CONTENTS 2 Missguided Analysis 4 Segmentation Variables 6 Who is Missguided’s Consumer? 8 Competitor Analysis 10 Competitive Matrix 12 Competitor ASOS SWOT Analysis 14 Competitor PrettyLittleThing SWOT Analysis 16 Past, Current & Competitive Moving Image 18 Brand Analysis 20 Brand Onion Wheel 22 Brand SWOT Analysis 24 Brand Essence 26 Action & Implementation Plan 28 Appendix & Bibliography
MISSGUIDED ANALYSIS Missguided is a fashion focused brand who since first established in 2008, have gone on to become one of the biggest online fast fashion brands shipping to those all over the world. The strategic vision of Missguided is defined through all communications and platforms, delivering a cohesive and differentiated brand image. Missguided ‘offer the most on trend products at the correct price point and listen and tailor their strategy to the customers’ needs.’ (Manchester Fashion Network). The brand’s aim is to stay on top of the latest trends in order to provide the best fashion the world has to offer and stay ahead of competition to secure a position at the forefront of women’s online clothing. Since the brand redeveloped their image, changing the design of their brand’s identity through the use of social media, packaging and branding, Missguided has been given a whole new level of attitude. The brand wants to stand out from it’s competitors and by doing that they have established a whole new sassier and bolder look. They have wiped away little miss nice and brought to their audience; girls with a new found freedom. The look of a brand is extremely important and is the main factor when it comes to ensuring they reach the right target market for their audience. When it comes to me filming my fashion film for the brand, I have the aim to succeed in creating a very similar vibe. When planning for my film, I aim to clearly get across the correct mood for the brand, incorporating the same tone that I have understood from watching past and current commercial films used to promote and interpret my findings by producing the same attitude. Missguided Fashion Film Concept: She has recently discovered her independence giving her a whole new found confidence. She has no care in the world, all responsibilities have been put to the back of her mind. Main focus is to have fun, be free and stay sassy, which is easily achieved by this girly girl who reeks of attitude.
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SEGMENTATION VARIABLES • Demographic Variables: - young female - single - last years of education/ first years of work - intelligent - bold - a ‘babe of Missguided’
• Psychographic Variables: - adventurous - outgoing - confident - stong and independent - does as she pleases - new found freedom - enjoys going out partying - large social group - hugely into fashion - fashion events, PRs - enjoys music festivals - road trips - shops online and high street - very aspirational - looks up to celebrities for inspiration - social media crazed - daring with food - breaks the rules
WHO IS MISSGUIDED’S CONSUMER? Missguided is targeted at the age range of women between the ages of 16 - 25 years. After Missguided got their foot into the fast fashion business and became well established within the market, the brand decided then was the time to create the personality of the brand which they found suited them most. With the future firmly in mind, the identity has been designed to reflect the brands attitude and core values, while appealing to global customers and promoting a fresh new image. Across their website, social media account and promotional films and adverts, Missguided have gone for a very certain message which is portrayed across each. They want to attract no Plain Jane but the type of girl who knows how to have a wild time, she’s adventurous, bold, and rebels against what she is told is expected of her. This is a very signature look across the brand, with the imagery used on their Instagram page and on their website seen as quite controversial, with the brand gaining attention from their bold posts.
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COMPETITOR ANALYSIS With Missguided being one of many women’s fast fashion brands available online, encourages the brand to need to have something unique about it for it to stand out from it’s direct competitors who do a very similar thing to them. I have created a brand positioning map to distinguish the difference between price as well as the quality of garments for Missguided and it’s competitors who sit within the same market segmentation of mass production. I first recognized which brands are seen as Missguided’s competitors, selling similar clothing for the same target market for a similar price range. This included other online brands and high street brands that are sold online such as Topshop, Asos, PrettyLittleThing etc. These brands all have the same aim; the process of developing products particularly aimed to appeal to the particular consumer segment of young women. I wanted to see where Missguided positioned when compared to these competitive brands, and why a customer may choose to shop with Missguided than with another one of these similar brands on the market. I placed each of the brands on the positioning map, highlighting which brands are the cheapest and the brands whose products are priced slightly higher within the same market bracket. I then compared this with the quality of the products, positioning the brands correctly on the map clearly identifying whose products are seen as cheap or quality fashion. I put high street brands which are also sold online such as Topshop, Miss Selfridge and River Island at the top right hand corner. This is to indicate that these are the higher priced brands however also produce the better quality products when compared to their competitors. These brands have 1000’s of stores selling their products as well as being available online, giving them a better advantage of higher sales. Brands such as Select Clothing, Miss Pap and Boohoo, I positioned towards the bottom left hand corner, with these brands being classed as cheap fashion. These brand’s products are priced at a low price, due to the mass production of fast fashion. They are able to sell products at a slightly cheaper price due to the materials and speed that they are made at. With Asos slightly higher and PrettyLittleThing positioned just below, I placed my chosen brand for the film Missguided right in the middle of the map. I believe that Missguided is right in the middle, in-between these competitive brands that are within the same market segmentation when it comes to comparing price and quality. They do not produce the best quality of clothing, with the garments made with a trend or season n mind not necessarily the quality or length of period a consumer may keep the item for. However their products are made to a good quality for the price their customers pay. They are not the cheapest on the market nor are they the most expensive leaving Missguided a reasonable price bracket appropriate for their target market.
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HIGH PRICE TOPSHOP MISS SELFRIDGE RIVER ISLAND ASOS
MISSGUIDED
CHEAP FASHION PRETTYLITTLETHING BOOHOO MISS PAP
SELECT CLOTHING
LOW PRICE
QUALITY FASHION
COMPETITIVE MATRIX
SOCIAL MEDIA: How successful is the brand at promoting itself through the use of social media such as Instagram, Twitter and Facebook? TARGET AUDIENCE: Is the target audience of the brand made clear through the use of their marketing and branding, is it appropriate for the brand? PRODUCTS: Has the brand got a wide range of products on offer for their consumers, keeping up-to-date with trends as well as seasons? PRICING: Is the brand’s products priced at a reasonable price for the quality of the products as well as being appropriate for target market? AESTHETICS: Is the branding and identity of the brand appropriate for their target market? PROMOTION: Does the brand have special promotional sales to draw consumers in, encouraging them to buy from their brand instead of competitive brands?
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MISSGUIDED
COMPETITOR: ASOS
COMPETITOR: BOOHOO
COMPETITOR: PRETTYLITTLETHING
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TRENGTHS • Asos features an exclusive and diverse array of brands within their website, targeting at a wide target audience of both male and females between the ages of 15-35. • They offer free shipping as well as free returns to its global customer base which encourages customers to shop with them rather than the actual brand itself. • They have a strong marketing strategy, with them maintaining a blog, all types of social media as well as a monthly magazine giving Asos the ability to always in be contact with their customers.
EAKNESSES • Asos do not advertise on many marketing platforms such as magazines with Nylon, Glamour and Marie Claire being appropriate magazines for them to do so. They also do not advertise by television or radio adverts, which competitors such as Missguided, Boohoo, Pretty Little Thing do. • Around 30% of purchases are returned to the company, resulting in additional shipping charges for Asos.
HREATS • Customers lose out on having an in-store experience, interaction with sales staff and being able to see the merchandise in person which could effect a person to shop with Asos. • There is many retailers entering the market, featuring only e-commerce platforms to sell their merchandise such as Missguided, Boohoo and Pretty Little Thing having Asos to face competition. • With technology continuing to advance, Asos must keep up with the latest interactive aspects of their site, to differentiate from the competition online.
PPORTUNITIES • Consumers are willing to spend more on unique products which gives them the advantage of having diverse and exclusive brands featured on their websites. • Competitors feature a limited assortment in their merchandise, lacking the diversity and exclusivity that Asos creates with their brands. • More and more brands are being sold on Asos as the brand continues to grow, with currently over 80,000 branded and own-brand products being sold through localised mobile and web experiences.
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TRENGTHS • Cheap fast fashion, following the latest trends and celeb looks/ style steals to keep their consumers interested in their latest products uploaded onto the website. • They have collaborated with celebs such as Sofia Richie to branch out to a wider target market, allowing customers to buy clothing designed and modelled by herself. • PrettyLittleThing has a wide variety of own branded products suitable for a number of different occasions, including Swimwear, Nightwear, Active Wear, Seasonal Festivals etc.
EAKNESSES • Due to the brand being cheap fast fashion, the quality of the clothing is visibly not to the same high quality of other brands within the same market, encouraging people to shop with PrettyLittleThing because of the price rather than the quality. • The brand is only e-commerce meaning they have no stores for customers to try on their clothing, which for new customers to the brand may mean they’ll worry about quality of the clothing before purchasing on the website, putting them off.
HREATS • With the online shopping experience getting bigger and bigger with a lot of people choosing to shop online rather than go instore means that these e-commerce brands must keep up to date with the latest technology advancements so that they’re online shopping experience is just as they would get when going shopping in-stores. • PrettyLittleThing is just one of the many women’s cheap, fast fashion outlets available online which encourages them to need to continue to keep up with their competitors.
PPORTUNITIES • The brand is continuing to grow due to the power of social media, with the brand now up to 1 million followers on their Instagram page and 306K followers on their Twitter page. • By introducing collaborations with celebrities such as Sofia Ritchie has given the brand more visibility, they also work a lot with bloggers and fashion enthusiasts to get out the brands identity.
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PRETTYLITTLETHING
PAST, CURRENT & COMPETITIVE MOVING IMAGE As part of my research, I looked into watching past and current Missguided commercial fashion films that have been used to promote a certain season, trend or celebrity collaboration. Each film has been created with a very similar tone and mood in mind. They have established their brand’s identity and have continued to encourage expressing their message across each of their promotional adverts. They create very bold and statement films, normally shot in edgy locations with a lot of colour involved. They almost always have a couple of fun loving and adventurous girls staring in each with the exception of a celebrity collection launch. These girls are beautiful, confident, rebellious, the type of girl any girl would kill to be like. They know how to let their hair down and have a good time which is what the brand encourages their consumers to feel that they can do whilst wearing their clothing. They want to give their consumers confidence, a new found freedom, which is so clearly presented throughout each of their fashion films. Their films scream fashion, with the latest trends kept up to date, with the guarantee that customers can buy from Missguided with the promise their collections are fashion focused. They release new films seasonally, with the story of the film relating perfectly with the collection/time of year. Thought has so clearly gone into each, ensuring the story, setting, styling and tone is all relevant to each other and the brand’s identity.
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I looked at viewing Missguided’s competitive brand’s promotional fashion films to see if they do anything differently to make their films stand out from other promotional womenswear brands within the same market. I watched films from the likes of Boohoo and PrettyLittleThing, with these two brands being very similar to Missguided. They all use the power of social media to get their brand talked about, encouraging them to be extremely hot on constantly keeping their Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook and Twitter pages active. They all use television adverts as a way of promoting their brand, with snippets of the full clip aired to show off what the brand is offering compared to their competitors. From watching each of their promotional films they each follow a very signature style and similar tone throughout. They all tend to follow a narrative; off out to a party or getting ready to go down to the beach. They each use very bold locations, with a mixture of close ups and wide angle shots to capture both the settings as well as the models, with snippets of shots of the main focus; the clothing. This is something that I will consider when creating my film, having a mixture of shots and angles to keep the film moving, with a lot to look at. I have also noticed the choice of editing techniques that have been used to add to the film with a lot of reverse shots, shots sped up as well as shots that have been slown down.
WHAT ARE MISSGUIDED’S UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS, MAKING THEM DIFFERENT FROM THEIR COMPETITORS? Missguided offers their customers a wide range of products which are constantly updated to keep up with the latest seasonal trends. They boast about releasing new clothing onto their site daily, beating competitors who upload new products weekly, guaranteeing their customers they are the first brand to offer trends before anyone else. Using its highly popular social media pages, Missguided is always keeping in contact with their consumers, keeping them aware of any promotional offers as well as exciting new collaborations. WHAT IS THE BRAND’S IDENTITY AND BRAND VALUES THAT HELP TO CREATE A CERTAIN PERSONALITY SEEN ACROSS THE BRAND? Missguided creates a very strong message for their target audience, encouraging their consumers to be confident and rebellious with the belief they can do whatever they want to. The brand gives young girls the boost that they may need when moving up from a teenager to a young women. The brands identity is reflected within the website and across their social media by bringing a sense of fun and excitement, they use very girlie colours including bright pinks and purples which is very clearly apparent in their design identity. The brand is extremely bold with their main focus being to remain fashion focused beating their competitors. WHAT IS THE TONE OF VOICE AND HOW DOES THIS EFFECT THE BRAND’S TARGET AUDIENCE? Because of their use of gorgeous young girls with a strong, confident attitude used throughout their marketing, shown on their website, social media and promotional films named as ‘babe’s of Missguided’ creates the image of who their consumers are. Girls who look up at these girls, like how they look and how they are will encourage them to shop with Missguided and remain a loyal customer following their latest trends and seasonal must haves. HOW WILL I CREATE AND PRESENT THE BRAND ESSENCE IN MY OWN FILM, WHAT IS THE PERSONALITY THAT I WILL BE CREATING? I want to express a lot of fun and adventure within my own fashion film, with the idea of new found independence being made apparent. She is young, fun and single, just having the time of her life, no worries on her mind.
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Giving girls the confidence to be wild Website updated daily Lively
Keep customers updated with social media
Fun Current Rebellious
Affordable
Offering the latest trends before any other fast fashion retailer
Continue global expansion
Fashion Forward
Confident
Fast Delivery
Loud
Celebrity Fashion
Beating Competitors Different
Continue to bring out the latest trends first
Fashionable Fashion avaliable cheap
Bold
Adventurous Girly
Offering a wide range of products
Interact and engage with customers Beat highstreet prices
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TRENGTHS • Missguided has a well defined target market of young women aged between 14-25, with their celebrity inspired fashion at high street prices, this brand successfully fits appropriately within this age range bracket. • Since established in 2009, Missguided has continued to build it’s empire by collaborating with celebrities such as Nicole Scherzinger which has successfully gained new customers. • New pieces are added onto the site daily, ensuring the brand keeps up with the latest trends and their competitors.
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EAKNESSES • Missguided is only a womenwear brand, so competitors such as Boohoo and Asos, will have the upper hand when it comes to people buying for males. Competitors have branched out to both genders. • When looking online, Missguided’s visibility on negative feedback is very apparent which is something that can damage a business hugely. Competitors such as Asos manage their negative feedback extremely well which is something that may encourage a customer to shop with Asos over Missguided.
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PPORTUNITIES • Missguided is continuing to grow as a brand, with more products being available on the site everyday. There is more options available for different trends and events; such as work out wear, holiday wear, work wear, party wear etc. • Missguided is also continuing to grow globally, with the brand already having customers from all over. They have the opportunities to continue to grow, reaching out to more countries. The brand has also thought about opening stores which they are testing the waters with pop up stores.
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HREATS • More and more fashion brands are coming onto the market with the same fashion focused aim. This is making Missguided have to think of more strategic ways to make their brand unique, ensuring customers choose them over such competitors. • Brands are using their celebrity collaborations to draw customers in and to reach a new fan base. Missguided must keep up with their competitors when it comes to this factor, ensuring they continue to have something new and exciting to offer to their customers.
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SERVICE PROFILE
CLIENT PROFILE
- Fast - Cheap - Convenient - Quick - Easy - Comparisons
- Young - Female - Fashion focused - Girly Girl - Confident - Bold
BRAND ESSENCE Missguided is an online fashion focused brand whose aim is to guarantee the latest seasonal trends before anyone else. The brand is fast and affordable perfect for their chosen target audience.
CLIENT BENEFIT
SERVICE BENEFIT
- Guaranteed latest trends - No need to spend lots - Clothing for any event/every season
- Quick and easy to buy - Free and easy to return if needed - Convenient - If unable to shop in person, online is available
ACTION & IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
PLACEMENT • For the film I have decided on concentrating on producing a moving editorial, a promotional film of constant moving images of the collection. I plan to have my film quite jumpy, flicking through shots and different angles to really succeed in making clear the tone of voice. • I have planned for a narrative of a young girl rebelling, having fun with her new found freedom. She doesn’t care what anyone thinks and does as she pleases, whether or not that is seen controversial or something she should not be doing. With the help from my styling and props, I have created an attitude of a ‘female boss’, using monopoly money as a fun way to bring in an important factor of everyday life in a fun and care-free way. • The location will have a lot of lighting so that the items of clothing will stand out and be seen clearly in each shot. As much as I want the attitude of the model to represent the mood and tone of the film, I would like close up shots of the clothing to highlight the theme of a ‘party girl’ vibe. Lot’s of pink, girly and bold statement pieces.
PRODUCT • I have selected a female model to represent my chosen brand; Missguided for my fashion film. I have made sure to have chosen a girl who I find fits as a Missguided model as much as interpreting what type of mood I would like to create. • I plan to shoot inside with a studio effect, using lighting to be able to create the fun and wild narrative that is seen throughout Missguided’s commercial films. I have aimed to create a narrative of a young girl getting ready in her room, she’s fun, confident and has just gained a whole new attitude to match her style. • I have brought clothing from the Missguided website especially for the film, selecting clothes from their latest launch to ensure I had the latest trends - with keeping up with the latest trends being one of Missguided’s main priorities as a fast fashion brand. I selected bold and ‘party style’ pieces to capture a very girly girl who is down to have a good time. I have selected quite statement pieces with very bold colours and a range of textures for my film to shout a fun fashion. 26
PROMOTION • Because I plan on creating the ‘ultimate party girl edit’ across my film, I have planned my film around an evening wear campaign, having my model dressed and ready for a night out. My choice of styling as well as hair and make-up clearly distinguishes and encourages this marketing message so I believe it will be clear from the outset what the theme of the film is. • I plan for the film to launch in the Spring season, due to all of the pinks I have selected to use, I believe that this styling best suits this time of year. I have bought a skimpy little silver dress, a pink satin playsuit and then an oversized pink bomber and a coral fur coat for the model to put on top creating the perfect spring evening-wear. • I plan for my model to look as if she is having fun, using her new found freedom to her best ability. She has no one telling her what to do which is something she have so long dreamed of. She has taken complete control of who she wants to be which is so clearly expressed through her body language and attitude throughout the film.
PROCESS • For the shoot I have a photographer shooting for me, with me wanting to do a narrative lookbook styled fashion film, I knew I wanted very jumpy clips rather than one long storyline. We looked at what angles and shots we wanted to incorporate with a mixture of close ups and distance shots to get a clear understanding of the settings and mood of the model. The close ups will have my model looking straight face into the camera creating that attitude which I have planned to create. She is strong and independent which is what Missguided encourage from their consumers. • On set there will only be me, my photographer and the model with the set not being massive so that there is enough room for us to all move around. My model’s make up will be done before the shoot which I plan to match with the style of clothing as well as the theme of a ‘party girl’. I researched into bright pink eye shadow which will encourage her eyes to stand out in the shots, with her facial expressions and attitude being a main factor to get across my intended tone.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY ASOS (no date) Our Ambition & Strategy. Available at: http://www.asosplc.com/our-ambition-and-strategy.aspx (Accessed: 14 November 2016). 2016, L.E.L. (2014) Big interview: Missguided managing director Nitin Passi. Available at: http://www.essentialretail.com/big-interviews/article/53aa8962ee6e1-big-interview-missguided-managing-director-nitin-passi (Accessed: 28 October 2016). Craven, N., Mail, F., Sunday and Neil+Craven, +f. (2015) Founder of Missguided is taking on big retail names. Available at: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/news/article-3025802/ Founder-Missguided-taking-big-retail-names-Fashion-boss-growing-fast-little-help-NicoleScherzinger.html (Accessed: 2 November 2016). Goldfingle, G. (2013) Analysis: Who is etailer Missguided? Available at: https://www.retail-week.com/technology/online-retail/analysis-who-is-etailer-missguided/5047857.article (Accessed: 14 November 2016). Hamanaka, K. (2015) Missguided expands into Selfridges. Available at: http://wwd.com/ fashion-news/fashion-scoops/missguided-expands-into-selfridges-10110633/ (Accessed: 7 November 2016). Mccall, T. (2014) HOW MISSGUIDED FOUNDER NITIN PASSI CREATED AN $80 MILLION BUSINESS IN FIVE YEARS. Available at: http://fashionista.com/2014/09/missguided-nitin-passi (Accessed: 14 November 2016). Missguided (2016a) Babes of Beverly Hills video | Missguided. Available at: https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=j86eZITbfAY (Accessed: 4 November 2016). Missguided (2016b) Introducing Baddie Winkle | Missguided. Available at: https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=8CM00qwSc6I (Accessed: 4 November 2016). Missguided (2016c) SS16 starts here | Missguided. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=QLXXOtBVCdE (Accessed: 14 November 2016). MISSGUIDED (@missguided) Instagram photos and videos (no date) Available at: https:// www.instagram.com/missguided/?hl=en (Accessed: 14 November 2016). MISSGUIDED (missguidedcouk) (no date) Available at: https://uk.pinterest.com/missguidedcouk/ (Accessed: 2 November 2016). Park, S., City, W.G., Herts, EL, A. 7 1 and Sitemap, C.A.L. (2016) Keeping modern life moving. Available at: https://www.paypoint.com/en-gb/news/view/missguided-collectplus-extend-partnership/ (Accessed: 27 October 2016). Public Desire (2016) Public desire x Hailey Baldwin | #PDxHB | public desire. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4RwYRfsRu0 (Accessed: 4 November 2016). Stocker, K., Geoghegan, J. and Hounslea, T. (2016) The drapers interview: Missguided’s Nitin Passi is taking it to the street. Available at: https://www.drapersonline.com/business-operations/digital-/the-drapers-interview-missguideds-nitin-passi-is-taking-it-to-thestreet/5075873.article (Accessed: 14 November 2016). Williams, A. (2015) How Missguided grabs the attention of fast fashionistas. Available at: http://www.cmo.com.au/article/581346/how-missguided-grabs-attention-fast-fashionistas/ (Accessed: 27 October 2016).