Other US Brands hat have entered the UK
Club Monaco
postering via a guerilla marketing campaign to gain awareness
http://www.dazeddigital.com/fashion/article/9682/1/club-monaco-at-browns
US Brands that have entered the UK Retail Landscape
Krispy Kreme
Keeping a
brand’s heritage intact when it enters a new market is likely to mean that
marketers need to retain characteristics that root it in the culture it came
from. Some of these will translate better than others, particularly where food
is concerned.
When Krispy
Kreme doughnuts crossed the Atlantic from the US to the UK in 2003, the brand
used distinctively American styles of consumption to create a positioning that
was unique among competitors in its new market.
According to
Krispy Kreme UK chief marketing officer Judith Denby, the “undertone” of the
brand’s American origins is important, partly because many UK consumers fondly
remember first trying the doughnuts on holiday there.
Krispy Kreme
has specifically encouraged UK consumers to buy and eat doughnuts as a communal
experience. It has called on them to become ‘office heroes’ and has launched
gift cards that give holders one box of 12 doughnuts for each month of the
year, intended for sharing with workmates.
It is an
American concept that has transferred well, extending to doughnuts the more
common British tradition of bringing cakes to work for birthdays and other
occasions.
However, Denby
adds that another American eating habit - doughnuts at breakfast - was left
behind when the brand embarked on its journey to Britain. “When we first came
over we talked to people about it, and there was an assumption from our US
counterparts that we would promote Krispy Kreme as a breakfast food, but that
just wouldn’t work in the UK. We just don’t eat doughnuts for breakfast here.”
“Although we
are a US brand, our transition to the UK has been about understanding the local
market - understanding our customers here, how they behave and how they want to
behave,” says Denby.
The American
heritage creates “warmth and confidence in the brand”, but for a British
franchise business now owned and run independently, American-ness is “not
relevant as a primary message for people in the UK”.
Barnett,M. 2012.’Why
global brands must be part of local cultures’. Marketing week, [online] 12 April. Available at: < http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/trends/why-global-brands-must-be-part-of-local-cultures/4001088.article
[Accessed 11 May 2012].
We can take from this and recommend to Ann Inc that they
must bring some of their values but adapt themselves to the UK consumer to gain
interest.
Victoria's
Secret
Who? The biggest
name in lingerie in the US – or "intimate apparel", as Americans prefer
to call it – Victoria's Secret has annual sales of some $6bn.
The chain has
more than 1,000 stores across the US and more than 300 in Canada. It also has a
vast online operation.
The chain was
founded by Roy Raymund, who built the business before selling it to the Limited
Brands group, which also includes Bath & Body Works, the CO Bigelow
apothecaries and fashion chain Henri Bendel. The Ohio-based group is quoted on
the New York Stock Exchange.
Victoria's
Secret - founded in California in 1977 - is now a huge brand in the US, and
sends out 400 million mail-order catalogues a year. It has an annual catwalk
show, which is televised live and features its "angel" supermodels,
such as Gisele Bundchen, Heidi Klum and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.
Limited also
plans to bring its Bath & Body Works to Europe this year and says it is
seeking "best in continent" partners to open franchised outlets that
would go head-to-head with Boots and Body Shop.
What they say: The chain's
parent company, Limited Brands, has laid out a plan to open a flagship store,
probably in a prime London location, and build a huge new European online
operation to offer next-day delivery.
The rivals: Marks &
Spencer, with more than 26% of the UK undies market, has most to lose. Online
specialists like Figleaves will also have to watch out.
Forever 21
Who? Started from
one store, named Fashion 21, in Los Angeles in 1984, the cheap-chic retailer
quickly found success with bargain-hungry young shoppers. The Korean immigrant husband
and wife team, Do Won Chang and Jin Sook Chang, who founded the business,
quickly reinvested their revenues in order to open new outlets. In 1995 they
started to expand beyond California. Renamed Forever 21, the chain was
averaging 90 new store openings a year by 2005.
Forever 21 now
has outlets in Japan, Malaysia, China and the United Arab Emirates. Its London
shops will be the first in Europe and are expected to be in the West End and at
the new Westfield Stratford shopping centre, and are due to open next year.
Forever 21's global sales are expected to top $2bn this year and, as with the
UK's Primark, the retailer has prospered and expanded through the recession.
What they say: The property
expert searching for sites for Forever 21 says: "This is an exciting young
US fashion brand that is the hottest ticket in town. The timing is perfect for
Forever 21 to hit Europe." The retailer's deeply devout founders also have
a Christian message, and are known for stamping their carrier bags with a Bible
quote.
The rivals: The key high
street players that will need to watch out for this fast-expanding chain are
teen-magnets New Look, H&M and Topshop. Online fashion retailer Asos will
also be keeping an eye on this US newcomer.
What we say: Taking on New
Look, H&M and Asos etc is a big ask. But when Forever 21 opened in Japan it
smashed all records.
Best Buy
Who? America's
biggest electrical retailer, started in 1966 by Brad Anderson, a one-time
stereo salesman. When the chain floated on the Nasdaq exchange in 1985, the
group had sales of $8m. By last year that had grown to $45bn.
Best Buy's
springboard into the UK was buying half of Carphone Warehouse's retail
business. The first UK store opens next month in the Lakeside shopping centre,
Thurrock. Four more – at Hedge End in Southampton, Merry Hill in the West
Midlands, Aintree near Liverpool and Croydon – will be open by the autumn. They
will be vast "big box" stores of 50,000 sq ft.
The former
Tesco and Boots executive Scott Wheway has been hired to run the group's new
European operations.
What they say: The retailer's
big idea is to ease shoppers' "techno stress" with smooth customer
service. Sales staff, called Blueshirts, do not get commission.
Paul
Antoniadis, chief executive of Best Buy UK, says: "We're here to make
buying technology simple, exciting and tailored to each of our customers."
The rivals: A big threat to
DSG international, the group behind Currys, Dixons and PC World, and to
Kesa-owned Comet. John Lewis – where shoppers trust the advice and the prices –
could also be a hit.
What we say: The new
Currys/PC World superstores will give Best Buy a run for their money – but
Comet could be in real trouble as the US group expands.
[Hannah.L]
No comments:
Post a Comment