Arm Ani

Giorgio Armani - the ultimate

fashion brand

By, Kaushik.K

Giorgio Armani- The Businessman, Designer & “My Philosophy has always been to help women & men feel comfortable and confident through the clothes they wear”

Establishment, growth and extension of a major designer • • •

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1934 Born in Italy, Inspired to become a doctor, but joined the Infirmary in 1953. In1954 joined joined La Rinescente, as a window dresser. He was later promoted as a buyer. In the early 1960s, he joined Nino Cerruti, a prominent fashion designer, as an assistant designer for his men's wear brand, Hitman. Over the next few years, Armani took up freelance work for several clothing In 1974, with his partner Sergio Galeotti, he established Giorgio Armani S.p.A with a menswear label, introducing a womenswear line in 1975. Being a designer himself, he made apparel with his sense of aesthetics, beauty and luxury, a sense that appealed to the elite of the society that today includes the royalty of Belgium, the royal families of many Asian countries and even the

• The company designs and manufactures with many subbrands designed under the parent umbrella brand of Giorgio Armani to cater to the specific needs of different market segments, they divulged into fashion accessories, apparel, cosmetics, fragrances, home interiors, jewelry, eyewear and watches under several labels like • The signature Giorgio Armani line- Armani suits, Oscar gowns, they are ultra priced, it caters to the Elite age group between 30-35. • Emporio Armani- Provides contemprory designs for the age group between 20-35. • Armani jeans- Value segment for the age group 18-35 • A/X Armani Exchange: This is the licensed brand of chain of retail outlets of Armani fashion house. This serves as the ultimate testimony to the power of the brand. By providing the entire range of its apparels and accessories.

• Armani has been able to come up with winning concepts in the other product lines of cosmetics, watches, jewelry and eye wear. • But Armani has not stopped at just these product categories: Armani has extended the brand into multiple other categories such as Armani Casa (up-market furniture), Armani-branded Dolci (confectionary), and Armani-branded Fiori (Flowers). • Armani teamed up with Samsung to make the Giorgio Armani cell phone similar to the LG Prada • In Feb2009 He opened up his first U.S Restaurant,

Strategies adopted to differentiate over Rivals •

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Armani produces highly differentiated, expensive clothes that are affordable only to the very rich. They supplement their sales by producing a line of upscale ready-to-wear fashion for sale in luxury department stores. The Giorgio Armani fashion house, like many other fashion houses, has been built primarily on the unique personality and identity of Giorgio Armani himself. The brand takes on the identity of the founder through the designs created.(Founders identity) His collections define style and he is continuously creating trendsetting styles in the industry Their suits & coats used by Hollywood stars during the OSCARS.(Image differentiation) In contrast to some of his fellow designers like Gianni Versace (Versace), who used bright colors and bold designs, Armani preferred a neutral palette with simple cuts

• Giorgio Armani is one of the world's most desirable brands, according to an online consumer survey. The company found that one in three consumers would buy products by the luxury brands.“Giorgio Armani clearly understand that strong brands make profitable businesses,” • It has nearly 300 stores in 36 countries. It is selling its products through e-market . (Global reach) • Licensing Policy withL’oreal-perfumes & cosmetics Fossil- watches Luxxotica-spectacles Simmit- jeans & Emporio Armani menswear • Single brand strategy.

Factors to sustain Brand exclusivity & Image • Reputation- it has to keep up what it has earned so far. • it takes a considerable time for the concept and products to take root in the market. For any company to sustain this gestation period, it needs to operate in an environment where there are no day-to-day financial pressures. Having this kind of financial independence to operate in has been one of the key success factors for Armani. • Keep updating-“With fashion you have to renew yourself… you’re only as good as your last collection.” For over thirty years, he has managed to stay both current and also classic. Armani has never strayed from his original vision of creating understated and elegant clothing. It is this consistency that has garnered him his loyal following and built up his reputation • One of the main aspects of a fashion brand is its personality and its identity in the marketplace. Armani, with its

Brand Extension strategy •

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As is the trend in the fashion industry to operate in the entire spectrum from apparel, jewellery, cosmetics, watches, perfumes and luxury hotels, Armani has been able to leverage its brand equity to be present in most of these lucrative sectors. Today, Armani group has a retail network of 60 Giorgio Armani boutiques, 11 Collezioni, 122 Emporio Armani, 94 A/X Armani exchange, 13 Armani Junior , 1 Giorgio Armani Accessori and 16 Armani casa spread over 37 different countries. Though Armani might have extended its brand to hotels because luxury travel is catching up fast as a fad with elite travelers, managing the brand along these different dimensions could be a massive challenge With so many things going on in the Armani stable, it might seem a pretty picture at the outset. But this huge portfolio of brands and product lines creates a much bigger set of challenges to the Giorgio Armani brand strategy in the future. As the reputation of the brand stays alive , they have to maintain

Succession issue in a founder-managed organization and the survival of a brand beyond its founder• Forbes named him the most successful Italian designer, estimating his net worth at $1.7 billion; in giving him the same title five years later, the magazine estimated his fortune had grown to $4.1 billion. • By 2004, Armani had not identified a successor to his fashion house. There was also a clear lack of a second-incommand at the house. Even though Armani's sister and his two nieces were closely involved with the business, analysts doubted that he would name any of them as his successor. While some people admired Armani for remaining active and completely involved, even at the age of 70, analysts began to increasingly feel that he was behaving in an arrogant and irresponsible manner by not marking out a succession plan • Giorgio Armani was quoted as saying that the search for a

• Bernard Arnault, boss of the French luxury-goods giant LVMH, and Domenico De Sole, formerly Tom Ford's business right-hand man at the Gucci Group, have each approached Armani. They want to buy the brand and could easily afford the £2 billion tag. But Armani has spurned their offers. • the Italian designer's recent revelations provide the answer, that he plans to sell the business entirely. He does not wish to burden his nieces and nephews with the running of a 4,500 man workforce. Neither does he wish to float the company on the stock market, as this would weaken the group and would put it at the mercy of those "who do not always understand the business of fashion“ • Armani would only consider selling to someone who understood that the business should be left in its present state, with the current team intact.

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