A MARKETING REPORT ON
BY JACQUELINE MASON
JACQUELINE MASON
STUDENT NO. 0502401 UNIT CODE EFPI2002 5TH JANUARY 2009
JACQUELINE MASON
CONTENTS 4.
INTRODUCTION
5.
SUMMARY MARKETING OBJECTIVES
6.
CUSTOMER CUSTOMER PERCEPTIONS
7.
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES TRENDS
8.
PRICES AND VALUES DISTRIBUTION
9.
COMPETITORS
10.
SWOT ANALYSIS
11.
RECOMMENDATIONS
13.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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INTRODUCTION This report aims to explore and investigate the British Heritage brand Mackintosh, from their mission statement to their competitors. This report will state which market the brand is playing in and what different ranges they offer. Mackintosh’s ideal customer and demographic will be explored and any issues or trends that affect this group of people. This report will also investigate Mackintosh’s competitors and their strengths and weaknesses, along with a detailed analysis of Mackintosh’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. It will also suggest ways in which to improve the brand awareness, widen their target market and some recommendations for the future. Most of the information found on Mackintosh was obtained from their website and articles written about them. The News section of their website is updated regularly and proved very useful in documenting their achievements. They have recently gone through a rebranding, therefore there has been quite a lot of reports written about their come back which were found in papers such as the Independent and the Sunday Herald and on websites such as jcreport.com and theluxechronicles.com. Other bits of information were found on trend watching websites and fashion based websites and blogs. The information in this report was was gained through talking directly to Mackintosh shop assistants in their flagship store in London. These shop assistants were very helpful but were unable to assist in many areas as Mackintosh proved to be a very secretive brand. The assistants were not even told where else they were stocked in London. They did help in identifying the Mackintosh customer. Information was also obtained through talking directly to consumers to find out how they view the brand and how it could be improved. When asked what they thought of when they heard the name “Mackintosh”, many people thought of the computer brand. This shows how little brand presence they have which really needs to be improved. There were many limitations found while researching Mackintosh. They do not publish any of their company figures such as profits and sales. Even after emails and telephone calls, their financial figures were unable to be obtained due to the brands very secretive nature. The history of the company was very easy to obtain, many points of reference had information on their heritage and history but
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there was very little information on their current or recent achievements. There was also very little information and and very few images of their main stockists in Japan. Information was only obtained after researching the other brands stocked in the Vulcanize stores, namely GlobeTrotter which has a very detailed and informative website.
MARKETING OBJECTIVES
SUMMARY
Mackintosh Rainwear are known and sold globally. Their U.K flagship store is based in London’s Burlington Arcade, a prestigious and renowned location. Burlington Arcade was the world’s first shopping arcade which fits very well with Mackintosh’s heritage. Mackintosh is also stocked in Japanese department store Mitsukoshi on London’s Regent Street. Mackintosh have a strong presence in Japan and are part of the British Luxury Brand Group. The BLBG have set up five stores in Japan selling British Heritage Brands, called Vulcanize. Mackintosh is stocked in each of these stores spanning Tokyo and Osaka. Mackintosh have showrooms in England, Japan, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, France, America and The Netherlands. Their head office is located in Cumbernauld, Scotland. Mackintosh are a luxury brand that specialise in waterproof outerwear. Their product range consists of rainwear and outerwear for men and women. They produce traditional styles complimented by some more fashionable styles. They have also created some styles in collaboration with other brands and designers. Mackintosh pride themselves on their British Heritage and creating garments to an extremely high quality. They are influenced by fashion but do not follow fashion trends. Their garments are timeless and would suit any age range but are favoured by the older customer.
Mackintosh is a brand of modern heritage built on true craftmanship and a two hundred year old history. They combine updated technology with traditional techniques to create their classic coats. Charles Macintosh developed the process of spreading rubber onto cotton to create the worlds first waterproof fabric and the idea behind this process is still used today. Their coats are still hand made in Cumbernauld, Scotland by highly skilled and highly trained expert coat makers. Mackintosh believe in true quality, craftmanship and heritage.
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CUSTOMER
Mackintosh’s main customer base is aged over 30 and mainly male. Now, with their more fashionable styles they are attracting more women to the brand but it is still predominantly male. Mackintosh are very popular in Japan and have a massive customer base there. The Japanese love the traditional, classic styling of the British Mac. An example of their typical customer would be a married, 35 year old, Japanese business man earning £800,000 a year. He has a lot of disposable income and buys into luxury goods. He would live in the heart of Tokyo but often travel to his pied-à-terre in London. With an increase of advertising and marketing Mackintosh could increase their brand awareness and therefore widen their customer base significantly. They have recently under gone a rebranding which has attracted more fashion industry professionals and women to the brand but they are still transitioning from a traditional brand to a more fashionable label.
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CUSTOMER PERCEPTIONS
Mackintosh is a high luxury brand and therefore their customers expect a certain level of quality and design. Many people buy into the Mackintosh brand because they like the idea of owning an original and authentic Mac trench coat rather than the many imitations in the market. “Mackintosh Traditional Weatherwear, the rainwear brand so strong that, like Hoover, Biro and Sellotape, the Mackintosh or Mac name now provides the generic term for all raincoats.” (Gordon.G, findarticles.com, Nov 2000). Mackintosh made the first ever waterproof coat and people like the history and story behind the brand. People are willing to spend a lot of money on something of the highest quality, practicality and style. Their customers do not buy often, only one to four times a year. If the customer is buying the Mackintosh as a fashion statement they may buy one or two coats each season to keep their wardrobe updated and modern. If the customer is buying into Mackintosh because of the practicality and quality of their coats, they may only buy once a year. Mackintosh only use the best quality fabrics and produce their garments to an extremely high standard by hand, using expert coat makers. Therefore Mackintosh coats are very durable and last a long time and will not need to be replaced for many years. There are many different perceptions of Mackintosh as a brand. A lot of people still think of it as an old, outdated brand producing simple, practical garments for older businessmen. Mackintosh do still create the traditional ideal of a Mac but now have more updated their styles to go along side these. Therefore consumers are now seeing the brand as a more fashion forward label.
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
TRENDS
Mackintosh’s product range has expanded dramatically since the brand started out. They now design and make many different styles ranging from classic and simple to fashionable and stylish. Their stylish pieces incorporate elements of current fashion trends and appeal to a younger trendier market. They still make their classic and traditional Mac in two different styles. These are called Duncan and Douglas and are the only coats available to buy online from the Mackintosh website. Duncan is available for men and women but Douglas is a menswear only coat. These coats are available in a range of colours and customers are able to customise the lining and collar. Customers are also able to customise their own coats in the by appointment only Mackintosh Bespoke Lounge in their flagship store in Burlington Arcade. Customers can choose any style and customise all aspects of the coat from the colour and lining down to the detailing such as buttons. This means the purchaser attains a completely unique and exclusive Mackintosh coat. Mackintosh have participated in collaborations with different brands and designers. They have produced a range in collaboration with new designer Erdem for the last 5 seasons and have also collaborated with Antonio Berardi for Autumn/Winter 2008. They also teamed up with Australian brand Rittenhouse to create a reinvigorated design of the classic Mac.
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There are many trends affecting peoples spending habits at the moment. The main one being the impending Recession. People are buying a lot less and being much more careful about what they spend their money on. Consumers are starting to buy much cheaper products and are shopping in discount stores such as Primark. This means low level brands are not being effected as much by the credit crunch. On the other end of the spectrum, people who bought into more luxury brands are still continuing to do so as they are not feeing the effects as much as lower income individuals. This means that luxury brands are also less effected. With this current climate in mind, high income consumers are choosing to buy into brands that they really trust. If they are spending a lot of money on a product they want to know it is of the highest quality and therefore worth the high price tag. The product would need to be a label or statement that will not go out of fashion quickly and something the customer could gain longevity and durability from. Mackintosh is a perfect example of this. British Heritage brands are making a huge come back and people are turning to brands such as Mackintosh and Globetrotter for quality, history and style. “It is this flight to quality by consumers that provides the key to understanding why luxury brands will survive this recession, particularly those with heritage and a strong identity.� (Fellowes.J, telegraph.co.uk, Oct 08). Global Warming is another factor influencing fashion and buying trends. The weather is slowing deteriorating and summers are starting to blend in with winters, seasons seem to be disappearing and it is cold and rainy all year round. This will bring around the idea of season-less fashion. It has already been recorded that sales of summer stock have declined due to the lack of sunshine and increase in colder weather. By 2010 this will be even more prominent. Mackintosh will will benefit greatly from this trend as they have often suffered in the past in summer months. Now, due to season-less fashion there ill be a demand for coats and jackets all year round.
PRICES AND VA L U E S
Mackintosh is a luxury brand and therefore the price of their coats does reflect this. They produce their garments to the highest standard which their customers have come to expect. Their consumers will pay the high price tag because they know that a Mackintosh coat is very high quality and therefore very durable and will last. Their traditional coats have a price point of £400 - 480 and the more fashion forward pieces sell at £500 - 700. A customised coat created in the Bespoke Lounge can cost anything from £1000 upwards but customers are happy to pay this as they are receiving a completely unique and bespoke coat teamed with Mackintosh’s impeccable quality. People would rather spend a lot of money on a brand they trust rather than risking their money on a new brand which may not have such a high quality. A lot people also like to wear the original Mackintosh name and will pay the price to have this.
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DISTRIBUTION
All Mackintosh coats are still hand made in the original Mackintosh Factory in Cumbernauld, Scotland. All coat makers are trained as apprentices for three years. This ensures every coat maker is highly skilled and expertly trained and therefore able to create garments to Mackintosh’s very high standard. Mackintosh have very unique specifications when creating their coats and so they only trust the most skilled coat makers. Mackintosh still use the same process for waterproofing their fabrics that was used on the first vulcanised coat sold in 1843. They have combined these traditional techniques with modern advances in technology to create the modern Mackintosh coats. These are then shipped directly to stockists all around the globe.
COMPETITORS Mackintosh is a British Heritage Brand and that is very passionate about their history and roots. Their main competitors would be other British Heritage brands selling traditional garments and coats. These competitors would be Burberry who are also famous for their classic trench coat; Aquascutum who have also recently re-branded to become a more high fashion brand; Pringle
another Scottish brand founded in 1815 and Daks a London based brand established in 1894. These brands are all internationally successful and high luxury brands producing. All of these brands produce menswear and womenswear ranges and all have an accessories line. They all have a very strong heritage and are very proud of this fact.
BRAND
STRENGTHS
WEAKNESSES
OPPORTUNITIES
T H R E AT S
BURBERRY
•Est 1856. •Very well known. •A lot of celebrity endorsement. •Childrenswear. •Burberry foundation gives money to charities helping young people. •Diffusion lines Burberry Porsum and Thomas Burberry.
•Burberry check devalued by counterfeit products. •Too much coverage no exclusivity/ uniqueness. •Thomas Burberry collection not mentioned on official Burberry website.
•Create bespoke collection to secure uniqueness. •Appointment only stores. •Links to Thomas Burberry site and more advertising for it.
•War. •Terrorism. •Economic crisis. •Bankruptcy. •Competitors.
AQUASCUTUM
•Est 1853. •Vintage collection. •Pierce Brosnan face of Aquascutum. •Sexy ad campaigns. •Personal tailoring service. •Stores worldwide.
•Claim to have made first waterproof fabric. •Do not worry about environmental issues. •Only had Pierce Brosnan on two ad campaigns.
•Childrenswear. •Create environmentally friendly line. •Keep celebrity endorsement consistent.
•War. •Terrorism. •Economic crisis. •Bankruptcy. •Competitors.
PRINGLE
•Established as knitwear brand in 1815 but expanded very well. •Now has a massive range of garments and accessories. •Childrenswear. •Dressed the Queen. •Invented the twinset. •Golf collection.
•Only show in Milan even through have very british roots. •Golf range not advertised. •Younger more fashionable Pringle 1815 collection hardly advertised - needs more awareness.
•Show at London Fashion Week. •Heritage/vintage line to celebrate history of Knitwear. •More advertising for golf range and 1815 collection. •More info on golf range on website links to pringlegolf.com.
•War. •Terrorism. •Economic crisis. •Bankruptcy. •Competitors.
DAKS
•Est 1894 •Tailoring •Complete refurbishment of Flagship store •Bond Street location •Strong presence in Far East •Collaboration with Giles Deacon •Concentrate on ready to wear collection
•Not much press coverage in UK •Got rid of high fashion line by Giles Deacon. •Not very interesting ad campaigns.
•Childrenswear range. •New exciting collaborations to increase press coverage. •Create more high fashion ad campaigns.
•War. •Terrorism. •Economic crisis. •Bankruptcy. •Competitors.
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S W O T A N A LY S I S STRENGTHS •High quality garments. •Men’s and womenswear. •Cater for a wide range of audiences. •Traditional, classic coats. •Modern fashion forward pieces. •Sold world wide. •Internationally successful, especially in Japan. •Exciting collaborations with up and coming designers and brands. •Proud of their roots and still hand make all garments. •Flagship store in prestigious area and fits brand very well. •Bespoke Lounge enables completely unique coats. •Simple, stylish and informative website. •Does not sell all garments on website which keep exclusivity. •Ad campaigns very classy and simple. •Won Accessory Designer of the Year, 2007 at the •Scottish Fashion Awards. WEAKNESSES •Not much brand presence or awareness. •Seen as a boring, stuffy brand. •Caters for a wide range of audiences but does not attract a wide range. •Mackintosh hardly advertise, therefore people do not know about their more fashionable pieces and any of their interesting collaborations. •Only advertised for the last 3 seasons, since 1850’s. •Only advertise womenswear range. •Not many people know about their flagship store or bespoke lounge. OPPORTUNITIES •More advertising to increase brand awareness. •Advertise Menswear pieces. •Create collections to appeal more to their Japanese market. •Open a flagship store in Japan. •Push the fashion forward pieces even more. •Accessories range. •Childrenswear. T H R E AT S •War •Terrorism •Economic crisis •Bankruptcy. •Competitors such as Burberry, Aquascutum, Pringle of Scotland and Daks
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P E S T E L A N A LY S I S POLITICAL Mackintosh rely heavily on exporting products overseas, especially to countries such as Japan. Therefore it is very important for the infrastructure to be of a high standard to enable them to do this. The government provides a very good infrastructure in Britain and this is continued abroad. Recently, there has been a decrease of 2.5% in V.A.T, making V.A.T 15%. This has benefited Mackintosh as a company and they have been able to pass this reduction onto their customers making their products slightly cheaper which will attract more custom.
TECHNOLOGY Technology has benefited Mackintosh immensely, with the invention of new innovative waterproof materials and machinery in which to create these fabrics. Their job has become a lot easier but they do still hand make their coats so they have not completely turned to technology. They use it in harmony with human skill to create their high quality coats. With the invention of online shopping it has now become even easier to get their products all over the world and the internet enables more and more people to know about the brand.
ECONOMIC There is currently a global recession which has obviously affected many people, causing consumers to cut back their spending. Mackintosh is a luxury brand and therefore their customer has not been effected as much. Therefore they have not suffered from the recession as much as some companies. The strength of the pound has also decreased because of the economic climate. This has benefited Mackintosh’s global stockists as the exchange rate is in their favour and therefore will encourage them to import more products.
ENVIRONMENTAL Climate change is bringing the idea of seasonless fashion, in Britain it may be cold all year round which means people will need coats all year round. This will effect Mackintosh enormously. Mackintosh coats are also environmentally friendly as they are very durable and long lasting so do not need to be replaced constantly. This means less wastage and more reusing.
SOCIAL The Mackintosh coat has recently been reinvented as a fashionable item and as more of an image statement. There are now many celebrities wearing Macks which creates more hype and interest around the products and many people will look to Mackintosh for the original Mack. Mackintosh is very big in Japan and sells very well there. The Japanese love the traditional British styling and like the thought of owning an original Mackintosh.
LEGAL There have been many laws put in place about recycling and caring for the environment. Mackintosh often use materials from their archives so as not to waste material and less need to be produced. They also adhere to strong production and manufacturing laws and do not commission workers in third world countries to produce their products. All their staff are paid a good wage and benefit from a good working environment.
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R E C O M M E N D AT I O N S
Mackintosh is a well known name but not a well known brand. In order to increase brand awareness they need to advertise more and create more press coverage for the brand. Currently their advertising campaign is very limited. They use one image and only advertise in a select number of magazines. They have also only shown the womenswear side of the brand so far. To create more brand presence they could show a number of different styles from the menswear and womenswear collections and advertise in a wider selection of magazines including Men’s magazines and Japanese magazines. Another idea for the future would be to launch an accessories line including umbrellas, scarfs, gloves and hats. This would reinforce the use of the Mackintosh brand in bad weather but these products could also be very fashionable and stylish pieces. This line could really compliment their brand and now with season-less fashion these products may be wanted all year round. Mackintosh have a massive customer base in Japan, therefore it would be a natural progression to launch a flagship store in Tokyo. They are already stocked in Vulcanize stores with other British Luxury Brands in Tokyo and Osaka but their own branded store would work very well and compliment these multi branded stores. Another way to really appeal to their Japanese market would be to launch a collaboration with British Eccentrics. The Japanese really love the quirky style of British design and so creating capsule collections with well known British Eccentrics would really attract the Japanese consumers. Mackintosh could collaborate with 12 different eccentrics and launch one collection a month over the course of a year. This would create massive press coverage for the brand which would attract not only the Japanese market but would excite the interest of the British market.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
WEBSITES Aquascutum (2008) About Us www.aquascutum.com (15.11.08) Burberry (2008) About Burberry www.burberry.com (15.11.08) Butt.A (April 2007) Britishness. www.jcreport.com (12.10.08) Daks (2008) About Daks www.daks.com (15.11.08) Gray.A (Oct 2002) Mrs Mac is Back. www.thecotsman.scotsman.com (19.10.2008) Gordon.G (Nov 2000) Aye Mac. www.findarticles.com (19.10.08) Mackintosh (Jan 2007) Philosophy www.mackintohrainwear.co.uk (12.10.08) Mackintosh (Jan 2007) News www.mackintohrainwear.co.uk (12.10.08) Pringle (2008) About Pringle www.pringle-of-scotland.com (15.11.08) Teran.A (July 2007) Rittenhouse x Mackintosh Trench Coat www.coolhunting.com (14.10.08) ARTICLES Waldron.G (2007) Return of the Mac: The Reinvention of Mackintosh. Independant. 8 Oct 2007 Fellowes.J (2008) Financial crisis: Luxury Brands Boom as Rich Fly to Quality. Telegraph. 20 Oct 2008 TELEVISION PROGRAMMES British Style Genius: A Cut Above - The Tailored Look (2008) BBC TWO. 14 Oct 08. Advertising Uncut. (2008) Channel 4. 12 March 08. IMAGES Mackintosh (2006) Collections. www.mackintoshrainwear.co.uk (14.10.08) Mackintosh (2006) Philosophy: Craftmanship. www.mackintoshrainwear.co.uk (14.10.08) Hyun (2006) Shining Looks: Trench Coat. www.yesstyle.com (07.10.08) Erdem (2008) Autumn/Winter Collection 2008. www.erdem.co.uk (20.10.08) Mackintosh (2008) Philosophy: Bespoke. www.mackintoshrainwear.co.uk (14.10.08) Mackintosh (2008) News: AW08 Campaign. www.mackintoshrainwear.com (25.11.08) Nightingale.D (2005) Prints. www.chromasia.com (14.10.08) Solarski.M (2007) Patrick Wolf Announces North American Tour. www.pitchforkmedia.co.uk (04.12.08)
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