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Burberry
The beauty of Burberry is the rich brand history and the international
appeal. Burberry was founded in 1856, when 21-year old apprentice to a
country draper Thomas Burberry opened an outfitters shop in Hamprsire,
England. By 1870 it has become a major spot for local sportsmen and
hunters, who admired new breathable yet waterproof fabric - gabardine. The
invention of Thomas Burberry, gabardine was patented in 1888 as an
innovative fabric, processed from waterproofed yarn. London shop was
opened soon, in 1891. In 1901 Burberry was commissioned to design the
serving uniform for British officers. Since then British company outfitted
famous pilots and polar expeditions, it even created a gabardine pole for
Roald Amundsen and garments for aviators, sponsoring record-breaking
intercontinental flights. In 1920 the legendary Novacheck was born, first
used as a lining for gabardine trench-coats. Only in 1967 the
beige-grey-red stripes were used for umbrellas and other accessories.
But as time goes by, the 145-year-old company was in a checkmate with its
Novacheck plaid and needed an updating to bring the famous design to the
forefront of fashion. They got just what they wanted when they hired Rose
Marie Bravo as CEO in 1997.
Bravo brought the company known for its heritage, history and
craftsmanship up to hip. Now it is worn not only by royals and aristocrats
for sporting events but by celebrities, rappers and everyone in between
for every type of event. The older customer grew up with the scarf and
trench coat and now their children and the other hip people who see it as
a status symbol. In spite of hostile economic climate the company has
maintained its core customers, and the designs for the new customers have
been met with a tremendous response. Today the creator of Burberry London
and Prorsum collections Christopher Bailey explores the avant-garde niche
for the classic brand.
Men can wear a Burberry (the apostrophe s was dropped in 1999) tuxedo
shirt, bow tie and cummerbund with socks to match to a formal event; swim
trunks, visor and sandals to the beach; pants and T-shirt for sportswear;
or sweater and long sleeve shirts in the fall.
Women have the choice of hats, jackets, watches, pants, bathing suits,
pareos, clogs, shoes from jellies and flats to heels, skirts and dresses
and even underwear. The check pattern is used as a trim on elbows and down
seams as well as being shown full blown.
You can dress your dog to match your outfits and children have also gotten
into the act with clothes, strollers and diaper bags. The check has even
been buttoned onto facemasks during the recent SARS outbreak in Asia.
Bravo even added pastels and bright colors to the original palette.
In February 1999 the company had its first catwalk show during London
fashion week and was honored as British Classic Design Collection of the
year. The fragrance Touch was introduced in 2000, and in 2000-2001 the
company was honored again by the British Fashion Council in both classic
and contemporary design categories. The traditional plaid has grown past
the traditional designs as the trench coat turned into a halter dress.
The design is so popular that copycats are popping up all over. However,
that doesn't really affect Burberry's profits. The British luxury goods
group reported Monday that revenues in the period climbed 18 percent, and
retail sales were up 33 percent, or 21 percent on an underlying basis (at
constant exchange rates and excluding the impact of the acquisition of the
Korean business in July 2002).
The U.S. held its position as Burberry's best performing market in the
three months ended June 30, while Europe continued to be soft. The Asian
markets outside of Japan began showing signs of recovery. Burberry's
results have remained relatively unscathed by the SARS outbreak in Asia,
as most of the brand's Asian business is concentrated in Japan, which has
not been affected by the virus.
No new Burberry stores were planned to open in the first quarter, but the
company is continuing to make progress on the Milan store slated to open
in September. Burberry plans to boost its retail selling space by 10
percent in this financial year (to reach 400,000 square feet of selling
space by March 2004), with the opening of eight new stores, including the
Milan store (its first in Italy) and three new U.S. outlets (Houston, Las
Vegas and Tysons Corner, Virginia).
Julia Gabriel © TheWorldJournal.com
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