A) Brand Identity vs B) Brand Image

A) Intra-company perception of a band. B) Public perception of a brand, result of positioning and marketing measures (Rita covered specifications of this topic in her part)

* A brand is only qualified as a luxury brand only if it it succeeds in inducing luxury associations in the minds of its target consumers.What might have accounted for Shanghai Tangs unsatisfactory results in building a global luxury Chinese brand?

It is very hard and challenging to position a Chinese born and made brand as Luxury, due to Chinese not having a lot of knowledge regarding codes of luxury and how to create perception of luxuriousness.

The perception and awareness of the Chinese market in this field, is very shadowy amongst chinese and non-chinese consumers. Frankie Xie, an already existing brand was/is a good example of the disadvantageous perception that Chinese brands have, relative to the western ones. All in all, Made in china and luxury can be compatible, but there is a need for market education (in a luxurious sense).

Shangai Tang is not very consistent in what related to the styles that were included in the design (both pre-revolutionary and cultural revolution styles and post modern representation) of its apparel. Misleading chinas heritage image provides a lack of effective storytelling and makes Chinese designers, who strive to develop their designs into a luxury brand, not able to make much use of the brand personality concept.

Non-effective usage of celebrity marketing (by choice).

Disastrous strategy regarding the 1st store that was opened in New York. Madison avenue held a rent of about 2.7 Million $ due annually, which in the end, accounted for much more money than the Brand could afford. The outcome was an enormous debt. In addition, talking abou the American society, it was clear that there was a knowledge gap regarding Shangai Tang and that the assembling and mixture of colors used in the companys products was non-appealing to athe majority of American customers. It is mentioned that they could buy similar looking products for cheaper prices at other stores.

- To sum up, by that time, the business was not expandable. More concretely, there were almost non-existing repeated sales (two dresses for a woman were enough, as stated in the case).

What could they or should they have done differently?

Intro: BMODEL requirements:a) FULL CONTROL VALUE CHAIN b) CONTROL DISTRIBUTION/ RETAIL c) EXCELLENCE d) PASSION (MATERIALS, DETAILS, PRODUCTS) e) HAND MADE PARTIALLY, STRONG HUMAN CONTENT f) NOT ABOUT VOLUME NON-ORDINARY, RARE, EXCLUSIVE g) AVOID LICENSES! h) ONE ON ONE RELATIONSHIPS W/ CLIENTS i) ROOTED WITH HERITAGE j) NEVER DELOCALIZEDk) SYSTEMATICALLY INCREASE PRICE l) BUSINESS OF ELEVATION: Timeless, Self-Distinction, Superlative (not comparative), Priceless Suggestions:- Add a more contemporary expression and gaze to what was produced at Shangai Tang. With the above wrapped-up strategy, neither the idea of history was made perceived nor consistency was attained. Brand personality and effective story telling could successfully be reached by changing the in-built design of clothes and by carefully deciding what aspects of the Chinese heritage to be brought in.

- Though celebrity marketing is not always a viable choice, it should not be disregarded due to the hardness of building a luxury brand with roots in china. Celebrities perceived with refined fashion-taste could be powerful allies, if used within the conveyed luxury-related marketing strategies.