdigitaltoservethenetwork

Online,retailandwholesaleshouldreallynotbeseenasathreattooneanotherbutratherascomplementary

ways to reinforce a brand and support sales; they have got distinct functions that all serve the overall

network.That iswhy traditionaldistributionchannels shouldbeusedalongsidewithnewones topave the

wayforacross-canalstrategy.



Oneofthebiggestchallengesistofacedropintrafficinstore,toattractcustomersbackinstoreandbuilda

solid customerbase that is loyal, ona contemporarymarket that isbecomingmoreandmore competitive

everyday.Digitalappearstobeoneofthefirststepstodosoandhasconsequencesontheoverallpurchasing

process, both in and out of store (XERFI, 2015, p74). Indeed, digital accompanies customers along their

shoppingexperience,fromtheirsearchonlineanddiscoveryofthebrandtotheactualactofbuyproductsin

store.Anadmitteddifficultyofbuyingcontemporarybrandsonlineisthelackoftouchingsotheideaistouse

digital to help explore the brand, thenmake themwant to seemore in store, where they encounter the

classic,perfectlymasteredartofselling.Afterwards,digitalcanbeusetonourishandrekindleloyaltytothe

brand–assuggestedonFigure39-thankstothisback-and-forthbetweenthephysicalstoresandtheonline

universethatworksasanextensionofthestores.

The results to thequestion “Howhasdigital influenced theywayyou

shop in store?” did confirm the idea that digital has not taken

customersawayfromphysicalstores.

The majority of customers will still buy in store (55%), a seventh of

whomevenbuymoreinphysicalthantheyusedto.

Anothermeaningfulfigureisthatonly8.8%ofcustomersdonotcheck

anywebsitesbeforevisitingastore.Theremaining91.8%goesthrough

blogs, brand

websites or

socialnetworks,

amongst many

others.

McKinsey also noted in its “Digital Luxury Experience

2013” (2014) that digital initiatives had positive

consequencesontheglobalsalesofthebrand(Figure

41)ateverystepofthe“consumerdecisionjourney”.

Figure40:Overviewofthemainpointsconsideredbyluxurygroupsinthedigitaldivide(XERFI,2015,p72)

Figure 42 : Example of impacts of different digital KPIs on

salesincrease(McKinsey,2014,p9)

Figure 41 : How has digital influenced the

wayyoushopinstore?



Arelevant illustrationwasbroughtupbyHeleneRymer:thatofclick-and-collect.Eventhoughsheusedthe

exampleoftheGaleriesLafayette,theclick-and-collectrevolutionalsoappliestoretail.TheGaleriesLafayette

own68storesinFranceandtheyobviouslydonotcarrythesamebrands,evenlesssothesameproducts.If

someoneinBordeauxwantstobuyMichaelKorsReady-to-WearthatisnotcarriedintheGaleriesLafayette

Bordeaux store, they can visit theGaleries Lafayetteecommerce site, order the itemof interest and come

pickitupinBordeaux.Thisway,click-and-collectcreatestrafficinstoreandbenefitsthecustomersandboth

theGaleriesLafayetteandMichaelKors–thecustomerdoesnotgotoanotherbrandtofindasubstituteand

trafficinstoremightleadtoevenmoresales.Click-and-Collectisparticularlyhelpfulforbusybusinesswomen

whocannotanddonotintendtospendmuchtimeinstore,whichhappenstobeonethepersonaidentified

ascontemporarybrands’customers.

AnewWholesale

This is made possible by

majorwholesaleplayers,such

as Selfridges (Figure 42) and

le Printemps, grasping the

digitalopportunitybyincreasingtheironlinepresenceandopeningtheownecommerceplatform.

Departmentstoresworkonrecreatingtheiruniverseontheirwebsite,thankstoproductselectionsanddigital

visual merchandising that have to appeal to both their current and new customers. Giulia Gasaparini

explainedthat intheUKespecially,departmentstoreshave jumped intodigital thatstronglysupportstheir

business and contribute to making contemporary brands even more accessible. She also mentioned the

emergenceofwholesalersthatonlyexistonlineandthathavebecomethemaine-commerceplatformsfor

luxuryandcontemporarybrands:theyareNet-a-Porter,YooxorMyTheresaforexample.Thesenewplayers

arerevampingtheinternetandonlinesellinganditseemstobeprettyeffective!AfterYooxandNet-a-Porter

merger in early 2015, the 1.7-billion-euro-revenue-17%-revenue-growth almighty group focused on

differentiating services and features that greatly serve the brands they carry. They come up with refined

selectionsofitems(seeFigure43),relevantforaparticularoccasion,timeoftheyear,aspecificlifestyleetc.

(ABNETT,2016,p1).

Figure43:Selfridgeswebsite(Source:www.selfridges.com)

Figure44:ExampleofaselectionofproductsbyNet-a-Porter-"Your30-secondDate-Nightoutfit"(Source:www.net-a-porter.com)



That way, they can push products from very different price ranges and contemporary stands along with

luxury, like thebelowCarvenandBurberry coats in “TheGreatCoverup:every coat youneed this season”

selection(seeFigure44).

Evenonaproductpage, thewebsitemakesoutfits suggestionsandencouragescustomers todiscovernew

brands.Below,ChloeismixedwithbothcontemporaryAcneStudioandCarven,assquaredonFigure45.This

creates perceptibility and purchase

opportunitiesformoreintimatelabels.

This is all the more significant for

contemporary brands that their

younger target is familiar and frequent

visitors of these websites, whose

editorial-style online magazines and

social networks are particularly

appealing.Inanyways,itseemedlikeit

when consumers answer the question

“whenbuying instore,haveyoupreviouslychecked…?”:outof the3options theycouldpick,multi-brands

platformswerepicked12times,makingittheseconddigitalplatformsusedafterthebrandswebsites.3

3 Intervieweeswereaskedtopickasmanyoptionsastheydeemedrelevantoutofthe6choicestheywere

given.Thescoresforeachofthemisdisplayedonthey-axis.

Figure45:ExampleofthejuxtapositionofcontemporarybrandsandluxurybrandswithinaNet-a-Porterselection(Source:www.net-a-porter.com)

Figure46:ProductpageofaCarvencoatwithsuggestionsofotherbrands'productson

Net-a-Porter(Source:www.net-a-porter.com)



“Weretheywrong?No.Thereisachunkoftheworld’spopulationthattakesgreatpleasureintheretail

experience,enjoyingbrowsinginabricksandmortarstoreandbeingservedbyasmilingsalesassistant.

AndIbelievethatwillalwaysbethecase.Whetheryou’relookingatmass-marketordesignercatwalk

pieces,theideathatyoucantouchandfeelsomethingisveryappealing.Andthefactthatshoppinghas

becomealeisureandsocialactivityinitself,isenoughtosustainthetraditionalshopfrontinanevolved

formformanyyearsyet.”(WINSER,2015,p1)

Assjustdiscussed,wholesalehasstartedtransformingandadaptingtothedigitalrevolution.Forallthat,the

abovequoteindicatesthattheadventofdigitaldoesnotmeanwehaveseenthelastofphysicalstores!

Withregardtophysicalwholesale,conceptstorescouldservethesamepurposeofmixing incontemporary

brandsand introducingthemtoanexpertclientele.Further,conceptstoresusuallyseenas institutionsand

beingcarriedbysomeofthemwouldensurerecognitionamongstfashionistas,asremindedbyLin-Baptiste

Zhang,MarcJacobsGaleriesLafayettecornersmanager.Theuncompromisingselectionalsoallowsthemto

differentiate,elevatethemselvesandstandoutfromtheircompetitors.Forexample,Coletteisfrequentedby

thetopoftheFashioncropandcontemporarybrands,suchasSacai,Off__WhiteorAlexanderWang(Figures

47,48&49)gainedlegitimacyandpublicitywhentheywerepickedtobedisplayedintheParisianstoreand

publicizedtotheinternationalGothathatfollowsColetteonsocialnetworks.

Figure47:"Whenbuyinginstore,haveyoupreviouslycheckedonline...?"

Figure50,Figure50, Figure 50: Contemporary brands carried at Colette (Paris), publisized on Colette's Instagram - From Left to Right:

Off__White,Sacai&AlexanderWang(Source:ColetteInstagrampage)



Further, distribution through department stores does not have to be done grudgingly. Printemps corner

manager,Moutonexplainedthathebelieves inselectingwholesalerswisely,consistentlywith themessage

thebrandwantstosendand inestablishingagreatcommunicationbetweenthetwoparties.Thekey is to

workwiththewholesaleagreements,easethereorderingprocessandenableexceptionalorders,mostlikely

byworkingcollaboratively,withlargerstocks. Internalagreementscanbesignedwithdepartmentstoresto

aim formore fluent customerexperiences. Competitionbetweenwholesale and retail shouldbeput to an

end: communication is indispensable, between the brand and its wholesaler and within its network -

wholesaleandretailcombined-tofacilitateconsistencyandcohesionbetweenthetwo.Finally,ifretailwere

tobe thewantedoptionaboveall, abrandcouldnegotiatewith somedepartment stores tomanage their

ownretail corners,within thedepartmentstore, just likeMarc JacobsdoesatGaleriesLafayette,achieving

thebestofbothworlds.

Retailrepurposed

Asdigitalgrows,storesareparadoxicallymoreandmoreneededandrequestedbycustomersforitslevelof

service, proximity with the products and sales clerks but most of all for the remodelled version of retail.

Professionals from the industry interviewed in the “Fashion retail 2014 The future of fashion retailing in a

digital age” even declared it was “more than alive and well” (LAND SECURITIES RETAIL, 2014, p31) and

regardlessofthegrowingimportanceofdigital, it isandwillremainamustincustomers’shoppingjourney.

Contrarytocommonbeliefs,youthsaresomewhatturningtophysicalstoresasareactiontotheirconstant

exposition to digital and are in need of both tangibility and awe. In the era of new experiences, stores

becomemarketing tools on their own by engaging customers in the brand DNA (WINSER, 2015, p1). This

reinventing isnowawaitedandvital to face the contemporarymarketharsh competitivenessand tomake

retailmoresuitableforthecustomers’demandandexpectations.Itimplies–amongstotherthings-precising

productoffering,customizedservicesandmostofall,makingthestorevisitanentertainingshow.

“It’saverysimplebusiness.Wejusthavetobeworld-classineverythingwedo.Weneedthebestproduct

andanenvironmentthatisexciting,differentiatedandunique.”(LANDSECURITIESRETAIL,2014,p31).

If thenewretail storehad tobeone thing, itwouldbe“amazing”.Asdescribed in“theEndofWholesale”

(2015), the firstwayofachieveastonishment is throughtheproduct itself.Promotingavarietyofproducts

andoriginatingareal journeycustomers liveandwalkalong instorecontributestoshapinganatmosphere

theyslowlyengagein.



Thiscanbemadeeasierwhenthebrandresort

to “product ambassadors”, just like Alexander

Wang did by sending out products to many

young celebrities – the “Wang Squad” - who

wore the clothes and posted them on social

media (Figure 50). Recreating their outfits and

using their images in store helps soaking up

customerswiththebrandcodes.

Joseph PINE II in a Business of Fashion article

(PINE,2016,p1) refutes the fact thatproducts

alone cannot bring the experience customers

crave. Stores arenow showcases, as Pine calls

them:visualmerchandising,music,decorations, servicesanddigitalallaimatcreating thebrandstory that

willdifferfromanyotherbrand.

Theexperiencebecomesmulti-sensorial - in themannerofMarc Jacobs,where the scent is “Marc Jacobs”

andcanbeboughtinstore(Figure51)-,exciting,engagingandcustomersareencouragedtotakeatriptothe

storetobeentertained.

And what is more entertaining than a stage play of the 80s iconic video clip pioneer MTV? To mark the

occasionoftheResort2016seasonlaunch,MarcJacobshostedafleetingpop-upcorner(Figure52)attheir

SaintHonoréflagshipstore,dedicatedtoMTV,theAmericanTVchannelthatfirstbroadcastedmusicvideos

onTV.ThishelpsintroducingMarcJacobsworldanditsinfluencestothecustomers,mostparticularlythe80s

spiritthatspreadsthroughit.Ephemeralityisalsowhatkeepscontemporarybrandsgoingbecauseitarouses

desire in theheartof theiroriginality–lover contemporarybrandcustomers, always looking for the lastbig

thing.

Figure52:SaintHonoréMarcJacobsstore-Fragrancestable(Paris)

Figure51:ModelBehatiPrinsloo inAlexanderWangclothesreposted

onWang'sInstagram(Source:AlexanderWangInstagram)



Moregenerallyspeaking,storesturnintogalleriesjustlikeartgalleriesthatintegrateproductsasapieceof

art,asanoccasiontocreateinteractionsandsocialmediaactasextensionsofthatstaging.Duringtheentire

Fall2016season–aparticularlydark,goth-inspiredcollection–themovieoftheshowwasbroadcastedon

the website, backed up by a matching marketing campaign on social network, especially Instagram to

foreshadowtheatmospheresetupinstore.

Attheendoftheday,customerexperienceaimsatfosteringbrowsingandbuildingbrandloyaltyinbricksand

mortarstores,ratherthanfocusingonactuallyselling:greatcustomerexperienceisexpectedtoricochetinto

sales. Inhisarticle,Pinedoesaffirmthat“Ifyougetyourcustomerstoexperienceyourgoods,thechances

they will buy those goods increases” (PINE, 2016, p1). This idea is that experience is so enticing that

customers cannothelp it but to spend time, commit to theexperienceandultimatelybuy fromwhat they

experienced.

Anotherwaytomakethecustomerexperienceuniqueistoactually

make it as singular as each of the customers, which means

customisationiskey.Thatway,customersgetevenmoreinvolvedin

theproductthatistheirownandsortofco-createitwiththebrand,

tightening the relationship between them even more. Besides, it

enables contemporary brands to further step away from

standardized fast-fashion towards luxury-like personalization

services. For the launch of their Resort 2016 collection, a

customizable selection of products was available in store for

customerstotakethenewcollectionover(Figure53).

Figure53:MarcJacobsMTVlimitededitionatSaintHonoré(Paris)

Figure54 :"Customize-me"eventat theMarc

JacobsSaintHonoréstore



Finally, if the very purpose of stores evolves, so should the Key Performance Indices thatwere previously

used.Assaidearlier,salesvolumelooksaquiteoutdatedwaytojudgethesuccessofthestore’sactivitiesas

relevantlyasbefore.Theaddedvalueofretailstoresisredefinedsoindicatorssuchastimespentin-storeor

level of commitment of the customers would appear as more suitable and accurate. “Time will be the

currencyTheprimarymeasureofretailsuccesswillbehowmuchtimeconsumersspendwithyou”(PINE,

2016,p1).Exceptexperience isnotasobviouslymeasuredas salesorUPT sobrandshave to thinkhow to

assess–bothqualitativelyandquantitatively–servicesoffered,traffic,timespentinstoreandtheircustomer

understanding,forinstance.

FollowingPine’sidea,thenewretailconceptreallyservesboththebrandanditscustomerequally:customers

gettospendanenjoyabletimeina“showcase”,gettoknowthebrandindepth,alongwithdiscoveringnew

products.Andbecausetheyspendmorequalitytimeinstore,theytendtobecomemoreandmoreloyal,tilla

community starts forming. Customers commit to their store experience and then to the brand itself: they

becomerepresentatives,brandambassadorsthemselves.

Butthisstrategyofenhancingcustomerexperienceonlymakessenseandwillshowresultsifalldistribution

channelsconvergetowardsanintegratedseamlessomni-channelbrandexperience(WINSER,2015,p1).

Aconsistentcross-channelcustomerexperience

Themessagetobedrivenhomehereisthateachofthechannelsmentionedsofarcanonlyfunctionwhen

theoverallofferisbroughttogethersodistributionisthoughtofintermsofnetworkratherthanjuxtaposed

channels. Stores as brand enhancers, online as source of information and engagement (LAND SECURITIES

RETAIL,2014,p35),wholesaleas volumedriver: they can formoneuniformmodelwhosegoal is to create

valueforthecustomers,assummarizedbyBaininthefollowinggraph(Figure54).

Figure55:"KeyStrategicThemesforLuxuryCEOs"(BAIN&COMPANY,2015,p29)



A tailoredoffer deliveredby a smooth, future-orienteddistributionnetwork feeds customer’s engagement

thanks to an aligned brand story and a comprehensive distribution strategy. PierreMouton,who sees the

digitalasanopportunitycontemporarybrandshavetoseize,insistedontheimportanceofconceivingdigital

inabiggerpicture:brandsneedtogobeyondthedistinctionbetweenretailandwholesaletohelpthebrand

growandtopromote itbyanymeansavailable.Boundariesarefadingbetweenthe3distributionchannels

andinthatsense,digital-farfromstealingsalesfromphysicalstores-canbringsalestostores.Theroleof

eachchannelhasshiftedtoadapttooneanotherandnow,asmentionedintheFashionRetail2014Report,a

multi-channel presence is rewardedby an increase in traffic and consequently, in sales: “wehavenoticed

thatthestrongertheonlineofferingis,themorepeoplecomeintothestores”aChiefOperatingOfficerof

aluxuryfashionchaindeclaredinthereport(LANDSECURITIESRETAIL,2014,p23).Thisgotconfirmedwhen

interrogatingcustomers:outof55responses,35endupbuying instoreaftereitherbrowsingonline(18of

them)orbrowsinginstore(17people),asrepresentedonthegraphbelow(Figure554).

According to the same FashionRetail 2014Report, “almost half of consumers regularly use three ormore

channelstodotheirshopping”. Theresultsof the interviewsallowedtocometothesameconclusion:the

preferredchannelstocheckoutcontemporarybrandsareonlineplatformsanddepartmentstoresbutwhen

itcomestotheactualactofpurchase,customersratherturntobrandstores,closelyfollowedbydepartment

stores(Figure56).Onceinstore,Lin-BaptisteZhang–whoconductedastudyondigitalandretailforRetail

Excellence–insistedonthefactthatcustomersbringdigitalalongwiththem:accordingtohim,upto30%of

hiscustomersatGaleriesLafayetteresorttodigitalduringtheirexperienceinthestore.

4 Intervieweeswere asked topick asmanyoptions as they consideredadequateoutof the4 choices they

weregiven.Thefinalscoresobtainedwererepresentedalongthey-axis.

Figure56:"Whatdoyoudomost...?"



At theendof theday, ahomogenous journey throughout thebrand touchpointshelps the customers get

yourbearings,whichultimatelynourishescustomerloyalty!

Figure57:"WheredoyougotoCHECKOUTcontemporarybrands?toBUYcontemporarybrands?



CONCLUSION

In the end, the results of this study seems to go against the Business of Fashion article on “The End of

Wholesale”oratleastshadeit.

Goingbacktotheimportanceofbranding,contemporarybrandsrelyonittogivethemaloudervoice,more

visibilityandbuildstrongcustomersbasewhoshallfindconsistentbrandelementsthroughoutthenetwork.

Branding cannot be just about retail especially in the case of contemporary brands: it must concern all

distributionchannelssoitisadaptedtohowtheircustomersshop.

Indeed, after consulting contemporary brands’ customers, the following conclusions were drawn. First,

contrary to high-end luxury brands who would like and are constituting a retail-only network, the survey

taughtus thatdepartment stores, andwholesale channels ingeneral, are constituentof the contemporary

brandscustomerjourney,intermsofbothgettingtoknowthebrandandactuallypurchasing.Thisisthecase

in France for local customers but it is even truer in Italy or in theUK or even tourists in France,who are

particularlyfondofdepartmentstores.Attheendoftheday,contrarytowhatmostbrandsseemtobelieve,

iftheyarechosenwiselyandcommunicationisproperlymanagedsincethebeginning,wholesaledistribution

turnsouttobeaclearassetforcontemporarybrandstoclarifypositioningandgainperceptibility.

In themeantime, retail is voted in for its characteristic product availability and level of service. In fact, in

figure 24, those elements came before brand experience, which might be due to lack of awareness or

understandingofwhatbrandexperiencereallyis.Customerspreferentiallyrefertothebrand’swebsitewhen

looking for informationonline,which suggests that theydocareabout immersing themselves in thebrand

codes.Maybethebrandexperienceistakenforgrantedandunconsciouslyappreciatedsothiswouldrequire

furtherexploring.

Brand stores iswhere customers purchase preferentially buy as online channels are beingmore andmore

consulted,brandsshouldfocus–followingtheexampleofMarcJacobs–onfindingnewwaystoattractthem

andthinkofotheruniqueservicestooffer.Events instore, limitedcollection,customizationarewaystobe

outoftheordinaryandarouseinterest.

Mostimportantly,nowthatonlinehasbecomesuchanimportantpartofdistributingcontemporarybrands,a

smooth customer experience is key: what is blatant from the survey is the search for versatility and

adaptability of brands that would live the same lifestyle at the same speed as their trendy, young and

connected customers. In front of the multitude of channels and of offers customers can choose from,

contemporarybrandshavetobecertaintobeeasilyidentifiableandfulfilthecontractcustomersexpectfrom

eachchanneltheyuse.



TABLEOFILLUSTRATIONS

FIGURES

Figure1:KeyStrategicquestionsforluxuryplayersgoingforward(Bain&Company,2015,p29).....................8Figure2:Examplesoftogas(Source:latogeetleglaive.blogspot.com).................................................................9Figure3:“DifferentBusinessModelsforEachMarketTierinTheLuxuryIndustry”(XERFI,2015,p75)...........14

Figure4:Elementsthatcontributetothesuccessofaluxurybrand.................................................................16Figure5:“KeyPurchasingCriteriaforLuxuryGoods”(XERFI,2015,p75)..........................................................17Figures6,6,7:IconicPiecesFromAlexanderMcQueenShows(Source:http://fashion.hellomagazine.com)18Figure9:"NYC,ParisandLondoneachaccountformorethan€10billionof luxurysales"–PersonalLuxury

GoodsMarketsin€billions(BAIN&CIE,2015)..........................................................................................19Figure10:FashionCycleforaFall-WinterCollection(ChevalierandMazzalovo,2012)...................................20Figure 11 : The Fashion Calendar (Image Source:

https://primperfectblog.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/seasons-of-hope-logo.jpg)..................................21Figure 12 : Looks from Marc Jacobs' FA16 Fashion Show (Source:

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/pYJqMnOnMiQ/maxresdefault.jpg).......................................................................22Figure13:CustomersbrainstormingonContemporaryBrands.........................................................................24Figure14:Brainstormingoncontemporarybrandscustomers.........................................................................25Figure15:CountriesofOriginofContemporaryBrandsExamples....................................................................28Figure16:Fall2016AcneStudioJacket(Source:www.acnestudios.com)........................................................32Figure17:Assessmentofwhatmakescontemporarybrandsluxurious............................................................34Figure18:Featuresofcustomers'favouritestore.............................................................................................35Figure19:MarcJacobsatwork(Source:www.marcjacobs.com)......................................................................36Figure20:MarcJacobsrepositioning(Internalsource).....................................................................................37

Figure21:MarcJacobsProductOffering...........................................................................................................37Figure 22 : “Wholesale still dominates amongst distribution channels, but company-owned retail grows

faster”(BAIN&COMPANY,2015,p16).......................................................................................................42Figure23:Howtoexplainwholesaleprices(Forbes,2012,p1).........................................................................43Figure24:ProductsdiscountedduringpromotionalperiodsatGaleriesLafayetteandatPrintemps..............44Figure25:Importantelementsforcustomerswhenbuyingforcontemporarybrandsinasingle-brandstore47Figure26:theMarcJacobscornerinGaleriesLafayetteAccessories(Paris).....................................................49Figure27:MarcJacobsBeautycorneratHarrods(London)..............................................................................50Figure28:Drawingofthedifferentcornersonthefirstfloorof"LeBonMarché"(Paris)................................50Figure29:Customers’motivationstovisitadepartmentstore.........................................................................51

Figure30:DemographicofMarcJaocbsclientsandClientMix(Source:HandbagsTrendsreportSpring2017-

MerchandisingMarketBrief)......................................................................................................................52Figure31:Onlineluxuryfashionmarketsize(2014-2018F)(XERFI,2015,p68).................................................54



Figure 32 : Overview of the main marketing channels - Number and direction of arrows represents the

interestofhigh-endfashioncompaniesinthismarketingchannel(XERFI,2015,p105)............................55Figure33:"Wheredoyouusuallygoshoppingforcontemporarybrands?".....................................................55Figure 34 : Marc Jacobs website inviting customers for the launch of the Resort collection (Source:

www.marcjacobs.com)................................................................................................................................56Figure35:MarcJacobspersonalInstagramandInstagrampromotionoftheResortcollection(Source:Marc

JacobsInstagramandTheMarcJacobsInstagram)....................................................................................56Figure36:"Whatarethemainadvantagesofbuyingonline?".........................................................................57Figure37:"Whatarethemaindisadvantagesofonlineshopping?".................................................................58Figure38:"Haveyoudiscoveredbrandsthankstodigital?"..............................................................................59Figure 39 : "St Marc" bag Campaign (Source: http://www.nawo.com/marc-jacobs-fall-2016-lookbook-at-

neiman-marcus/).........................................................................................................................................59Figure40:Overviewofthemainpointsconsideredbyluxurygroupsinthedigitaldivide(XERFI,2015,p72).61

Figure41:Howhasdigitalinfluencedthewayyoushopinstore?....................................................................61Figure42:ExampleofimpactsofdifferentdigitalKPIsonsalesincrease(McKinsey,2014,p9).......................61Figure43:Selfridgeswebsite(Source:www.selfridges.com)............................................................................62Figure44:ExampleofaselectionofproductsbyNet-a-Porter-"Your30-secondDate-Nightoutfit"..............62Figure 45 : Example of the juxtaposition of contemporary brands and luxury brandswithin a Net-a-Porter

selection(Source:www.net-a-porter.com)................................................................................................63Figure46:ProductpageofaCarvencoatwithsuggestionsofotherbrands'productsonNet-a-Porter(Source:

www.net-a-porter.com)..............................................................................................................................63Figure47,48,49:"Whenbuyinginstore,haveyoupreviouslycheckedonline...?".........................................64

Figure50:ContemporarybrandscarriedatColette (Paris),publisizedonColette's Instagram -FromLeft to

Right:Off__White,Sacai&AlexanderWang(Source:ColetteInstagrampage).........................................64Figure 51 : Model Behati Prinsloo in Alexander Wang clothes reposted on Wang's Instagram (Source:

AlexanderWangInstagram)........................................................................................................................66Figure52:SaintHonoréMarcJacobsstore-Fragrancestable(Paris)...............................................................66Figure53:MarcJacobsMTVlimitededitionatSaintHonoré(Paris).................................................................67Figure54:"Customize-me"eventattheMarcJacobsSaintHonoréstore........................................................67Figure55:"KeyStrategicThemesforLuxuryCEOs"(BAIN&COMPANY,2015,p29)........................................68Figure56:"Whatdoyoudomost...?"................................................................................................................69Figure57:"WheredoyougotoCHECKOUTcontemporarybrands?toBUYcontemporarybrands?..............70

TABLES

Table1:MainTradingPartnersinTextile-ClothingoftheEuropeanUnion(EURATEX,2015,p2)..............................11

Table2:MarketSizingforContemporaryBrandsinFrance,ItalyandtheUnitedKingdom.......................................32



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48 www.sandro.com

49 www.whistles.com



APPENDIX

CUSTOMERSSURVEY

a. Questions

1. Whatisyourname?

2. Howoldareyou?

3. Areyouawomanoraman?

4. Whereareyoufrom?

5. Whatdoyoudo?

A. Contemporarybrands

1. Doyouknowwhatacontemporarybrandis?YES/NO

2. Doyouknowanyofthefollowingbrands?

- Carven

- Sandro/Maje/ClaudiePierlot

- WhistlesLondon

- TheKooples

- AcneStudio

- MSMG

- BandofOutsidersLosAngeles

- Tibi

- Theory

- MotherofPearl

- AlexanderWang

3. Howwouldyoudescribethebrandsthatyouknowfromthelistabove?Pleasegive3words

4. Howwouldyoudescribethetypicalcustomers?(Age,Socialstatus,Style)

5. Doyouthinktheseare:

- Luxurious(1beingH&Mand5beingChristianDiorCouture)

- Expensive(1being“H&M-expensive”and5being“ChristianDiorCoutureexpensive”)

- Trendy

- Accessible

- ofGoodQuality



6. Doyouthinkthesebrandsareluxurious?(Tickasmanyasyouthinkisaccurate)

Exclusivity:YES/NO

Quality:YES/NO

Design:YES/NO

Price:YES/NO

B. MarcJacobs

1. Doyouknowthebrand?YES/NO

2. DoyouMarcJacobs,thedesigner?YES/NO

3. Give3wordsthatcometomindwhenthinkingofMarcJacobs?

4. Doyouknowtheirproducts?(Ticktheone(s)youknow)

- Clothes

- Shoes

- LeatherGoods

- SmallLeatherGoods

- FashionAccessories

- Sunglasses

- Watches

- Jewellery

- Cosmetics

- Fragrances

5. HowwouldyoudescribeMarcJacobs’customers?(Age,SocialStatus,Style…)

C. YOURSHOPPINGHABITS

1. Wheredoyouusuallygoshopping?Sortbyorderofpreference

- Mall

- Brandstores

- Departmentstore(ext:GaleriesLafayette)

- Localmulti-brandsshops

- Conceptstores

- Online

2. Whatdoyoulikethemostaboutyourfavouritetypeofstores?



3. Howfrequentlydoyouvisitthem?

- Severaltimesaweek

- Onceaweek

- Twiceamonth

- Onceamonth

- Onceevery3months

- Lessthanonceevery3months

4. Whengoingtoadepartmentstore,

- yougothereforabrandtheycarryinparticular(thatisnotcarriedanywhereelseforexample)

- yougothereforseveralbrandstheycarry

- yougothereforthedepartmentstoreitself

5. Ifyoubuycontemporarybrands,wheredoyougotoCHECKOUTcontemporarybrands?

- Mall

- Brandstores

- Departmentstore(ex:GaleriesLafayette)


- Conceptstores

- Online

- Other:

6. Ifyoubuycontemporarybrands,wheredoyougotoBUYcontemporarybrands?

- Mall

- Brandstores

- Departmentstore(ex:GaleriesLafayette)


- Conceptstores

- Online

- Other:

7. Doyouexpectcontemporarybrandsto(1being"notimportantatall"and5being"compulsory")?

- havetheirownstores

- beindepartmentstores

- beavailableinlocalmulti-brandsstores

- beavailableinconceptstores



- beavailableonline

8. ForaSINGLEbrandstorewhenbuyingcontemporarybrands,gradeeachcriterionfrom1to5

- Strongbranduniverse

- Entertainingexperience

- Levelofservice

- Productrangeavailable

- Fluidityofcustomerexperience

- Abilitytobrowsethroughtheproducts

9. ForaMULTIBRANDstorewhenbuyingcontemporarybrands,gradeeachcriterionfrom1to5

- Strongbranduniverse

- Entertainingexperience

- Levelofservice

- Productrangeavailable

- Fluidityofcustomerexperience

- Abilitytobrowsethroughtheproducts

D. Goingdigital

1. Doyoushoponline?YES/NO

2. Onascalefrom1to10,howmuchwouldyousaydigitaltoolshavechangedthewayyoushop?

3. Howhasitinfluencedthewayyoushopinstore?

- Buylessinstore

- Buymoreinstore

- IbuytheexactsameamountasIusedto

4. Whatdoyouthinkarethemainadvantagesofbuyingonline?(Pick3)

- Savetime

- Extensiveproductvariety

- Convenience

- Easytouse

- Up-to-dateinformation

- Roundtheclockavailability

- Globalavailability

- Productpersonalization



- Favourableprices

- Instantgratification

5. Whatdoyouthinkarethemaindisadvantagesofbuyingonline?(Pick3)

- Securityworries

- Deliverytiming

- Deliverycosts

- Lackofhumancontact

- Noorlowservice

- Nonphysicalgoods

- Aftersalesservicesdifficulties

6. Whatdoyoudomost?

- browseinstore,buyinstore

- browseinstorebuyonline

- browseonlinebuyonline

- browseonlinebuyinstore

7. Whenbuyinginstore,haveyoupreviouslycheckedonline?

- thebrand’swebsite

- Multi-brandplatforms

- socialnetworks

- blogs

- magazine’swebsites

- Idon’tcheckonlinepriortovisitingastore

8. Haveyoudiscoveredbrandsthankstodigital?

- YesandIhavevisitedtheirphysicalstoressincethen

- YesbutIhaven’tvisitedtheirphysicalstoressincethen

- No

9. Ifso,doyouvisittheirstores?

- Yes,whichones

- No



b. Results

ThesurveywasconductedonGoogleFormsandgot53responses,asfollows:

1. Howoldareyou?

Average:24.1

Below25:36

Above25:17

2. Areyouamanorawoman?

Male:15

Female:38

3. Doyouknowwhatacontemporarybrandis?YES/NO

4. Doyouknowanyofthefollowingbrands?

“Sandro/Maje/ClaudiePierlot,TheKooples,AlexanderWang”contientunevaleursupérieureàlaplupart

desautresvaleurspour“Doyouknowanyofthefollowingcontemporarybrands?”(5).

5. Howwouldyoudescribethebrandsthatyouknowfromthelistabove?Pleasegive3words



6. Howwouldyoudescribethetypicalcustomers?(Age,Socialstatus,Style)

7. Doyouthinktheseare:

Luxurious 3,33

Expensive 3,44

Trendy 4,15

Accessible 2,72

ofGoodQuality 3,10

8. Doyouthinkthesebrandsareluxurious?(Tickasmanyasyouthinkisaccurate)

No Yes

[Exclusivity] 63% 37%

[Quality] 59% 41%

[Design] 18% 82%

[Price] 33% 67%

A. MarcJacobs

1. Doyouknowthebrand?YES/NO

NO 5

YES 48

2. DoyouMarcJacobs,thedesigner?YES/NO



NO 11

YES 42

3. Give3wordsthatcometomindwhenthinkingofMarcJacobs?

Examplesofwordsgivenbycustomers:

creative,innovative,precise

expensive,luxurious,capitalcity

IRREVERANCEgothiquefun

eclectic,newyorker,expensive

Innovative,Refreshing,Original

black,young,american

edgy,nyc,90s

Fashion,LouisVuitton,NewYork

Irreverence,impertinence,fun

Créateurmodeaméricain

Gay,exaggerated,NewYork

Multitask,jet-set,fashion

goodquality

BagmakeupVuitton

4. Doyouknowtheirproducts?(Ticktheone(s)youknow)

Clothes > Leather Goods > Small Leather Goods > Fashion Accessories > Sunglasses, Watches, Cosmetics,

Fragrances>Shoes>Jewellery

5. HowwouldyoudescribeMarcJacobs’customers?(Age,SocialStatus,Style…)

Examplesofwordsgivenbycustomers:

30,csp+,urbanliving

30,rich,fashion

richandprivilegedpeople

45ans,aisé

25/40w,rich,fashionista

around25-50,fromamedium/highsocialbackground,individualists

30-60,wealthywomen

Depuislafusiondeslignes,clientèleenmoyenneplusâgée.Nouveauxriches(Russie,MO...)

Millenials,rich,urbanpeople

Between25and40yearsold,withagoodsocialstatusandfondoffashion

35yearsold,highclass,verytrendy



40,csp++,fashionablebutsomewhatclassic

20-40,fashionlovers,trendy

Everybody,everyage,everysocialstatus(specialitems)

Jeunesadultesbranchés

Between18and45,wealthy,urbantrendy

20/30 years old, upper middle class, following hit girls / influencers, looking for another kind of luxury

clothes

20-40yearsold,trendy

Relativelyyoung

B. YOURSHOPPINGHABITS

10. Wheredoyouusuallygoshopping?

Brandstores 26

DepartmentStores 23

Online 23

Localmulti-brandsshops 13

ConceptStore 10

11. Whatdoyoulikethemostaboutyourfavouritetypeofstores?

12. Howfrequentlydoyouvisitthem?



Mall

Brand

Stores

Department

Store

LocalMultibrand

stores

Concept

storesonline Others

Lessthanonceevery3months 9 5 8 11 17 2 15

Onceevery3months 7 8 7 9 5 4 2

Onceamonth 9 7 14 5 7 5 2

Twiceamonth 7 11 7 10 4 4 0

Onceaweek 6 8 1 0 0 9 1

Severaltimesaweek 1

1 1 0 14 0

13. Whengoingtoadepartmentstore,

When going to a department

store…

yougothereforseveralbrandstheycarry 34

yougothereforthedepartmentstoreitself 14

yougothereforabrandtheycarryinparticular(thatisnotcarriedanywhere

elseforexample)6

14. Ifyoubuycontemporarybrands,wheredoyougotoCHECKOUTcontemporarybrands?&

Ifyoubuycontemporarybrands,wheredoyougotoBUYcontemporarybrands?

CHECKOUTthesebrands? BUYthesebrands?

Mall 10 10

Brandstores 23 28

DepartmentStores 27 26

Online 27 19

ConceptStore 4 4

Localmulti-brandsshops 6 7



15. Doyouexpectcontemporarybrandsto(1being"notimportantatall"and5being"compulsory")?

Doyouexpectcontemporarybrandsto(1being"notimportant

atall"and5being"compulsory")?

[beavailableonline] 4,487

[havetheirownstores] 3,385

[beindepartmentstores] 3,692

[beavailableinlocalmulti-brandsstores] 2,769

[beavailableinConceptStore] 2,538

16. ForaSINGLEbrandstorewhenbuyingcontemporarybrands,gradeeachcriterionfrom1to5



Grade each of the following criteria for a SINGLE brand store when buying contemporary brands (1 being "not important at all" and 5 being "compulsory")

[Strong brand universe] 3,666666667

[Entertaining experience] 2,974358974

[Level of service] 4,153846154 [Product range available] 4,205128205

[Fluidity of customer experience] 3,641025641

[Ability to browse through the products]

3,605263158

17. ForaMULTIBRANDstorewhenbuyingcontemporarybrands,gradeeachcriterionfrom1to5

GradeeachofthefollowingcriteriaforaMULTI-brandstore(departmentstoreorconceptstore)whenbuyingcontemporarybrands(1being"notimportantatall"and5being"compulsory"):

[Levelofservice] 3,972972973[Productrangeavailable] 3,891891892

[Fluidityofcustomerexperience]

3,722222222

[Abilitytobrowsethroughtheproducts]

3,648648649

[Strongbranduniverse] 3,054054054

[Entertainingexperience] 3,027027027

C. Goingdigital

10. Doyoushoponline?YES/NO

11. Onascalefrom1to10,howmuchwouldyousaydigitaltoolshavechangedthewayyoushop?

Average : 6,568627451



12. Howhasitinfluencedthewayyoushopinstore?

13. Whatdoyouthinkarethemainadvantagesofbuyingonline?(Pick3)

Main advantages of buying online? Scores

Save time 49 Extensive product variety 29 Favourable prices 27 Convenience 26 Global availability 23 Easy to use 19 Round the clock availability 19 Up-to-date information 11

Instant gratification 4 Product personalization 2

14. Whatdoyouthinkarethemaindisadvantagesofbuyingonline?(Pick3)

Disadvantages Scores Non physical goods 33 Delivery costs 32 Delivery timing 31 After sales services difficulties 22 No or low service 12 Lack of human contact 12 Security worries 11

15. Whatdoyoudomost?

What do you do the most? Scores browse online buy in store 18 browse in store buy in store 17 browse online buy online 16 browse in store buy online 4

16. Whenbuyinginstore,haveyoupreviouslycheckedonline?

When buying in store, have you previously checked online? Scores



the brand's website 28 multi-brands platforms 12 blogs 12 I don't check online prior to visiting a store 6 social networks 6 magazines' websites 4

17. Haveyoudiscoveredbrandsthankstodigital?

Have you discovered brands thanks to digital? Scores No 5 Yes but I never went in-store afterwards 17

Yes and I have visited their store since then 17



INTERVIEWS

HeleneRYMER,AreaManagerUK/Scandinavia,previouslyworkedatMichaelKorsandDiesel

Tellmemoreaboutyourbackground?

MichaelKorsprésentprincipalementdanslesmultimarqueswholesale–70boutiques

DanslesgrandsmagasinssaufLeBonMarchémaissinonprésentpartout.IdemauRoyaume-Uni:disponible

chezPNC,Selfridgesmaisseulementencequiconcernelessacs–Distributionbeaucoupplusexclusivepour

lalignedevêtements

TellmemoreaboutMarcJacobs’wholesale?

MarcJacobsestdisponiblepartout:Liberty,HarveyNicholsauRoyaumeUni

EnScandinavie,quelquesmultimarques,plusieurspointsdeventeenfranchises,maispasdeconcessionnide

retail(1boutiqueMARCJACOBSàOslo,4enSuède)

Whataretoyoutheadvantages/disadvantagesofeachtypeofdistribution?(Forcontemporarybrandsin

particular)

ClientsWholesalevsclientsRetail:

- Leclientretailvientvoirunemarqueenparticulier,avecunservicepropreàuneimagedemarque

- L’imageetleproduitdoiventcorrespondre

- Vientchercherunproduitenparticulier

- Beaucoupplusdechoix:enprincipe,lesproduitsdisponiblesreprésententl’ensembledelagamme

- Wholesale:«zappeur»->passaged’unemarquealasuivante

- Certainesclientestrouventdifficiled’entrerdansununmagasinretail,impressionnantacausedesrituels

alorsquelesgrandsmagasinssontbeaucoupplusouverts

AvantagesduWholesale:

- Avantagesdecertainsmultimarques typeconceptstores,exclusivité :Coletteparexemplenégociedes

produitsexclusifs

- Multimarquesdequartierplusspécialisésàleurclientèle

L’âge jouemais lesmentalités changent : les jeunes fillesn’allaientpas faire lesmagasins seules alorsque

maintenantellessontbeaucoupplusdéterminées,saventcequ’ellesveulentetdemanièreinstantanée

Différencedanslamanièredevente:

- Retail->histoiredelamarque,uniformitédel’universetdescodesàtraversleréseauretail+Fidélisation

- Simauvaiseexpériencedanslesgrandsmagasins,clientn’irapasenretail

- Sileserviceestbon,considérécommenormalalorsques’ilestmauvais,pasnormal



Doyouconsiderdigitalanopportunity?Athreat?ForRetailand/orwholesale?

Opportunité!!!

Découverte de lamarque, découverte sans jugement, découverte en ligne et désacralisation, consulter les

prixpouréviterlemomentdélicatenmagazineetc

Lesgrosacteursmultimarquesontmisenplacele«Clickandcollect»

Ex:68GaleriesLafayetteenFrance:ilsn’ontpastouteslesmarquesdisponiblesdansleurs68magasins,par

exemple,leprêt-à-porterMichaelKorspasdisponibleauxGALERIESLAFAYETTEBordeauxdoncssélectionen

ligneduproduitd’intérêt,clickandcollect:achatenlignesurlesGALERIESLAFAYETTE,ventedeMichaelKors

vialesitedonccelabénéficieàtoutlemondeetconduitàunevisiteenmagasin

Engénéral,baissedutraficdanslesmagasinsdoncclickandcollectfaitpartied’unedessolutionspouryfaire

face

Businesswomanquin’apasletempsdefairedushoppingenmagasin:Yoox,NAP,venteprivéeavecretours

facilesetc

Désavantageduwholesale:

- Multimarques->pasdestockouentoutcas,passuffisammentmaisservicealapersonnequiapportela

valeurajoutée

Comportementdifférentchezl’hommequiestbeaucoupfidèleetquizappebeaucoupmoins

Lafemmezappeplus,quellequesoitlanationalité

Wholesale:

- Satisfactioncarrenouvellement,sélectionpluspointue,plusadaptéea laclientèle localedans lecasde

petitesboutiqueswholesalequiconnaitsaclientèleets’adapteasademande

- Réactivité nécessaire pour satisfaire cette demande – être a l’écoute et quand une demande est

récurrente,savoiridentifierlesmarquesquivalentlecoupd’êtreajoutéesal’offre->silerevendeurne

passepascommande,perted’unevente

Conclusion:What is the next step?What comes next?What dowe dowith the 3 types of distribution

mentioned?Shalltheybecombined,howtodoso?Retail?Wholesale?Online?

Lewholesaledrive lebusinessetestdeplusenplusstructuré.Bonneconnaissancede lademandecarplus

d’analyse,encequiconcernelespetitsmultimarques

Grosmultimarquesencentre-ville:demandedesproduitsexclusifsauxmarquesqu’ilsdistribuent

Ex:lesexposbonmarché,lesoffresdeNoëlauxGALERIESLAFAYETTE



MarcJacobs:

- CommunicationsurInstagramquin’estparfoispasadaptéealaclientèle

- Lacommunicationdevraitêtreplusclaireautourd’unit-bag,d’unepièceenparticulier

- OpportunitéqueledoubleJdevienneaussiiconiquequeledoubleCChanelouledoubleGGucci

- Tout lemonde connaitMARC JACOBS commepersonnageetpour LouisVuittonmaisbeaucoupmoins

poursontravailpersonnel

GiuliaGASPARINI,AccountExecutivefortheUK,IrelandandScandinavia

Howwouldyoudescribecontemporarybrands?Theircustomers?

- Jeune,streetstyle,prixintermédiairemaisparfoisunpeucher

- Fontlepontentrele«high-street»etleluxe

- Luxeabordable,assezexclusifavecunADNdemarquefort

- Designcopiéparlamodehighstreetmaismanufactureindustrielle

Leclientveutêtreàlamode,danslatendance,assezpointuetchercheunrenouveaufréquent

plutôtaiséstrendyetcherchedesmarquesreconnues

Scandinavie:Sportswear,Activewear,marquesfacilesàporter

WhatistheimageofMarcJacobstoday?

Entransition->MarcJacobschercheencoresaclientèle«type»-gammedeprixlarge


particular)

AvantagesduWholesale:

- Choixdesboutiques

- Environnementquipeutaiderquand le réseauwholesaleestchoisipertinemmentcar l’environnement

de la marque permet de clarifier son positionnement en comparant la marque avec les marques qui

l’entourent

- Petitsmultimarques:peuventsoutenirunchangementdepositionnement, indiquerunpositionnement

enfonctiondesautresmarquesproposéesparlaboutique

AvantagesduRetail:

- Image,univers

- Personnelgéréparlamarquedoncilssontlesambassadeursdelamarque

Bénéfiqueauréseaud’avoirles2typesdedistributioncarilsseserventmutuellement



Whatarethetypicalcustomersforeachtypeofdistribution?Whatdoyouthinktheylookfor?

GrandsMagasins:plusieursmarquessontcôte-à-côte

Exemple:

- Royaume-Uni:lemarchéestdominéparlesgrandsmagasins,avecdesboutiquescomplètesauseindes

grandsmagasins

- Scandinavie:mini«departmentstores»quisontpluspratiques

- Italie:généralementlewholesaleestpluspopulairemaisceladépenddesmarques.Pourl’ultra-luxe,les

clientsfavorisentleretail

Retailquandleclientauneidéepréciseavantdevenir.

Do you consider digital an opportunity? A threat? For Retail and / or wholesale? How to use it? Has

customerbehaviourchangedwithdigital?How?

Alafoisuneopportunitéetunemenace

- Menace:Lesincohérencesdeprixentrelesprixsurinternetetlesprixenboutiquenuisentàl’imagede

marque

- Opportunité:lespartenairese-commercecommeNet-à-PorteretYooxmettentenavantlelifetsyle,font

dessélectionsdeproduitsetmélangerdesmarques,cequidonnedesidéesd’associationetfinalement

créedesopportunitésd’achats:possibilitéd’élargirlacustomerbase

Pourlesmarquescontemporaines,ledigitalestindispensableparcequelacibleclientestjeuneetferventde

plateformesdee-commerce



Lewholesaleassurelevolumedeventeetoffredelavisiblitéalorsqueleretailsertal’imagedemarqueet

proposeunassortimentlarge

L’importanceduwholesaledépenddesvillesetdesrégions

CarineHANVIC,RetailOperations,PreviouslyworkedatPrada/Miumiu

Howwouldyoudescribecontemporarybrands?

Contemporary brands : jeune, accessible, fashion, influence, bloggers, connectés, ephemere, impulsion,

ecommerce,communication



How would you describe the contemporary brands typical customers? (Age, social status, aspirations,

style….)

- Pasdeclientstypiques:gammedeprixlargeschezMarcJacobs

- Accessoirespourjeunefemmeamoyenslimités

- PlusâgéepourPrêt-À-Porter,entre35et50,stylepluspointu

- Clientliéeal’environnement:auxGaleriesLafayette,clientèlefrançaisepourcertainstypesdeproduits


particular)

Clientèlewholesalevsretail:conditionsd’achats

GALERIESLAFAYETTE:retoursfaciles,remboursement

Aujourd’huipourunemaison, ilestdifficiledetracerunclientWholesaleparcequ’iln’yapasdecustomer

retailmanagementetdoncpasdefidélisationclient

Wholesale: le personnel ne fait pas partie de lamaison, pasmanagé par lamaison, pas de formation, les

produitsnepeuventpasêtrepousséssinécessaire

LesmarquestententuneconversiondewholesaleversretailpourmonitorerdeAàZ

Lewholesalen’appartientpasàlamarqueetcesontlesgrandsmagasinsquialecontrôlesurlesdiscounts=>

relationparfoiscompliquéeàgérerenpériodedesoldes

Ex: Sur 4 grands magasins parisiens, 4 prix différents même en dehors des périodes de soldes, pas

nécessairementsimultanées

Celacréedelacompétitionentrelespointsdeventequipeutnuireàl’imagedemarque

Lesgrandsmagasinsdonnentdesminimumsàgarantirsinonpénalitéenmilliersd’euros



Weechattrèsutilisépourlesachatsavecl’Asiesnotamment

Acted’achatsavecunephotodoncrapidité,caractèreéphémère,spontanéité

Ledigitalfacilitelestransactionsnotammentaveclesclientsinternationaux

+plateformesuiviepourimagedemarque:Instagramparboutiqueetc.



Retailseulementencorefaut-ilavoirlesfinancementsetpourlemoment,pasviable



AlienorWestphalen,RetailMerchandiser


- Contemporarybrands:«Abordable»,«Fashion»,«Luxe»,«MadeinChina»,«it-bag»,«éphémère»,

«américain»,«dominationdumarché»,«récent»

- Contradictionentreleluxeetl’absenced’artisanat

Clients:

- ilsn’ontpaslapossibilitéd’accéderauluxe,nepeuventpasselepermettredoncs’enremettentàunluxe

abordable

- Csp+

- Le contemporainestpoussépar la crise: prixdupaniermoyenàbaisser et faitmaintenantpartiedes

nouveauxplaisirs

WhatistheimageofMarcJacobstoday?Whoarethetypicalcustomers?

- Imageunpeuconfuseencemomentcarleslicencessontencoretrès(trop?)présentes

- MarcJacobsestreconnucommel’anciendesignerdechezLouisVuitton

- Marqueaudesigntrèsfort,identitétrèsaméricain


particular)

Wholesale:

- Pasdecontrôlesurl’image,surlepersonneldevente

- Permetd’accéderàunmarchéenminimisantlesrisques,àdegrosvolumes

- Permetdechercherunproduitsansl’associeràunemarqueenparticulier

Retail:

- Prisederisqueplusimportantes

- Margesplusimportantes

- Assortimentplusimportant,plusdeservices,plusdefidélisationclient



Leluxeprivilégiel’expérienceclientetn’apasvud’opportunitédansledigitalallantdanscesens,ledigitalne

semblaitpaspermettredetransmettreleursfondamentaux

Opportunité: les marques contemporaines ont saisi l’opportunité notamment avec de la personnalisation

produitetontremplacél’expérienceenmagasinetl’ontreconstruitesurinternet



Leluxen’apasencoretrouvélemoyendes’enservirsaufentermed’imageetlesventesenlignesontencore

assezlimitéescarlessupplychainnelepermettentencorepasforcément.

Exemplesremarquables:VestiaireCollective,Yoox,Net-à-Porteretsitesdesgrandsmagasins

AlricBROWNE,VisualMerchandiserNorthernEurope,previousluworkedatMonclerandRalphLauren


Milieuluxe,Prêt-à-Porterhautdegamme,jeune,fun,MARCJACOBS

Clientsdesmarquescontemporaines:20-35ansauxEtats-Unismaistropchèrespourles20-25enEurope

doncplutôttrentenaires

Touteslesclassessocialesmaisdistinctionsuivantlesmagasins:

- àSaintHonoré,auflagshipdeMarcJacobs,achatsdegrossespiècescarlesclientsontplusdemoyens

- àMountStreet,trèsbellespiècesmisesenvaleur

- àHarrods,tropdepiècesluxealorsquelepositionnementestplutôtcontemporaindanslemagasin


particular)

Exemple deHarrods: contrôle total duVisualMerchandising et du personnelmais les ventesMarc Jacobs

n’étaientpassuffisantesetleséquipesVisualMerchMarcJacobsontdûdonnerdesrecommandationspour

laisserlesproduitssuffisammentlongtempspourquelesclientsaientletempsd’acheter

Retail:imagedemarquetransmiseàtraverslaboutique

Wholesale:gestionparlerevendeur



- MarcJacobsaremportéleprixpourlemeilleurinstagrampourunemarquedemode

- Présencesurlesréseauxquipermetlamiseenavantdelamarque

- Défilédisponiblesurlesiteenvidéo

- Permetdetoucheruneautrecibleclient

- Changementdecomportementsd’achat:montrephotosdesbloggeuses,venteenquelquesminpourles

chinoises





- LeBonMarcché:touteslesmarquessontrepresenteesavecununiverspropremaiscestlestaffdubon

marche,universdubonmarchéaussi

- visiteduwebsitepuisvisiteenmagasin

GiacomoDIFRANCESCA,VisualMerchandisingSeniormanagerVM,previouslyworkedatPrada


Abordable,tendance,facile

Clients:

- Millenialsquisuiventlesnouvellestechnologies,quicommencentàapprocherdesproduitsunpeuplus

chers

- AuxEtats-Unis,classemoyenne

- MêmetypedeclientsenFranceetenItalie

WhatistheimageofMarcJacobstoday?Whoarethetypicalcustomers?

Assezcompliquéeaujourd’huicar ledéfilén’estpascontemporain, lastratégiedecommunicationn’estpas

contemporaine alors que certains produits de Prêt-à-Porter le sont et que tous les sacs sont très

contemporains.L’imageestassezconfusepourleclient.


particular)

Wholesale:

- Trèsimportantcariloffreplusdevisibilitéetpermetunediffusionpluslarge

- Êtrepartoutavecdeseffortsfinancésmoindres

- Maisleswholesalersontlecontrôlesurlesmarquesqu’ilsdistribuent,cequiposeproblèmenotamment

pourlapolitiquedesprixpendantlessoldesparexemple

- Lesmulti-marquessonttrèspuissantsauRoyaume-Uni

Lesclientssontdifférentsd’unpaysàunautreetl’importanceduwholesaledépenddelagéographie



Plutôtuneopportunitémaisilfautréglerleproblèmedel’intégrationdudigitaletdesventesdeprêt-à-porter

enligne:lesretourssontdifficilesàgérer.Beaucoupdemarquess’entiennentauxaccessoires.

Aujourd’hui,lesmarquesjeunesdoiventêtreprésentessurtouteslesplateformespourtoucherleurcible.

Pierre-HubertMOUTON,PrintempscornerManager




Jedécrirai lesmarquescomtemporainescommedesmaisonsvoulantêtreendisruptionaveclemondeplus

formel du luxe. Elle ose plus, change ses critères d’identification (égérie). Cela peut apparaître troublant,

dérangeant. Le monde du luxe est également perçu comme élitiste, traditionnel tandis que le luxe

contemporain serait pus émotionnel, plus accessible et permet à toutes les strates d’une population de

pouvoir«acheter»luxe…contemporain…

How would you describe the contemporary brands typical customers? (Age, social status, aspirations,

style….)

Pour moi, il n’y a pas forcément de “typical customers” pour les marques contemporaines. Cela peut

justement être n’importe qui en fonction de son style, de ses envies. Un client traditionnellement «plus

luxe» peut être client du marque contemporain au même titre qu’une personne qui n’a pas les mêmes

habitudesetpaslemêmebudgetréservéàcetyped’achat.Néanmoins,onconstatequ’ils’agitnotamment

d’uneclienteavecuncertainpouvoird’achatetquipeutselepermettremêmesicelle-cidoitpouvoirfaire

deseffortspoursepayercetyped’article.

WhatistodaytheimageofMarcJacobs?

Marc Jacobs a aujourd’hui, pourma part, une image complexe, dû à un certain nombre de changements

stratégiquessuccessifs.Néanmoins,MarcJacobsesttypiquementunemaisonquipeutsecatégoriserdansun

luxecontemporain,accessiblemaiségalementdotédepiècesemblématiques.Pourmoi,MarcJacobsacette

visionduluxedepuisdetrèsnombreusesannées.Pourmoic’estunevéritablevisionausensoùilasugardé

lecôtéémotionnel,lecôtéirrévérencieuxetidentifiantpourdenombreuxclients.


particular)

Retail:

+ Une largeur et une profondeur d’offre, capacités de transfert et renseignement à l’échelle mondiale,

échange,SAV.Pourlesboutiques:personnalisationplusimportanteetachatdedestinationparlaplupartdes

clientsbienquedanslewholesale,lesclientsrégulierspeuventêtrepossibles,enréalitéilslesontbeaucoup

plus dans le retail boutique et par extension Réseau. Le manager en charge contrôle l’intégralité de son

périmètreetpeutsesuffireàlui-mêmepourtouttyped’informations.

-DesconditionsplusstrictesenmatièredeSAVetd’échange.ChezMarcJacobs,nousnepratiquonspasles

remboursementsparexemple.

Wholesale:

+Unemultiplicitéd’offreparrapportàl’environnementbienquecelapuisseêtrelecasaussipourleRetail

(ex:MARCJACOBSauGALERIESLAFAYETTE).Unstockdéjàvenduengros.Pasdeventedétail.Travailplus

importantréaliséàl’échelledumagasin,présentationdesproduitsparlebiaisdesVisualsmerchandisingdes

grandsmagasinscarlestockleurappartient.



-Manquedelargeuretdeprofondeur.Réassortimentdifficileetsoumisàdenombreusescontraintes.Pasde

possibilitéd’apportsdenouveauxmodèlessipasdansles linesheetsachat.Manquedevisionconcernantle

stock.Paslamaindirectementsurlesdifférentsprocessetinformations.Chaqueprocessusouinformations

nécessitentdecontacterlespersonnesencharge.

Doyouconsiderdigitalanopportunity?Athreat?ForRetailand/orwholesale?

C’estunevraieopportunité.Ils’agitd’uncanaldifférentetquiconnaîtunecroissancesanscommunemesure

avec les autres typesde canaux. Il n’y a pasde comparatif possible. Il s’agit d’un canal qui peut avoir une

croissance exponentielle, sans limitemais qui doit être réactif. Il ne s’agit plus d’être le plus «gros»mais

d’êtreleplusrapidepourévolueretcroître.Uneévolutionperpétuellementremiseencause.Ils’agitbiensûr

égalementd’unemenaceà la vuede lamultiplicitédesmaisonsquipeuvent jouer sur ces canaux.Mais je

conçoiscelaavecplusd’envieetd’opportunismequederetenue.

Howtouseit?

Que cela soit par les sites desmarques officiels ou par les très nombreux réseaux sociaux permettant de

suivrenonseulementlamaisonconcernantmaiségalementledesigner,lespersonnesassociéesauprojet.Il

s’agitdoncd’êtreréactifetcommunicatifpeuimporteleRetailouleWholesale,ilfautsavoirdépassercelaet

penser à une plus large échelle. Une échelle pour faire grandir et promouvoir lamaison par tous les biais

possibles.

Hascustomerbehaviourchangedwithdigital?How?

Biensûrquelecomportementduconsommateurchange.Certainspeuventyvoirdesmoyensdegagnerdu

temps, de faire des économies en passant par les sites marchands souvent revendeurs de produits de

collectionspasséeset attractifs en termedebudget.Néanmoins, certains clients restent fidèlesau contact

humain et préfère venir en boutique ou corner pour avoir des avis, conseils que cela soit pour acheter

ultérieurementpeuimportelecanaldedistributionouachatimpulsif.

Whatisthenextstep?Whatcomesnext?Whatdowedowiththe3typesofdistributionmentioned?Shall

theybecombined,howtodoso?Retail?Wholesale?Online?

Certainesmaisons ou grandsmagasins combinent déjà aumoins 2 types de canaux et savent jouer avec.

Commeparexempleparlebiaisdeventeaupersonnelonlineoubienparlesitemarchanddumagasin(ex:

bonmarchéqui vendvia son site internetet cumule celaavec lesCAdespointsdeventesdesdifférentes

maisons.

Il faudrait arriver à jouer sur les accords Wholesale et simplifier les réassortiments et commandes

exceptionnellesafindepouvoirégalementjouerencollaborationavecdesstocksidentiques,pluslarges.Tout

sejoueencoreunefoissuruntypedecommunication…



CommunicationetaccordinterneavecderendreplussimpleetdonnerplusdecohésionentreleRetailetle

Wholesalequileplussouventseconcurrencentplusqu’ilsnes’aident.

Lin-BaptisteZHANG,GaleriesLafayettecornersManager


particular)

- Dans le sud de la France et en province en général, beaucoup demultimarques demarques de luxe,

commeaCourchevelparexemple.

- Certainsmultimarquesouconcept stores commeColetteontdes sélections trèspointueset les clients

leurrendentvisitepourlechoixdesmarquesquiyestproposé

Avantagesdesgrandsmagasins:

- Retoursfaciles

- Accueild’ungrandnombredemarques,àproximité:toutàportéedemain

- Servicesimplifié

- Servicesluxe:retouchesetc

- Rapidité,accessibilité

Retail:

- Clientèlepluspointue



LeRetailneserajamaisremplacéparledigital,aucontraire,ilserarenforcé.

70% des clients retail se sont renseignés sur internet avant de se rendre enmagasin et 30% continuent à

utiliserledigitalpendantleshopping

Exemple du Click & collectou des écrans tactiles dans certains points de vente Retail pour accéder aux

descriptifsproduits

LedigitalpermetégalementderendredesanalysesplusprécisesetunsuividesKPIspluspoussé.

Le digital est obligatoire surtout que la cible desmarques contemporaines est jeune et connectéemais le

contacthumainestindispensabledoncledigitalnepeutpasterminerletravail,surtoutpourlesmarquesde

luxedonclavisiteenmagasins’impose.Ledigitalfacilitelavente.





- Reconsoliderlewholesaleenexploitanttouteslesformesdewholesale

- S’assurerduboncontrôledesstocksWholesalesoitparunemeilleurecommunicationenamont,soiten

transformantdespointsWholesaledanslesgrandsmagasinsenpointsRetail

- LesmultimarquessontessentielsmêmedansunestratégieRetail,commeparexempleNikechezColette

- Lewholesaleapportelevolume

JaquesDESBUISSON,PresseManagerFranceEuropeMoyen-OrientforWomenandMenReady-to-Wear


- Contemporary brands : mauvaise qualité, pas de prise de risque, très commerciale, fast fashion,

éphémère

- Clients: pouvoir d’achatmoyen, rêve d’acheter du luxemais ne peut pas se le permettre, impression

d’avoiraccèsàunrêve

Carven:qualitéparticulièreparrapportaunemarquecommeSandro

Distinctiondesdifférentesgammesdecontemporarybrandsauseindelacatégorie

WhatistheimageofMarcJacobstoday?

Créativitémiseenavantdanslapresse:show,horsdanssentiersbattus,miseenavantdefashionstatements


particular)

- Offrepluscommercialeenwholesale,offrepluspointueenretail->ADNdelamarquepouruneclientèle

plusVIPetmoteurdecommunication

- Wholesale->leclientpasseunejournéeshopping,aaccèsàplusieursmarques,peutypasserbeaucoup

detemps

- Retail->idéesplusprécises,plusdepouvoird’achat,qualitédeservice,habitude,fidélisation



Digital:communicationplusciblée,lectoratcibléetconnu

Vidéo:sortirdecommunicationpapier,fairepasserunmessageautrement,focusmono-produit



The kooplesont énormément de boutiques, trop de boutiques ouvertes, ce qui a tué la désirabilité donc

lassitudevisavisdelamarque

professional thesis %22how to sell contemporary brands?%22 - laura hargreaves

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