The most quintessentially British luxury fashion house, the simple thought of Burberry brings in images of the revered city of London and unmatched style. This fashion house has been around for over 150 years and has been making exceptionally well made and ultra fashion-forward pieces since the company’s conception. This designer brand has everything you could want, from the most popular Burberry bags, such as bags from the TB range and Lola ranges to Dresses and scarves.
Founded by Thomas Burberry nearly a decade after the industrial revolution in 1856 at Basingstoke in the South of England, Mr. Burberry had the brilliant idea of protecting its wearers from the not so “great” weather in Britain. With such a firm idea of helping its wearers while looking fashionable, the company found tremendous success and became instantly famous across the country and sold very much over the years. Still, while the idea of protecting its customers was great, it was not going to cut it for its European customers who did not suffer from such a situation the way the British did; thus, the company decided to first grow vastly in Great Britannia and focus on the rest of the world after. And so for over 130 years until a meeting in 2006 that changed it all.
The Change…
The meeting was a strategic meeting to talk about changing the company’s brand image. The fashion house had to become a luxury brand to attract anyone outside of the UK and North America; protecting its customers from British weather was not going to cut it. So after concluding that the company needed to change this, they made a strategic plan to change.
Prices
First, prices. To instill in the customers’ mind that they are getting something luxurious, a lot of the value of the item comes from the price. So instantly, almost overnight, the company raised all prices on every single product. After reviewing the result, they saw a loss in market cap but gain in brand identity, which was precisely what they were after; customers were beginning to notice the company as luxurious.
Revamp.
Next, the company revamped all collections to suit the guide prices set in the previous collections. This was a no brainer as customers would not purchase the same old thing for hundreds of pounds more. To revamp the collections, they hired the industries’ most prominent fashion designers like Riccardo Tisci to create beautiful pieces anyone could enjoy.
Fashion Shows
After showcasing the revamped fashion house items at Paris Fashion Week and London Fashion Week, the company received an enormous global appeal. Arab and Chinese investors approached it to bring the companies designs into South and East Asia as well as Arab regions of Asia.
Franchise the Brand
After these three core events, the brand launched ore stores on a franchise basis; from a corner edge of East London to a booming mall in China, you’ll find Burberry in a scarce abundance. This is because the company selects investors to franchise their stores; while the fashion house provides products and branding, the store owner must give the employees an aptitude to help uplift this fashion house to the world’s largest.
From there, the company had a recipe for success, and now just over 16 years later, the Burberry fashion house has flourished into a reputable and established brand to be competed with only by the likes of Louis Vuitton, Prada and Gucci. Whether you’re after Burberry bags or a trench coat made by this beautiful designer brand, you’ll be in good hands at Burberry.