CONTENTS 2
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WHO WE ARE
ANALYSIS
Mission Message from Our CEO Scope Customer Profiles
5 6 8 10
Current Strategies Consumer Relations Social Media Competition SWOT
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TRENDING
BUYING PLANS
Monochrome Slouchy Knits Athleisure Technology Lifestyle Looking Forward
28 30 32 34 36 39
Corperate Buying Plans Store Buying Plans Assortment Plans Statement of Risk
42 44 46 48
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WHO WE ARE
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MISSION Vince is a global luxury brand established in 2002 specializing in opulent fabrics with a product assortment that combines urban utility and effortless style. Containing a core collection of ultra-soft cashmere knits and cotton tees, they have become a global lifestyle destination for both women’s and men’s apparel and accessories.
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A MESSAGE FROM OUR CEO “Vince was always meant to be for an affluent, luxury customer who has shopped brands like Celine, Cucinelli, and today The Row and recognized the intrinsic value that Vince provided. When the quality of the merchandise went off the rails, the customer walked away and it became a very promotional brand. When I was brought on a year ago, my main focus became: get the product right, get that product back on track.� -Brendan L. Hoffman, CEO
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SIZE & SCOPE 3 Distribution Centers
54 Stores 40 Full-Price
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14 Stores
2,337 Wholesale Parters
Net sales for the full-price, off-price, and e-commerce operations of our three largest wholesale partners were 43% of our total revenue for fiscal 2015. These partners include Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Neiman Marcus each accounting for more than 10% of our total revenue for fiscal 2015.
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CUSTOMER PROFILES
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MICHELLE 44
Freelance Accountant Income – $ 120,000 Drives a Volkswagen Tiguan Graduated from Northeastern with a bachelor’s in Finance Lives in Charlotte, North Carolina with family Two kids, one in college and one about to graduate high school Makes her own pressed juice every morning Listens to NPR Collects mid-century furniture Writing a poetry book Gardens on the weekends Favorite Vince Item: The Carpenter Pant
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JULIA 35
Lives in a suburban community in Piedmont, California Graduated from UC Berkley with a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Economics & Policy Mother of one, four year old Drew Stay at home mom whose husband works in Silicon Valley Joint Income – $ 175,000 Listens to Mumford & Sons, John Mayer and Fleetwood Mac Drives a Toyota Prius Only buys organic food Hikes every Sunday with her husband and son Favorite Vince Item: Easy Pullover Dress
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MIA 26
Graduated from NYU with a bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design Co-Founder of a successful graphic design start-up Income – $ 90,000 Uses Citi Bike and takes the subway Lives in Bushwick, Brooklyn with one roommate Collects vintage art magazines Frequently goes to restaurants featured on Instagram Listens to Solange, Beach House, and Skepta Is a member at the Whitney Museum of American Art Favorite Vince Item: Oversized Crew
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ANALYSIS
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Vision, integrity, passion, collaboration and excellence – these values have helped build Vince into the strong brand that it is today and will continue to drive their future success.
CURRENT STRATEGIES
VALUES
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ORGANIZATION Continued success depends on the hard work and commitment of the entire Vince team. Our employees set us apart from the competition and it is critical that Vince maintains a focus on developing a winning team.
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BRAND By increasing our product development and quality, brand awareness will follow. The Vince lifestyle is clean, timeless, and sophisticated and continues to weave that DNA through all products, marketing, and creative initiatives to maintain a strong recognizable identity.
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DISTRIBUTION To reach a broader range of target customers, we continue to expand our distribution strategically. Vince products are now sold in over 2,400 places worldwide, including prestige department stores, premiere specialty stores, Vince retail stores, and online at Vince.com – which was recently relaunched in 2016 to set the stage for accelerated growth.
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PRODUCT Vince is committed to evolving into a global, dual-gender, multi-channel lifestyle brand. Bringing back the cofounders of the company is getting back to their luxury roots where product was always the main objective, not profit. Their strategy includes eliminating promotions and understanding that markup needs to be correspondent with these ideals.
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CONSUMER RELATIONS Vince is comfortable letting demand outweigh supply and has recently decided to rely less on promotional materials. Additionally, the company is aware that their customer holds the “buy now, wear now� mentality and has adjusted their merchandising plans accordingly.
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SOCIAL MEDIA Vince’s social media presence is definitely an area of improvement that will help develop their brand recognition. To track their progress, we followed their numbers over a five week period: INSTAGRAM 5 weeks ago: 197K followers Now: 203K followers Improvement: 2.96% TWITTER 5 weeks ago: 9.9K followers Now: 10.7K followers Improvement: 7.48% FACEBOOK 5 weeks ago: 183.5K likes Now: 187.2K likes Improvement: 1.98%
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COMPETITORS
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SWOT Weaknesses
Strengths
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Pricing products appropriately Producing quality products that have lasting value with consumers Free shipping and returns on e-commerce platform, influencing customers to shop with them Vince has a defined aesthetic, they are aware of who they are and what designs do well with their clients They are transparent with business practices, it’s easy for a consumer to find out about who they’re buying from On-trend designing, fabric, and styles Offers a wide range of product categories Luxury fabrics that keep customers coming back Wholesale, e-commerce, and physical store locations make them easy to find and shop
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Stores are not defined well enough to be immediately recognizable Their brand recognition is very low in comparison to competitors Recently lost a large customer base during prior administration when their product quality fell Since they’re in a transitional period, they were unable to produce certain items on time, in the right amount for the consumers in the past two seasons
Opportunities
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Offer plus size selection of clothing Develop stores to be more recognizable spaces consumers want to go for an interesting shopping experience Develop a better omnichannel experience In a current “getting back to roots� phase, so they are able to rebrand and really tell the market who they are
Threats
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Obtaining access to sufficient floor space in retail locations Global warming Fast fashion companies like Zara, Mango producing similar product for less money General economic conditions in the U.S. and other parts of the world, including a continued weakening of the economy and restricted credit markets, can affect consumer confidence and consumer spending patterns A good amount of their revenue comes from wholesale partners, some of which are department stores, whose future is questionable, losing these partners could result in a large loss
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TRENDING
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MONOCHROME
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Almost all of Vince’s garments are perfect for taking this stylish, minimalist approach to dressing because they produce mostly solids in great colors.
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SLOUCHY KNITS
Vince is really known for their high-quality knitwear and this is a style that brings in a lot of profit to the brand.
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ATHLEISURE
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This is an area where Vince could capitalize more on by designing more garments influenced by athletic wear because their customer is looking for everyday luxury essentials like these pieces.
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TECHNOLOGY TRENDS
MOBILE APP
- The rise of e-commerce has simultaneously pushed the rise of the mobile shopping application, having an app increases your brand’s omnichannel experience.
- Customers want to blur the lines between luxury and mass markets so introducing an app can be a great way to reach many different types of customers.
- The app would have the ability to collect crucial 34
data from other Vince platforms such as the virtual dressing room, helping Vince adjust for the future.
- Today’s customer wants to go to the space for the experience, the “Instagrammable” moment. Having a smart mirror in our FSS locations would increase traffic heavily.
- The analytics from the smart mirror can
help us learn more about the customer and their experience.
SMART MIRROR 35
LIFESTYLE TRENDS
SUSTAINABILITY We have a mindful, educated consumer, especially one that is spending money on Vince. They are keeping the earth in mind and what the fashion industry is responsible for. 36
TRANSPARENCY We know it’s good quality, but we want to know where it’s being manufactured-business wise they are very transparent. If customers know that Vince is ethical,w they are more likely to buy.
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HEALTH Buying pieces that appeal to the athleisure movement but don’t sway away from Vince’s DNA. People aren’t seeking out athleisure from Vince so it would integrate seamlessly into their product line. If they can continue to do that, it will be successful.
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LOOKING FORWARD -
For 2017, Vince is focusing on more valueadded marketing techniques and less discounts
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In their opinion, neglected areas of A/W 16 include denim and outerwear
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They intend to get back to a quality over quantity mentality
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BUYING PLANS
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SIX MONTH BUYING PLAN
Project Model
FALL 2017
Focus Category: Women’s Apparel FASM 245 Retail Buying Simulation 6 Month Buying Plan Fall 2017 Vince. Focus Product Category: Women's Apparel and Accessories Fall 2017 Plan Net Sales, Fall 2017 Est. Net Sales, Fall 2016 Plan % Last Year: Average Stock, Retail: Inventory Turnover: Planned Reductions, $: Reductions % Sales: Plan IMU %:
34668.0 32400.0 7.00% 16475.8 2.10 5893.6 17.00% 56%
(000's) Net Sales % Fall Plan BOM Stock Stock / Sales Ratio Plan EOM Stock Plan Reductions % Fall Purchases, Retail Purchases, Cost
August 4853.5 14.00% 16016.6 3.3 18096.7 471.5 8.00% 7405.1 3291.1
September 6240.2 18.00% 18096.7 2.9 17195.3 884.0 15.00% 6222.9 2765.7
IMU % =
56%
Fall 2017 6 Month Buying Plan October November December 5546.9 6240.2 7627.0 16.00% 18.00% 22.00% 17195.3 17472.7 18304.7 3.1 2.8 2.4 17472.7 18304.7 14144.5 884.0 1296.6 1473.4 15.00% 22.00% 25.00% 6708.3 8368.9 4940.2 2981.4 3719.5 2195.6
January 4160.2 12.00% 14144.5 3.4 14100.0 884.0 15.00% 4999.7 2222.1
Fall 2017 34668.0 100.00% 16475.8
15 30 17 0 3 Profit + Expenses + Reductions - Cash Discounts + Alt. Costs Net Sales + Reductions 100 17 65 117
2.10
5893.6 100.00% 38644.9 17175.5
Net Sales Plan Fall 2017- 34668.0 Sales Forecast Fall 2017 + 7.00%
We have planned for a 7.00% increase because Vince is going through a refresh currently that will improve its sales but not by a lot.
FASM 245 Retail Buying Simulation 6 Month Buying Plan Fall 2017 Store: Vince. San Francisco, CA (Geary Street) Focus Product Category: Women's Apparel and Accessories Fall 2017 Plan Net Sales, Fall 2017 Est. Net Sales, Fall 2016 Plan % Last Year: Average Stock, Retail: Inventory Turnover: Planned Reductions, $: Reductions % Sales: Plan IMU %:
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1735.0 1621.5 7.00% 826.0 2.10 295.0 17.00% 56%
(000's)
Net Sales % Fall Plan BOM Stock
August 277.6 16.00% 832.8
September 312.3 18.00% 874.4
Fall 2017 6 Month Buying Plan October November December 277.6 295.0 347.0 16.00% 17.00% 20.00% 832.8 855.4 902.2
January 225.6 13.00% 744.3
Fall 2017 1735.0 100.00% 826.0
2.10
PLANNED SALES INCREASE:
PLANNED INVENTORY TURNOVER:
AVERAGE STOCK ON HAND:
34,668,000 is is a 7% increase from last year. Our reasoning behind 7% is that Vince is still trying their best to build back the loyalty they lost after producing lower quality clothing. That along with the fact that performance for fashion brands in general has not been stellar even for brands that aren’t in a rebuilding phase is why we have chosen a more conservative percent increase.
Our inventory turnover is 2.10 because we feel there is not a need for new inventory to turn more than the traditional 2 times because Vince has very classic silhouettes.
$16,475,800 The reason behind this number is based on us adding up all of the BOM’s plus January’s EOM and then dividing by 7 to get our final answer.
PLANNED REDUCTIONS:
PLANNED INVENTORY TURNOVER:
PLANNED PURCHASES:
$5,893,600 which is 17% of sales. We set this at 17% because we feel this addresses the flow of newness we would want to see. We are buying for categories that could go from season to season, nothing extremely trendy, so that is reflected in the reductions.
Planned Initial Markup: Our markup is 56% because we believe this will allow for us to achieve what we’ve laid out in our plan. What should be highlighted the most is the amount and attention to the expenses that are going into the initial markup. Because Vince is going through a rebuilding period, we want to spend more money on making the stores look unique to Vince and memorable.
At retail, it is $38,644,900 and we will talk about how we chose to divide it in the assortment plan.
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FASM 245 Retail Buying Simulation 6 Month Buying Plan Fall 2017 Store: San Francisco, CA (Geary Street) SanVince. Francisco, CA (Geary St.)
Focus Category: Women’s Focus Product Category: Women'sApparel Apparel and Accessories Fall 2017 Plan Net Sales, Fall 2017 Est. Net Sales, Fall 2016 Plan % Last Year: Average Stock, Retail: Inventory Turnover: Planned Reductions, $: Reductions % Sales: Plan IMU %:
1735.0 1621.5 7.00% 826.0 2.10 295.0 17.00% 56%
(000's) Net Sales % Fall Plan BOM Stock Stock / Sales Ratio Plan EOM Stock Plan Reductions % Fall Purchases, Retail Purchases, Cost
August 277.6 16.00% 832.8 3.0 874.4 23.6 8.00% 342.8 152.4
September 312.3 18.00% 874.4 2.8 832.8 44.2 15.00% 314.9 140.0
Fall 2017 6 Month Buying Plan October November December 277.6 295.0 347.0 16.00% 17.00% 20.00% 832.8 855.4 902.2 3.0 2.9 2.6 855.4 902.2 744.3 44.2 64.9 73.7 15.00% 22.00% 25.00% 344.4 406.7 262.9 153.1 180.7 116.8
FASM 245 Retail Buying Simulation SAN FRANCISCO, CA (Geary Street) 6 Month Buying Plan Net Sales $1,735,000 Fall 2017 Store: Vince. New York, NY (Madison Avenue) How are the plans different? This is exactly like our
overall buying plan. We chose this because it has a warm but sometimes cool climate and it is a smaller size then Fall store. 2017 Because of this, it would only turnover the other Plan Net Sales, Fall 2017 3465.0 the same 2.10 times.
Focus Product Category: Women's Apparel and Accessories
Est. Net Sales, Fall 2016 Plan % Last Year: Average Stock, Retail: Inventory Turnover: Planned Reductions, $: 44 Reductions % Sales: Plan IMU %: (000's)
3238.3 7.00% 1402.9 2.47 589.1 17.00% 56%
Fall 2017 6 Month Buying Plan
January 225.6 13.00% 744.3 3.3 740.0 44.2 15.00% 265.5 118.0
Fall 2017 1735.0 100.00% 826.0
295.0 100.00% 1937.2 861.0
2.10
FASM 245 Retail Buying Simulation 6 Month Buying Plan Fall 2017 New York, NY (Madison Ave.) Store: Vince. New York, NY (Madison Avenue)
Focus Category: Women’s Apparel
Focus Product Category: Women's Apparel and Accessories Fall 2017 Plan Net Sales, Fall 2017 Est. Net Sales, Fall 2016 Plan % Last Year: Average Stock, Retail: Inventory Turnover: Planned Reductions, $: Reductions % Sales: Plan IMU %:
3465.0 3238.3 7.00% 1402.9 2.47 589.1 17.00% 56%
(000's) Net Sales % Fall Plan BOM Stock Stock / Sales Ratio Plan EOM Stock Plan Reductions % Fall Purchases, Retail Purchases, Cost
August 485.1 14.00% 1358.3 2.8 1496.9 47.1 8.00% 670.8 298.1
September 623.7 18.00% 1496.9 2.4 1441.4 88.4 15.00% 656.6 291.8
Fall 2017 6 Month Buying Plan October November December 554.4 623.7 762.3 16.00% 18.00% 22.00% 1441.4 1496.9 1600.8 2.6 2.4 2.1 1496.9 1600.8 1205.8 88.4 129.6 147.3 15.00% 22.00% 25.00% 698.2 857.2 514.6 310.3 381.0 228.7
January 415.8 12.00% 1205.8 2.9 1220.0 88.4 15.00% 518.3 230.4
Fall 2017 3465.0 100.00% 1402.9
2.47
589.1 100.00% 3915.8 1740.3
NEW YORK, NY (Madison Avenue) Net Sales $3,465,000 How are the plans different? This model turns faster than the overall buying plan and San Francisco’s 2.45 times because of its location on Madison Avenue. Madison Avenue has a high influx of people especially because of the tourists. Because of this, it has higher projected sales than the other store we chose. We also picked this store because it has a significantly longer cold season, which is different than our store in San Francisco. 45
FASM 245 Retail Buying Simulation Assortment Plans ASSORTMENT PLAN Fall 2017 FALL 2017 Vince. Focus Category: Focus Product Women’s Category: Apparel Women's Apparel Planned Purchases, Retail: Average Retail Price:
Price Range $100 - $199 $200 - $299 $300 - $399 $400 - $499 > $500
$38,644,900 $488
Classification Jackets Knitwear Denim Dresses/Skirts Pants/Trousers Coats
% Total 5% 47% 30% 12% 6% 100%
% Total 10% 30% 10% 16% 22% 12% 100%
$ Purchases $3,864,490 $11,593,470 $3,864,490 $6,183,184 $8,501,878 $4,637,388 $38,644,900
Avg. Retail $425 $305 $275 $330 $310 $1,280
ASSORTMENT PLAN: We chose to focus on Women’s Apparel as a whole and more specifically knitwear. Vince is known as a women’s clothing company and that is why we wanted to focus on those assortments. Knitwear is arguably the item that gets customers hooked on Vince as a brand. There is also so much you can do with knitwear in regards to trends. We are buying for Fall 2017, which is a prime time to take advantage of our customer’s love and need for knitwear.
Focus Product Category: Knitwear Planned Purchases, Retail: Average Retail Price: 46
Sizes xs
% Total 10%
$ Purchases $1,159,347
$11,593,470 $320
Classification Crew Neck
% Total 40%
$ Purchases $4,637,388.00
Avg. Retail $295
ASSORTMENT PLAN Focus Product Category: Knitwear FALL 2017
Planned Purchases, Retail: $11,593,470 Focus Category: Women’s Knitwear Average Retail Price: Focus Product Category: Knitwear $320 % $ Planned Purchases, Retail: $11,593,470 Classification Sizes Retail Total Average Price:Purchases $320 Crew Neck xs 10% $1,159,347 V-Neck % $ s 20% $2,318,694 Classification Total Purchases Sizes Cashmere m 40% $4,637,388 Crew Neck xs 10% $1,159,347 Cardigans l 30% $3,478,041 V-Neck s 20% $2,318,694 Sweatshirts/Hoodies 100% $11,593,470 Cashmere m 40% $4,637,388 Cardigans l 30% $3,478,041 Sweatshirts/Hoodies 100% $11,593,470 % Price Range Total $100 - $199 5% % $200 - $299 41% Price Range Total $300 - $399 43% $100 $199 5% $400 - $499 11% $200 - $299 41% 100% $300 - $399 43% $400 - $499 11% 100%
% Total 40% %6% Total 30% 40% 12% 6% 12% 30% 100% 12% 12% 100%
$ Purchases $4,637,388.00 $ $695,608.20 Purchases $3,478,041.00 $4,637,388.00 $1,391,216.40 $695,608.20 $1,391,216.40 $3,478,041.00 $11,593,470 $1,391,216.40 $1,391,216.40 $11,593,470
Avg. Retail $295 Avg. $295 Retail $335 $295 $405 $295 $270 $335 $405 $270
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STATEMENT OF RISK Due to the current state of the fashion industry, we forecast that the upcoming season for Vince is quite possibly a risk. They are in a position of change at their administrative and design levels, therefore still in search of a strong footing in the business. Failing numbers at large department stores and mall brands are also a strong influencing factor of why we believe this strategy is a risk.
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RETAIL BUYING 245 PROF. GREEN WINTER 2017 SAVANNAH NEWMAN LUCIA DUNLAP JESSICA OGDEN CONNOR GILLETTE
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