Product details

By the late 1990s, the Creative Director, Tom Ford and the Executive, Domenico de Sole, were being jointly credited with having taken a brand, Gucci, considered by many in the fashion industry as too far gone to ever be resuscitated, and repositioning it into the 'must-have' fashion, or luxury accessory, of the new millennium. The steps they took, the challenges they encountered, the opportunities they capitalised on, as well as the risks which may once again threaten the brand, are all elaborated within this case and provide an interesting forum for discussion and debate on the strategic, marketing and branding approaches specific to the fashion and luxury sectors. The case also raises the issue of the evolution of the luxury goods sector in general - in terms of target segments, consolidation, consumer behaviour, advertising, and ownership structures - and the inevitable impacts of all this on marketing and branding strategies. In particular, the necessity - as well as the risk - of establishing a relationship between a luxury brand and its customers is addressed in the case. With Gucci, Tom Ford personified the brand and so was the connection between the brand and the customer. While on the one hand this strong association between the designer and the brand makes tangible, many otherwise intangible, brand attributes and concepts, it also exposes the brand to a different kind of risk: that of determining who actually owns the brand, and by extension, the customer.