What's Up With GUCCI?

"The Gucci Women is all about sex" Tom Ford

As we all know, understand, and imagine; Gucci sells sex. Since 1994 when Tom Ford took over Gucci the company had one clear message "SEX!" It was the sexual revolution of women lead by Tom Ford who's dream was to empower women on a sexual level. This combined with his opinion that sex sells Gucci rose out of what seemed certain bankruptcy to one of the most popular and successful luxury fashion retailers. The concept worked and through controversial and provocative ad campaign Tom Ford ensured his clear message was embedded in the minds of the consumer.

In 2004 Tom Ford left Gucci but since then the company has continued to portray the same message of sex, and sales remained stable even after the mastermind behind it all left.

Examples of typical Gucci ads are as followed....

As can be seen, very sexually driven and in some cases provocative such as the last one where the Gucci G has been shaven in the girls pubic region!

Now, new creative director Frida has seen that the "new" trend of experience and heritage is replacing bling in a lot of sectors including luxury retail. Her idea is to bring back some of the old icons which made the old Gucci, like the horses and the bamboo. This in itself is not a bad idea, as long as the brand DNA would remain untouched and Gucci would remain true to its archetype; seduction!! It seems Frida has been able to do this for the clothing line... but to my horror I stumbled upon their recent add campaign "Gucci Forever Now" :-( The campaign was for their 90th anniversary and the excuse Frida used to comply with the heritage and experience aspect of the brand. Yet the visuals used clashed in every way with the image of Gucci in the mind of the consumer. 

This in most cases is not what the perception most luxury consumers have in their minds when thinking of Gucci. Besides that the Gold Text of Gucci is nearly illegible on the black and white background. Imagine your a fan of Gucci and are a loyal customer, (if you actually are its even easier ;-) ) you are flicking through a magazine and you see this picture, different things could happen... First you are on the lookout for sexy ads so skip this one before you had a chance to see its Gucci, second you see its Gucci but you don't believe it or think its an editorial or something third you are annoyed your trusted brand is being so old fashioned.

Another thing I had with some of the visuals is that they seem more like the images of nike's sweatshops then that of a luxury brands work shop...

For me, not only could these pictures have been taking in the same place, (the top a sweatshop in asia, the bottom a gucci ad) Gucci is even less legible... It is for me amazing how a brand like Gucci can stray so far from their identity... 

Thankfully this ad campaign seems for now to be a blimp rather than a downwards spiralling roller coaster. The new perfume ad of Gucci reassured me the brand hasn't lost all of its vision.  

Negativity isn't my favourite thing, but this ad campaign just really bugged me ;-), so i needed to make sure my opinion was heard! Next time I promise something more positive, but who doesn't like a littile bit of gossip!!! ;-)

Till Next Time

The W hotel has arrived in London... naturally this is news worthy, yet the question remains will this example of American luxury take off on European soil! 

In theory it should, Europeans and especially the UK have been more and more drawn to American culture. Plain proof of this is the number of Starbucks you walk past when walking from Bond Street tube station to Regents college... I have counted 8 so far but you never know where there is another one lurking around the corner. This is an impressive feat for low quality over priced coffee 'luxury' coffee yet everyone adores it but I am sure to talk about that branding another time. Just as a side bar, I may sound negative towards the American culture and Starbucks but I am just like everyone else I love Hollywood, I am a devoted customer of Starbucks (I live next to one) and I even speak with an American accent... Therefore do not get me wrong, it isn't criticism it is more of an amazement. 

Arguments for the W hotel to succeed in London are extensive, but I made a short list anyway ;-)

• The clients will be international, as it is a hotel, therefore a lot of Americans that appreciate the hotel in the states will book their stay in London at the W.     
• Luxury is considered a global language, due to the high education, vast travailing and appreciation of foreign cultures the luxury clientele is a culture of its own, described by the term Globocrats. Evidence is there to suggest the minimalist and cool design of the W is appreciated by a number of this luxury clientele.
• The first W hotels opened in Europe; Istanbul and Barcelona, seem to be doing well for now, and Istanbul seems to be a harder challenge to integrate American culture than London.

After considering these arguments it seems that the W has undoubtedly potential to succeed. Another stunning feature of the hotel is W London Leicester Square Wyld Bar. 

This stunning bar will be the new asset of the London night scene, but in a city where new bars and clubs come nearly every week the question remain how long the Wyld bar can remain a popular destination. It does however have a lot of potential, and yours truly can't wait to be drinking a nice espresso martini while looking at the rotating mirror in the ceiling. The W did put a lot of effort in making this appealing for their target market. Young, Rich, Single individuals that enjoy this specific form of luxury. 

The rooms it self seem to be nothing special, even slightly small considering these are the promotion pictures on the website. The finishing will with out a doubt be designer yet still looks similar to stuff you can find in IKEA. As a promotional feature the W says "Wonderful rooms no longer recognize bathrooms and bedrooms as two different living spaces but flow into each other, though privacy still remains, as mirrored walls reveal your bathroom".

To me that is a fancy way of saying we dint have the money or the space to fit walls in the bathroom. But it can be useful for the target market as they will enjoy interesting night with R rated scenes. Also in many other London designer hotels you will find the Ipod dock to be either B&O or B&W both the leading experts on sound yet at the W they seem to have found another area to cut costs. 

The location of Leicester Square is interesting, as a Londoner it is a place you try to avoid at all cost and probably the center of tourism in London. Yet not really the center of luxury tourism, it is close to Soho, China Town, Piccadilly Circus but besides that most luxury clients would need to take a cab for there touristic or business destinations. If this is the case, Leicester Square probably one of the most traffic congested areas of London which will without a doubt cause future delays for the W's clients. 

In a city with renowned luxury hotels such as The Savoy, The Ritz, The Dorchester & The Connaught it would be a shame to spend the same type of money on a hotel experience that fits a city like Las Vegas a lot more. The service at these classic hotels will be incomparable and would result in a much better appreciation of the city. Understanably there are those that may find these hotels old fashion and want more excitement. The W would be a new option for them. The W will be competing in this sector with the Mayfair hotel (the favorite place of Paris Hilton in London :-s) and the One Aldwych Hotel. In this case I would go for the One Aldwych as they have at least tried to incorporate some of the local culture and did not cut costs when it came to the finishing.

So to answer the question will the W succeed in London; probably. Will I be staying there; No (well maybe the bar once in a while ;-) ). And I wish the W a lot of luck with their Paris opening this year cause that will be a lot harder for them!

Till next time! 

Luxury Brand Management DSM 403

 

And a new blog is born! We were told that for our masters class we had to make a record of our thoughts and reflection of the class as well as anything else we might find interesting. The choice was given to us whether we wanted to make a handbook or set up a blog or do anything we believe was a valid way to reflect our opinion. At first my opinion was dead set on making a handbook, it would give me more creative freedom. However as time passed it dawned on me that I am in a class with 3 guys and 22 girls, and considering cutting and gluing wasn't my greatest strength in the world i eventually opted for cutting and pasting online in a blog instead. It might level the playing ground slightly. ;-) 

I just would like to bid you welcome to the rants of my brain in the area surrounding branding, brands, design, luxury, management and more...  Hopefully this blog can offer some entertainment to all those interested! ;-p