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What Makes a Brand Timeless
Many of the best-known luxury brands are associated with craftsmanship, design and impeccable service – but just what is it that makes a brand timeless?
This was the question that we explored with Emily Zak, Executive Retail Editor of Vogue, and a number of business leaders from the world of luxury and fashion at an event at London’s Covent Garden Hotel.
It was by chance that we planned and arranged our breakfast discussion at the same time as the International Herald Tribune ‘Heritage Luxury’ conference, a happy coincidence which meant that our discussion was both topical and timely.
Emily opened the discussion by talking about the shift in the way timelessness and ‘heritage’ are perceived today. The recession/global economic downturn has brought about a new attitude in consumers who, fatigued with ‘newness’ and fickle fashion, now crave substance: something that feels truly special and unique. Investment brand, Hermes, stood out as a brand that was committed to craftsmanship and quality; its ‘slow’ production felt similar to the increasingly popular and influential slow food movement.
For luxury brands, heritage evokes a number of qualities: rarity, expense, and exclusivity. Companies even use ‘Heritage’ as an explicit marketing strategy, namely Gucci and their Heritage collection and D&G’s recent La Dolce Vita-inspired designs, which openly tap into nostalgia, in itself a form of heritage.
Meanwhile, Karl Lagerfeld has ignored the archives at Chanel, looking forward, updating the brand and reworking the codes, and Miuccia Prada has transformed the family leather goods and luggage business into the powerhouse we know today; with its unique ideas-rich culture, it is always at the forefront of innovation.
We agreed that heritage is great if you have it, but it can be constraining; after all, with innovation comes freedom. Stella McCartney and Acne are perfect examples, Apple too – all of them brands for the future. At yesterday’s IHT conference, Paul Smith said that a big problem for heritage brands was how to appeal to the young – It’s hard for luxury to be ‘cool’. Albert Elbaz, on the other hand, insisted that brands must always be relevant and not cool!
Interestingly, at cult publication Tank magazine, luxury brands are openly investing in communications and advertising to younger audiences, in a sense talking to their future consumers in ways that are beyond their traditional channels.
At British Vogue, supporting new British fashion designers is crucial. After all, the most successful reinventions have been achieved by bringing on new designers and talent who, working within the constraints of a brand’s heritage, can break boundaries with innovative design.
For a brand to be timeless, every aspect has to be right, and we went on to discuss the tension between the creative and commercial teams. With so much focus on the ‘public face’ of brands I was keen to hear more about the people behind them. I wanted to know how the values were reflected in the company culture and the influence and legacy of individuals and teams. Maybe next time…
Category:
Event: Panel debate
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