Tiffany & Co.

TIFFANY & CO. NEW YORK SINCE 1837

Brand Report THE BUSINESS OF FASHION: Fashion Evolution

Eleanor Buxton 1 25019386

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY -5TIFFANY & CO. -6BRAND IDENTITY -8-

1837- The Tiffany Blue Box.

1886- Tiffany’s first engagment ring.

(Images all from Tiffany & Co. 2 website)

CONTENTS

BRAND POSITIONING -9-

BRAND CONSUMERS -10-

COMMUNICATIONS MIX -11-

2009- Tiffany Key Collection.

2014- Tiffany T Collection.

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“The quietness and the proud look of it; nothing very bad could happen to you there.” - Holly Golightly (Audrey Hepburn). Breakfast at Tiffany’s.

Tiffany & Co. was named the eigth most iconic Building in New York as seen on film. By Curbed New York. (Plitt, 2015)

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(Image from Curbed New York Website).

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This report provides an overview of the Tiffany and Co. brand. Tiffany and Co. is a well known, worldwide, luxury brand selling jewellery, timepieces, sterling silverware and other luxury goods. It has a long and successful history and has a strong market position today. There are clear advertising, PR and social media strategies in place and the use of celebrities is a key part of the brand. The brand is aware of its challenges and is addressing them, for example by appointing expe rienced executives and partners. Their key management objective for 2015 which summarises the focus of the brand was: ‘Enhance our position as one of the world’s most important luxury brands’. With the current strategies in place, Tiffany and Co. are in a strong position to maintain their strong brand and market position.

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TIFFANY & CO.

Tiffany and Co. (Tiffany) was set up in 1837 by two young entrepreneurs, Charles Lewis Tiffany and John B Young.

They both invested $500 and opened their first store in Lower Manhattan, a ‘stationery and fancy goods emporium’, naming it Tiffany and Young. The first few years were difficult due to the economic slumps in the US and New York in particular.

The name was changed to Tiffany and Co. in 1853 when Charles Tiffany took control and established the jewellery business.

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‘It is simply the most famous store there is. Every cab driver, every New Yorker, every visitor knows where to find Tiffany & Co. this is the marvelous place where dreams come true’. ( Tiffany, 2016)

Today Tiffany is a global, luxury jewellery brand with stores in over 30 countries including Australia, Russia plus many European cities.

Tiffany sells a wide range of products from the famous blue boxed engagement rings and expensive, exclusive designer jewellery to more everyday silver jewellery, watches, and accessories.

Tiffany are well known for designing many famous trophies including: - NASCAR Sprint Cup - NFL Super Bowl - Major League Baseball

(Image Authors own, Tiffany & Co. store London)

Through the Decades 1845: published the first mail order catalogue in the US (which later became ‘The Blue Book’)

Francessa Amfitheatrof

1878: The ‘Tiffany diamond’ was purchased, a 287 carat yellow diamond, cut to 128 carats

1886: Diamond engagement ring was introduced

1890’s: George Kunz travels the world finding rare gemstones 1902: Louis Tiffany (son of Charles) appointed first design director 1940: The flagship store in New York was opened and remains the headquarters to today 1956: Designer Jean Schlumberger joins

1960’s: ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ with Audrey Hepburn 1970’s: Elsa Peretti joins

The current creative director is Francesca Amfitheatrof, who was appointed in 2013.

Francesca is a trained jeweller and silversmith and has over 20 years experience in art and jewellery design, fragrance plus furniture and interiors.

Her first design collection is the ‘T’ collection which includes bracelets, rings and necklaces. It brings together the Tiffany name and the feel of New York including angles and a mechanical feel.

1980’s: Paloma Picasso joins

2000’s: Tiffany and Co. Foundation launched

(Images from Tiffany & Co. website) 2000’s: Tiffany and Co. Foundation launched

2010’s: Tiffany T collection introduced

‘There is a lot of New York in Tiffany T, and by that I mean the relentless movement, optimism and creativity you find on these streets. This is a place of courage and reinvention that constantly sparks creativity. Honestly, I can’t think of a more exciting place I could possibly be.’

(Traveler, 2016)

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BRAND IDENTITY Brand identity is how a company wants to be shown to their customers and target markets. (Statt, 2004) Tiffany’s strive to provide the best customer experience in store and online. They also plan to expand their worldwide profile in the production and sale of their products.

one of their engagement rings.

The strengths of Tiffany’s include; a strong company background, having a well known global brand, a long successful history of sourcing diamonds, association with many celebrities and a focus on sustainability.

Tiffany is an aspirational brand, in that individuals would love to be able to afford to buy their products, for example many couples will save for a long time to be able to buy

Tiffany’s have opportunities to attract this group by producing new and relevant, less expensive ranges and advertising to this group.

Another opportunity would be to launch in new countries, to affluent markets, to expand their brand awareness and increase sales. A threat to Tiffany’s are new jewellery designers who are creating pieces similar to the Tiffany designs and marketing them at a lower price.

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One of Tiffany’s major weakness is the group of younger affluent individuals, mainly millenials, ‘a person reaching adulthood around the year 2000’, who may view the brand as old world and aren’t as materialistic as older generations.

(Image off google images).

BRAND POSITIONING Brand position is how a company is working in current markets and against similar competitor companies.

The Tiffany brand is positioned as the world’s premier jeweller and luxury goods company with a heritage that goes back to the middle of the 19th century.

The brand represents timeless and beautifully designed jewellery crafted and manufactured to the very highest standards.

The Tiffany brand is seen as a brand that helps define fashion rather than a follower. Very few brands aspire to the same high standards as Tiffany, although brands like Cartier and Pandora are strong competitors. A big part of the Tiffany brand is the “Tiffany� name which is used on their products; this enables the brand to create premium price points for its products despite there being very similar designed products in the market.

(Image of the This is Tiffany catalgoue 2016).

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BRAND CONSUMERS

Brand consumers are the example of a brands customers and their personal profile.

Tiffany’s brand consumers are mainly affluent individuals who have a high disposable income.

They categorise these individuals into 3 groups - gift givers, gift receivers and self-buyers.

Women purchase exclusive jewellery for key events or more everyday items to add to their working wardrobe plus other luxury items to pamper themselves and others.

Men purchase luxury gifts for their loved ones or items for themselves such as watches and pens.

Another consumer group is the couple, who are willing to spend a large amount on a world famous engagement or wedding ring.

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(Images off google images).

COMMUNICATIONS MIX

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Public Relations or PR is how the company communicates with existing and potential consumers through many different platforms.

PUBLIC RELATIONS

(Images of Jennifer Garner images from Tiffany event, Google)

Tiffany & Co. hold, and are part of many events all over the world and the inclusion of celebrities is a key PR activity. Many celebrities attend functions such as the Met Ball and awards ceremonies wearing Tiffany pieces and these images are shown around the world on social media and news channels.

Two

recent

events

were:

Unveiling of the renovated Beverly Hills store attended by celebrities including Kate Hudson, Reese Witherspoon, Halle Berry and Jennifer Garner who wore over $1 million of Tiffany jewellery. the singer, Ariana Grande performed at the event wearing a $250,000 Tiffany necklace and her own Tiffany Victoria bracelet and ring. She finished her performance singing ‘Diamonds are a 12

Girl’s Best Friend’. (Reed, 2016) ‘Two Cities, One Night: New York in Dubai’, where the New York skyline, buildings and monuments were created at the Armani Hotel in the Burj Khalifa, Dubai. The event was inspired by a tweet from Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, (Vice president and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai) who attended the event.

He tweeted a picture of himself and his family some time ago at the top of the Empire State building which at the time was the tallest building in the world, this gave him inspiration to build the Burj Khalifa. The Burj Khalifa was lit up in the Tiffany Blue colour to signify the start of the event. (Viji, 2016) (Image off Google images).

Advertising is the promoting, publishing and communicating of the brand and their products.

ADVERTISING pieces, still modelled by the celebrity and with the Tiffany colour backdrop. It also includes a quote by the celebrity and information on what they are wearing.

The celebrities featured are Christy Turlington, Lupita Nyong’o, Elle Fanning and Natalie Westling, who were all chosen as they were ‘beyond average celebrity’.

Grace Coddington, who was previously Vogue’s creative director, has recently joined Tiffany as a creative partner to reshape the brand’s advertising.

These adverts can be seen in many fashion magazines such as Vogue and Elle. Tiffany & Co. also uses TV adverts that are only aired on American television.

This campaign is very different to traditional adverts which are usually 2 page, black and white, New York street shots or similar.

Celebrities have not been used for advertising before this campaign.

Her first campaign, shot by David Sims, has the tagline of ‘Legendary Style’ and features close up colour shots of 4 female celebrities against the Tiffany blue background.

On the opposite page there are small images of the jewellery

(Images off Google)

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PERSONAL SELLING

Personal selling is where businesses promote their products to consumers either face-to-face or at company events.

Tiffany have many selling platforms which include their stores in over 30 countries plus concessions in many famous, luxury stores such as Harrods.

One of the business key strategies is:

Tiffany offer a personal shopper service which allows customers to contact them directly to find the perfect gift, item of jewellery or accessory. They assist with the purchasing process, including delivery in the trademark perfectly wrapped Tiffany blue box.

(Image off Tiffany Apple App)

‘To enhance the customer experience through engaging service and store environments’ (Tiffany).

Their website has a glamorous feel and is easy to navigate to find the perfect purchase. It has key subheadings to identify the collections and products, along with easy steps for purchasing and setting up the delivery process. One interesting function is a ‘drop a hint’ system which allows someone to send an email link of a chosen item to a loved one who may then purchase it for a special occasion. (real or otherwise!)

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(Screen shot of Tiffany & Co. hints from online website)

They also have their own ‘Engagement Ring Finder’ App for IPhone and Android which allows customers to browse rings, find the right carat and ring size for the perfect diamond engagement ring.

Sales promotion is when a company promotes their products to potential consumers.

The unique Tiffany blue colour was first launched with the Blue Book in 1845.

Charles Tiffany wanted a distinctive colour of blue and he chose the ‘robins egg blue’.

SALES PROMOTION

‘From the moment you set your eyes upon Tiffany’s cool and fresh aquatic blue shade, a colour that speaks to vibrancy and escape, you are immediately transported into a world filled with luxury and delight.’

(Pressman, 2016)

The blue box with it’s white ribbon was then introduced and to this day is one of the most iconic marketing successes and distinctive packaging of any brand.

In 2001 the colour ‘Tiffany Blue’ (number 1837) was created by Pantone at the request of Tiffany and this colour has been copyrighted to the brand.

This unique and distinctive colour is now used for all Tiffany branding and merchandise.

(Image off Google)

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DIRECT MARKETING

Direct marketing is where the products are directly marketed to their potential consumers individually.

lucky enough to be getting married and looking for the perfect engagement or wedding ring.

The ‘This is Tiffany Ring’ catalogue includes their range of wedding and engagement rings and other luxury wedding items.

Tiffany also sends regular updates including product releases and other marketing to their customer mailing list.

The Blue Book was created in 1845 and has been produced annually since then. It showcases some of the most exquisite pieces from their couture jewellery ranges and is the first time many potential customers will see the unique pieces.

A seasonal catalogue ‘‘This is Tiffany’ is also produced twice a year.

This catalogue is available online to download, in stores and sent by post to customers. It showcases many of Tiffany’s new products and advertising campaigns plus articles on products and designers.

There 16 is also a catalogue for those

(Images off Tiffany catalogue website)

Social media is the websites, tablets and smartphone applications that lets members upload content and share onto the social network.

SOCIAL MEDIA Tiffany use many platforms including; Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest, YouTube and Google+. These are all regularly updated with the latest news, products and events. Having a presence on social media is extremely important for Tiffany as a brand to enable them to reach out to their diverse and worldwide existing and potential customers.

(Sreen shots of Tiffany & Co. Soical media websites: Instagram, Facebook & Twitter.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Plitt, A. (2015) New York city’s most Iconic buildings, as seen on film. Available at: http://ny.curbed.com/maps/new-york-citys-most-iconic-buildings-as-seenon-film (Accessed: 21 November 2016).

Loring, J. (2008) Tiffany Style : 170 years of design. Edited by Andrea Danese.

New York: Abrams.

Tiffany (2016) The Tiffany Story. Available at: https://www.tiffany.co.uk/ WorldOfTiffany/TiffanyStory/Timeline/ (Accessed: 15 November 2016).

Tiffany (2016) The Tiffany flagship store on fifth avenue. Available at: http:// www.tiffany.co.uk/Locations/FlagshipStore/NewYork.aspx (Accessed: 9 November 2016).

Traveler, E. (2016) T is for Tiffany: Francesca Amfitheatrof, design director of Tiffany & Co. Available at: http://www.elitetraveler.com/features/t-is-for-tiffany-francesca-amfitheatrof-design-director-of-tiffany-co (Accessed: 15 November 2016).

Statt, D.A. (2004) The Routledge dictionary of business management. 3rd edn.

New York, NY: Taylor & Francis.

Pressman, L. (2016) CRAZY ABOUT TIFFANY’S The story behind an iconic brand color. Available at: http://www.pantone.com/crazy-about-tiffanys-thestory-behind-an-iconic-brand-color (Accessed: 14 November 2016).

Reed, S. (2016) Jennifer Garner Accessorized with $1.675 Million worth of Tiffany & Co. Jewels at the store’s renovation celebration. Available at: http:// www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/jennifer-garner-reese-witherspoon-attend-938389 (Accessed: 14 November 2016).

Viji (2016) Tiffany & Co’s iconic blue lights up Burj Khalifa to celebrate a historic moment linking New York and Dubai. Available at: http://www.aviamost. ae/en/tiffany-co’s-iconic-blue-lights-burj-khalifa-celebrate-historic-momentlinking-new-york-and-dubai (Accessed: 14 November 2016).

Christie, J. (2015) Tiffany & Co. Features real-life same sex couple in new ad campaign. Available at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2905102/Acelebration-gay-marriage-New-advertising-campaign-Tiffany-features-real-lifesex-couple-time.html (Accessed: 15 November 2016).

Mirabella, G. (1997) Tiffany & Co. London: Thames and Hudson Ltd.

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