BURBERRY

1. Bravo’s team has managed to elevate the overall status of the Burberry brand. How has it managed to accomplish this?
Bravo’s goal was to transform Burberry from a tired outerwear into a luxury lifestyle brand that was aspirational, stylish and innovative. And she began by recruiting a top management team, who could succeed in a retail environment and also understand customers, price points and gaps. Together, they changed the brand’s name from Burberry’s to Burberry and introduced a contemporary logo and packaging. By repositioning the brand into “accessible luxury”, they could attract younger customers and, at the same time, retain its core base. The next step was to update the product line by slashing the number of SKUs and hiring a new design team, which was in charge of only three primary collections: womenswear, menswear and accessories. Bravo’s team also decided to raise prices and expand the brand portfolio with the label Prorsum, which was the best way to reinforce Burberry’s new positioning in the luxury market. To promote the new image, they hired Mario Testino, Fabien Baron and David Lipman, who were able to associate the brand with a more trend-conscious, modern look and also with its heritage.

2. Decisions include managing different brands, different collections, channels and licenses: what is the role of these different elements in the overall business model?
The role of each decision was to have a consistent brand image: a perfect mix between heritage and modernity. Outdated designs were being eliminated whereas continuity and fashion-oriented products for women and men were being created. A wide range of price points for accessories could attract potential new customers. The decision of creating Prorsum and the partnership with Mario Testino were ways for the company to be associated with not only fashion, but contemporary chic luxury. With non-licensed products, Burberry exercised control over everything from design to sourcing, manufacturing and distribution, so it was easier for Bravo’s team to supervise and fix possible mistakes and identify positive possibilities.

3. Should Burberry be aggressively transitioning to a more restrained use of the check? What effect will this decision have on the long-term sustainability of the brand?
Yes, because aggressively transitioning to a more restrained use of the check was part of Burberry’s new strategy of becoming a more exclusive, modern, contemporary classic brand. By adopting a “check under cover” philosophy or even products with no checks at all, Bravo could manage the pervasiveness of it in a strategic way, because since customers had to “hunt for the pattern under a collar or inside a coat”, these products became more unique and protected from counterfeit. Products without checks are more expensive, guarantying its differentiation by becoming just “luxury” instead of less “affordable luxury”, which is a major decision for the long-term sustainability of the brand. Burberry will still maintain products with the plaid in order to satisfy customers who only buy the brand for its pattern. However, the difference is that now they are rarer than before, but still connected to the brand’s strong heritage. 4. Describe the typical Burberry customer?
The typical Burberry customer is a cross-generational women and men, who stand for not only sporty, functionality and protection, but also lifestyle, quality, singularity, design, credibility and modernity. For example, a 25-year-old guy who’s on his first job: he wants to wear something hot but also want to appeal to a 60-year old investment banker. 5. How could Burberry popularity among non-target customers affect the brand? What should Burberry do about it?
It affects both positively and negatively: on one hand, it shows that Burberry has achieved aspirational status among youth; on the other hand, this affiliation could eventually alienate the brand’s core customers. Facing this situation, one strategy was to increase the range of products without the check pattern in order to stick to its strategy of becoming more exclusive, unique, fashionable brand. By creating the label Burberry Prorsum, for instance, the brand could address itself for those people who are truly interest in fashion (and not passing), luxury, design and, of course, heritage.