Eileen Fisher Analysis and Takeaways.pptx

Analysis presentation

1. EF Brand Story Embodied in…

2. Brand Personality (Concept by Jennifer Aaker) What would the brand look like if it was a person? Levi’s: Hallmark: M&Ms: IBM: Toyota: BMW: Audi:

3. Brand Personality (Concept by Jennifer Aaker) Levi’s: A hip uninhibited young person (20s) who wears what they like, not what others like Hallmark: A thoughtful caring aunt or uncle who always hugged you like they wished you were theirs M&Ms: An engaging band of compadres with wildly different personalities forming a crazy family of fun IBM: An impeccably dressed businessperson with a decidedly professional mien Toyota BMW Audi

4. 5 Key Aspects of Fashion clothes Brand Personality (J. Aaker)

5. Eileen Fisher (EF) EF’s Brand Personality ?

6. EF Brand Story Embodied in… Products Employees and Business Practices Stores Marketing

7. Aaker’s Brand Equity Model

8. Aaker’s Brand Equity Model cont .. Other customer-oriented associations or differentiation measures Perceived value Value is high for established women segment but has plateaued Other desired customer segments have low perceived value Brand personality Brand seen as competent and sincere but not as exciting; need to inject some pizazz in brand (should the Brand follow fashion trends? What are pros and cons ?) Organizational associations Customers associate company with trust, social responsibility, environmental awareness, women’s empowerment, and concern for its employees.

9. Aaker”s Brand Equity Model cont .. Awareness measures Brand awareness High among established customers; low among others Market behavior measures Market share, price, and distribution coverage are propitious. $30M Sales in 2005; high among women in their 50s 50 retail stores; sold in 478 dept stores, 315 specialty stores

10. Young + Rubicam’s Brand Asset Valuation Differentiation Relevance Energy Esteem Knowledge

11. Characteristics of Market Segments Established women Emerging women Nascent women

12. Market Segments Established women In their 50s or 60s; retiring/cutting back on work who like casual, simplistic style appreciate sales assistance at EF stores and usually have personal relationships with salespersons higher WTP Emerging women In their 30s or 40s; busy, active, tend to buy EF pieces not full dresses; shop in department stores not EF stores do not like sales assistance follow fashion trends Nascent women In their 20s busy don’t wear or associate with EF associate brand with mothers or grandmothers like more fitting clothes shop in specialty stores don’t like heavy sales assistance, rather prefer light sales assistance more price sensitive

13. If + New Target Segment: Add Emerging or Nascent Women Segment?

14. Option 1: Target Emerging Women PROS CONS

15. Option 1: Target Emerging Women PROS Closer to current segment than nascent women, so won’t have to move brand much Earning power increasing; higher disposable income than nascent segment More socially conscious (?) CONS Not particularly brand loyal View EF clothes as “shapeless” and for older women Could alienate current core customers High $$ spend needed to ”draw them in”

16. Option 2: Target Nascent Women PRO CONS

17. Option 2: + Target Nascent Women PRO Longtime customers if persuaded to buy so higher CLV CONS Far from current segment and brand positioning (maybe better to target with another brand) Have fickle fashion taste and less brand loyal Lesser WTP; will have to cut price Will need to restructure store sales assistance and infrastructure Could alienate current core customers Need high $$ spend to “draw them in” Need to use different Media (Social Media) to reach them re Promotion Maybe different retail stores as well..

18. Some Brand Architecture and Positioning Adjustment Options.

19. Option 1: Launch a sub brand to target emerging or nascent customer PROS CONS PROS CONS Option 2: Launch a new brand endorsed by Eileen Fisher Brand

20. Option 1: Launch a sub brand to target emerging or nascent customer PROS Less risk of alienating current customers CONS Delicate positioning re brand distance - risk vs synergy vs cost of development PROS Leverages brand equity but keeps greater distance to avoid cannibalization CONS Delicate positioning - risk vs synergy vs cost of development Option 2: Launch a new brand endorsed by Eileen Fisher Brand

21. Option 3: Launch completely new brand PROS CONS PROS CONS Option 4 : Retrench and reposition brand for current segment

22. Option 3: Launch completely new brand PROS Less cannibalization Less risk to current brands CONS No transfer of brand equity High cost of development PROS Don’t lose current loyal customers Increase SOW from them Less risk of wasting money for unsuccessful targeting of emerging or nascent segment CONS Miss out on large segments Option 4: Retrench and reposition brand for current segment

23. Risks of Repositioning a Brand

24. Risks of Repositioning a Brand Difficult when existing customers identities are invested in brand. Some may jettison Brand; others will struggle with new identity meanings and their reflections on them Existing customers may resent being grouped with the new customer segment who they consider “unlike them” Difficult when strongly associated with a user identity Oldsmobile affiliated with older generation; failed to convince younger customers with “this is not your father’s Oldsmobile” Note it is easier to do an evolutionary (i.e. by steps) rather than revolutionary repositioning Gillette went from razors to body washes by Razors  Shaving creams  toe-hold in skincare  after-shave gels  deodorants  body washes Repositioning through stepwise product launches eased the transition Similarly, if EF goes through Established to Emerging to Nascent it will take longer, but an easier transition than going straight from Established to Nascent.

25. Risks of Not Repositioning a Brand when market has shifted away

26. Risks of Not Repositioning a Brand when market has shifted away

27. Brand Options for Growth - Brand Diffusion Brand diffusion : Creating a new brand that shares elements of the old, including similar words, colors, tone, and other brand elements.

28. Brand Options for Growth - Brand Diffusion Brand diffusion : Creating a new brand that shares elements of the old, including similar words, colors, tone, and other brand elements. - Less Brand Distance, need less $$ to Build Brand, more Synergy, more Risk to Main Brand, more delicacy required in positioning,

29. Brand Options for Growth -- Separate Brand Separate brand: Creating a completely different brand, with minimal if any association with the main brand; requires a distinct and all-new design, name, and marketing campaign. -

30. Brand Options for Growth -- Separate Brand Separate brand: Creating a completely different brand, with minimal if any association with the main brand; requires a distinct and all-new design, name, and marketing campaign. - More Brand Distance, need more $$ to Build Brand , less Synergy, less Risk to Main Brand, more freedom in positioning

31. TAKEAWAYS/LEARNINGS..

32. TAKEAWAYS/LEARNINGS (1).. There are opportunities and bottlenecks of extending a niche brand to larger markets (red oceans) where it will have a larger field to play in but will encounter new bigger competitors How and where a brand moves is as important as where it stands A marketing mix must be consistent among the elements and with the positioning EF has a powerful platform for growth and clarity of brand positioning to use for expansion, but strongly defined brand boundaries can become barriers for growth, and necessitate creativity and delicacy in implementation to break out of them EF should reconsider brand architecture decisions to overcome perceptual barriers to adoption; the brand needs to translate its middle-aged women positioning into language that resonates with younger women especially if pursuing market development or diversification paths

33. ….Takeaways/ Learnings (2) For brand repositioning, need to alter the marketing mix to synergistically support the new brand story For example, for EF if targeting younger women ... PRODUCT : more fashionable colorful brighter clothes STORES : design more avant-garde ; fashion stores Younger salespersons Overall reflecting tastes of younger demographic PRICING : lower price points More sales promotions, rebates, coupons PROMOTION : more social media presence (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram --) Different magazines and TV programs ;younger models How fast and how far you reposition is tricky - Have to do it in a way that doesn’t make people feel they are being left behind or succumbing to a trend

34. TAKEAWAYS/LEARNINGS (3).. Sustaining Brand Authenticity is difficult as the brand grows. Keeping the brand contemporary without losing the timeless strengths of the brand is a delicate tight-rope act. Some measures that may help: Building a self-reinforcing community of believers Employing “co-creation” with customers to help keep the brand fresh and sustain brand engagement. If endorsers are to be used, use persons who are reputed to espouse similar values as the brand. A Brand personality should be evocative, memorable, and evolvable . “ A brand that captures your mind gains behavior; a brand that captures your heart gains commitment” - Scott Taigo , Landor Associates

35. ANSOFF MATRIX FOR PM GROWTH MARKETS/ PRODUCTS CURRENT NEW CURRENT Market Penetration Market Development NEW Product Development Diversification

36. Perceptual Map; Accessible Luxury Brands Source: Kate Spade

37. % of E-Commerce Sales in Sales Mix

38. What happened (1) Initially the thread and stitch projects generated strong results In 2 weeks after implementing new strategy: In-store sales rose 11% and online sales 137% over previous year 2010 was the most profitable year up to that time EF began to morph and adapt incorporating some slimmer fitting and deftly tailored silhouettes among looser, freer ones while keeping them traditionally soft, comfortable, and built to last (some basic values remained) EF invested in social media presence starting with a Twitter feed and a Facebook presence EF expanded to UK and Canada in 2012

39. What happened (2) Revenue crossed $300 Million in 2015; 65 retail stores in USA 70% of cotton sourced from organic cotton Fisher personally owns 60% of the company that shares her name, while the remaining 40% is held by her 1,200 full- and part-time employees through an  employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) In the US, fewer than  7,000 companies  have an employee stock ownership program in place, according to the National Center for Employee Ownership. The average employee who participates in one of these programs owns shares worth $134,000, according to a  2018 Rutgers University study. In 2019 Eileen Fisher was valued at  $400 million  and had more than 60 stores across the US, Canada and the UK.

40. What happened (3) Eileen Fisher’s brand strategy has shifted to focus more on quality rather than quantity, hoping to educate consumers more about the value of purchasing higher-quality pieces rather than fast fashion. EF started  Waste No More —a high-design, R&D hybrid program that takes back old EF clothes and either repairs them for resale or turns them into new pieces of art, pillowcases, or wall hangings. They’ve taken back more than one million pieces of clothing since 2009.  EF takes stands on global social issues; Eileen is very active on Instagram. "We don't want to be a divider. We want to be a healer, we want to help, we want to bring progress, we want to bring people together. So, we're very careful in how we use our voice," Eileen Fisher (2019). 2020 COVID impacts: ‘Ethical fashion’ continues to see commitment at EF despite a shrinking market due to COVID in 2020: 1 Eileen Fisher and West Elm team in a limited sustainable home collaboration using clothing discards. 2 Partnered with government to create masks and PPE. As of 2021, EF had 700+ employees, 61 stores and were carried in more than 300 department stores. EF extended their lines to more inclusive sizing, making every design available in sizes XXS-3X.

41. Appendix

42. Some Fall 2019 styles EF’s Fall 2019 offerings include jewel-toned wool jackets, lightweight turtleneck tunics and on-trend wide-leg denim . Shawl $109, Brown sweater $448, Purple Dress $168, Black Dress $268

43. Eileen Fisher (EF) Brand Personality (Concept by Jennifer Aaker )

44. $250 Tan Leather boot.