15/1 - London baby!
We had a day trip up to London to look at some USP's of brands/companies whilst looking out for shop layouts, promotion, adverts, window displays, customers and staff workers! On top of the actual garments (quality, standard of production, where it was produced etc.) to see where in the market, our brand would fit in as well as if there is an opening for it!
First it was off to Liberty's, traditionally English and after new management have propelled the once Mock Tudor building into the luxury battlefield of the 21st century, housing contemporary designers such as Rick Owens, Yohji Yamamoto contrasting with Stella McCartney and Vivienne Westwood! we found some interesting shapes, textures and layouts, yet what we all realised, there was only one small secluded section for loungewear, which was yes, beautiful but was not that contemporary in design and did not have the health benefits!
Also, at Liberty's the rest of the group spoke to a skincare representative of Aromatherapy Associates, whose oils smelled wonderful, one especially that relaxed you and made you go to sleep. something that would be perfect if infused with one of our garments. This also gave me the idea of a scratch and sniff business card's!
Then to The Kooples, yes, because I love to shop there anyway, yet the atmosphere, the layout and the way the brands ethos is shown is so clear and contemporary which is why I wanted to show it to the rest of the group! Plus the staff in there are always so very friendly, even in Paris and Nice they are utmost presentable, professional but by no means un-approachable. Their shop layouts utilise the space to get enough information in without feeling overcrowded and overwhelmed. The latest look book/adverts hung on the walls above the shelves, as the rails of clothes methodically progressed, from lighter wear (t-shirts etc.) to outwear jackets and suits.
What also appealed to me with The Kooples, are there packagings, always with a dust bag, and when you buy online the receipts are kept in a black envelope with their embossed logo! something that we two could adopt, and potentially even use in store, nothing is more annoying trying to organise your receipts in your bag or to find one, so having it in a envelope would keep it from being muddled among the rest of the many, many miscellaneous receipts!
Cos was next on the list of places to see, their clean cut lines and simple silhouettes transfer to their store so effortlessly, its a shame they are always so busy, which does add to a bit of chaos, yet the clothes and decor bring you back to a sense of mellow.
As we were in the area, we decided to look at some of SoHo's fabric stores to get a feel (and some swatches) for some luxury fabrics and what we would want our garments to be made from.
Then last on our stop was Selfridges, where we journeyed straight to the 6th floor to discover, yet again a niche in the market! only a small select of lingerie brands where there to greet us and hardly any loungewear items!
This trip has defiantly confirmed;
- where we would want to be in the market
- that the market we were trying to find would have a place
- what aesthetic's we are really trying to portray
- and what mood and ethos we want to promote
With this, our survey that one of the group members created will give us enough evidence, research and information to really get the ball rolling!
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