L2 Digital IQ Index®: European Niche Fashion (2011) by L2

European Niche

SCOTT GALLOWAY NYU Stern

Fashion n ov e m b e r 1 7 , 2 0 11

A Think Tank for DIGITAL INNOVATION

Digital IQ Index ®:

European Niche Fashion

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IN T R O D U C T I O N

Absent While digital continues to dominate, many of Europe’s niche fashion brands remain absent online. No brand in the inaugural European Niche Fashion Index nabbed Genius status—an L2 Digital IQ Index® first—and a staggering 70 percent of brands are characterized as Challenged or Feeble. One-third of brands are still not selling online, and less than half are participating in paid search. Adoption and community size on popular social media platforms—Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter—lag global fashion players.

Iconic vs. Irrelevant

Digital IQ = Shareholder Value Our thesis is that digital competence is inextrica-

UK $91.5 B

able metric. This study attempts to quantify the

as help brands achieve greater return on incre-

Facebook Adoption (Percent of Internet Users 2010)2

mental investment. Similar to the medium we are assessing, our methodology is dynamic, and we

ings. You can reach me at scott@stern.nyu.edu.

channels. Digital provides a measureable and

Regards,

82%

with the end consumer via e-commerce and Scott Galloway

73%

78%

58%

69%

Smartphone Penetration (Approximate of 2010 rates)3

the playing field and establish direct relationships

$12.3 B

agnose digital strengths and weaknesses as well

across traditional print and brick-and-mortar

brands become iconic versus irrelevant.

SPAIN

$33.7 B $9.4 B

brands. Our aim is to provide a robust tool to di-

improve our methodology, investigation, and find-

future cost, may be the litmus test for which niche

GERMANY

E-Commerce (2010)1

$25.4 B

digital competence of 46 European niche fashion

hope you will reach out to us with comments that

digital platforms, at what is likely a fraction of the

ITALY

and developing this competence is an action-

capital to compete toe-to-toe with larger peers

social media platforms. Investing in emerging

FRANCE

bly linked to shareholder value. Key to managing

Many of the brands in this Index do not have the

scalable opportunity for smaller brands to level

D i g i tal i n e u r o p e

34%

25%

35%

24%

38%

Founder, L2 Clinical Professor of Marketing, NYU Stern 1. “Western European Ecommerce Market Continues Strong Growth,” eMarketer, August 15, 2011. 2. “2010 Europe Digital Year in Review,” ComScore, February 24, 2011. 3. “Mobile Year in Review 2010,” ComScore, February 14, 2011.

Digital IQ Index ®:

European Niche Fashion

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A B O U T T HE R A NKIN G S D i g i tal I Q Class e s

ME T H O D O LO G Y

Site: 40%

IQ Range

Effectiveness of brand site

Functionality & Content: 75%

BRAND TRANSLATION: 25%

• Site Technology

• Site Aesthetics

• Navigation, Product & Site Search

• Messaging & Imagery

140+

IQ Class

GENIUS Digital competence is a point of differentiation for these brands. Site content is searchable, shareable, and mobile-optimized. Social media efforts complement broader digital strategy.

• Social Media Integration • Customer Service & Store Locator • Product Page • Checkout • Account • International Customization: Language, Currency, Consistency, Shipping

110–139

GIFTED Brands are experimenting and innovating across site, mobile, and social platforms. Digital presence is consistent with brand image and larger marketing efforts.

Digital Marketing: 30% Search, display, and email marketing efforts • Search: Traffic, SEM, SEO, Web Authority • Advertising & Innovation: Display, Retargeting, Recent Brand Initiatives, Presence on Tumblr • Blog & Other User-Generated Content: Mentions, Sentiment • Email: Frequency, Content, Social Media Integration, Tactics

90–109

Digital presence is functional yet predictable. Efforts are often siloed across platforms.

Social Media: 15% Brand presence, community size, content, and engagement on major social media platforms • Facebook: Likes, Growth, Tabs and Applications, Responsiveness, Engagement • Twitter: Followers, Growth, Tweet Frequency, Online Voice

70–89

Mobile: 15% • Mobile Site: Compatibility, Functionality, Transaction Capability • iOS Applications (iPhone & iPad): Availability, Popularity, Functionality, iPad Differentiation • Other Platforms (Android, Blackberry): Availability, Popularity, Functionality

CHALLENGED Limited or inconsistent adoption of mobile and social media platforms. Site lacks inspiration and utility.

• YouTube: Views, Number of Uploads, Subscriber Growth, Viral Videos

Compatibility, optimization, and marketing on smartphones and other mobile devices

AVERAGE

<70

FEEBLE Investment does not match opportunity.

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D I G I T A L I Q R A NKIN G

headquarters: UK

Spain

France

Germany

Italy

Rank

Brand

Headquarters

Agent Provocateur

139 Gifted

Racy assets and online voice deliver across channels; strongest mobile presence in the study

Ted Baker

128 Gifted

Best-in-class Facebook page delivers with contests and user-generated content

Stella McCartney

124 Gifted

Fastest-growing Twitter community sets social media style standards

Superdry

118 Gifted

Regional Facebook strategy pays dividends

Moncler

Italy

115 Gifted

Site relaunch, Grand Central Station flash mob, and social media push impress

Moschino

Italy

114 Gifted

Chic digital experience with iPad optimization

Lanvin

France

113 Gifted

Viral video hit led models, bloggers, and customers dancing to its e-commerce site

Emilio Pucci

Italy

112 Gifted

Strong commerce-oriented site and mobile experience

Jean Paul Gaultier

France

111 Gifted

Namesake lends star power to garner one of the largest Twitter followings

La Perla

Italy

110 Gifted

A mobile presence would lift brand IQ

Thomas Pink

109 Average

Tailored site navigation reveals digital attention to detail

Jil Sander

Germany

104 Average

Focus should be on establishing a mobile presence, not on manufacturing a smartphone

Vivienne Westwood

99 Average

Facebook leader with largest fan base and forthcoming F-commerce

Alberta Ferretti

Italy

95 Average

Growing social media voice and e-commerce set foundation

Digital IQ Class

Comments

Digital IQ Index ®:

European Niche Fashion

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D I G I T A L I Q R A NKIN G

headquarters: UK

Spain

France

Germany

Italy

Rank

Brand

Headquarters

Furla

Italy

89 Challenged

Robust regional site customization

Trussardi

Italy

89 Challenged

Low email frequency hinders site traffic growth

Marni

Italy

88 Challenged

Commerce-oriented site extends to mobile; burgeoning social voice could lift brand

Aubade

France

87 Challenged

“French Art of Loving” campaign created digital buzz, but product sharing would increase reach

Gieves & Hawkes

84 Challenged

Digital marketing efforts would bolster streamlined e-commerce site

Costume National

Italy

79 Challenged

Static digital footprint does not match brand’s image

Missoni

Italy

79 Challenged

Renewed attention to brand diluted by lack of e-commerce

Sergio Rossi

Italy

79 Challenged

Social media is isolated from site

Lancel

France

77 Challenged

Brand cultivates a tribe of product-centric Facebook fans

Escada

Germany

75 Challenged

No avenue for site monetization without e-commerce

Kenzo

France

76 Challenged

Stylish site relaunch weaves a stronger brand identity, but removing e-commerce is a poor choice

John Lobb

72 Challenged

Rich branded content would get greater reach through social media

Loro Piana

Italy

71 Challenged

Social media would support relaunch of the brand’s stunning e-commerce site

Adolfo Dominguez

Spain

69 Feeble

Foundation in place, but requires stronger emphasis on site functionality than aesthetics

Digital IQ Class

Comments

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European Niche Fashion

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D I G I T A L I Q R A NKIN G

headquarters: UK

Spain

France

Germany

Italy

Rank

Brand

Headquarters

Aquascutum

68 Feeble

Confusing site strategy leads to geographic disconnect

Blumarine

Italy

68 Feeble

Brand makes strides with shareable lookbook despite lack of e-commerce

Balmain

France

67 Feeble

Missing Facebook page hinders IQ

Corneliani

Italy

65 Feeble

Recently released iPhone app moving in right direction, but needs to upgrade site

Slowear

Italy

64 Feeble

Trying to compensate for lack of e-commerce through iOS apps and branded content

Céline

France

60 Feeble

No social media properties to broadcast runway acclaim

Bruno Magli

Italy

59 Feeble

Digital voice muffled by protected tweets

Brunello Cucinelli

Italy

57 Feeble

Strong aesthetics, flat functionality

Nina Ricci

France

57 Feeble

Flash-heavy site with limited regional customization

Eres

France

55 Feeble

E-commerce site only available in French

Berluti

France

54 Feeble

Strong content is not shareable

Sonia Rykiel

France

54 Feeble

Faulty product links disrupt e-commerce offering

Fratelli Rossetti

Italy

47 Feeble

Product sharing, but not much else

Brioni

Italy

46 Feeble

Brand lags without social media and mobile presence

Digital IQ Class

Comments

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D I G I T A L I Q R A NKIN G

headquarters: UK

Spain

France

Germany

Italy

Rank

Brand

Headquarters

Etro

Italy

44 Feeble

Poor site navigation

Turnbull & Asser

44 Feeble

Digital presence is a relic

Pollini

Italy

37 Feeble

No email marketing or search optimization makes site difficult to find

Gianfranco FerrÉ

Italy

29 Feeble

Absent

Digital IQ Class

Comments

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European Niche Fashion

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KEY F IN D IN G S

D I G I TA L I Q D I S T RIB U T I O N % of Brands per Digital IQ Class

Absence of Genius GENIUS

For the first time in a Digital IQ Index®, we did not register a single Genius brand. The ranking distribution reveals

a bifurcation between Gifted brands and those that are Challenged and Feeble, suggesting a subset of niche European

Digital IQ

>140

GIFTED

brands have made competent, yet still undifferentiated forays

Agent Provocateur

on digital platforms while many have largely ignored digital altogether.

Moschino

Ted Baker

Lanvin

Stella McCartney

Emilio Pucci

Superdry Jean Paul Gaultier

Adoption of digital platforms among European niche fashion

Moncler

brands is limited compared to the 49 brands in this year’s Digital

Digital IQ

110–139

22%

La Perla

IQ Index®: Fashion—European brands trail on every platform.

AVERAGE

Unlike in the U.S., where small, nimble brands such as Genius Kate Spade and Gifted Tory Burch and Diane von Furstenberg

have made impressive strides growing their digital footprint and

Thomas Pink Digital IQ

Jil Sander

90–109

Vivienne Westwood Alberta Ferretti

are punching above their weight class, niche European brands lag behind their larger peers. D i g i tal ado p t i o n a c r oss p latfo r m s % of European Niche Fashion vs. Global Fashion Brands

94% 78%

84%

78% 65%

Missoni

Trussardi

Sergio Rossi

Marni

Lancel

Aubade

Escada

Gieves & Hawkes

Kenzo

Costume National

92%

67%

Furla

CHALLENGED Digital IQ

70–89

28%

John Lobb Loro Piana

78%

Adolfo Dominguez Eres

61%

FEEBLE

48% 33% 35%

35% 17%

Digital IQ Index®: European Niche Fashion Digital IQ Index®: Fashion Facebook

E-commerce

Twitter

YouTube

Mobile (Site & App)

41%

Digital IQ

<70

Aquascutum

Berluti

Blumarine

Sonia Rykiel

Balmain

Fratelli Rossetti

Corneliani

Brioni

Slowear

Etro

Bruno Magli

Turnbull & Asser

Céline

Pollini

Brunello Cucinelli

Gianfranco Ferré

Nina Ricci

Blogs

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KEY F IN D IN G S d i g i tal i q by c ou n t r y of o r i g i n

Island of Innovation

(*Other = Germany and Spain) 99

Brands headquartered in the UK register higher Digital IQs than those from other countries. Replicating the findings of the Digital IQ Index®: Fashion, Italy and France continue to lag behind their British peers by a considerable margin. Culture, access to digital talent, and vendors all contribute. The top four brands, including Digital IQ leader Agent Provocateur, call the UK home. Furthermore, 90 percent of UK-origin brands boast e-commerce capability.

83 73

Italy (n=22)

France (n=11)

Shaky Digital Foundation Through 2014, annual Western European e-commerce growth is expected to reach 11 percent.4 Despite this trajectory, one-third of the brands in this Index do not support e-commerce. Brands without e-commerce averaged a Digital IQ score 35 points lower than those selling online. Additionally, sites with e-commerce recorded more than 1.6 more page views, 110 percent higher three-month traffic growth, and an almost four percent lower bounce rate.

UK (n=10)

Other* (n=3)

S i t e fu n c t i o n al i t y % of Sites With Links to the Following (October 2011)

91%

with without

76% 67%

65% 57%

Before Shareable, Findable

50%

A number of European niche fashion brands lack basic site features. Only half of the brands offer site search, while 43 percent of sites are not equipped with basic product filtering. The connection to brick-and-mortar retail is limited with functionality and navigability lacking; two-thirds of the brand sites did not map stores or post hours, and almost 80 percent did not list store services.

Store Locator

Video

Customer Service (Email)

Email Opt-In

33%

35%

Product Filtering

Site Search

24%

43% 4. “Forrester Forecast: Online Retail Sales Will Grow To $250 Billion By 2014,” Erick Schonfeld, TechCrunch, March 8, 2010.

50%

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KEY F IN D IN G S O n e - m o n t h t r aff i c g r o w t h

Product Seclusion Brands are not only making their products hard to find, but also difficult to share. Only a third of the brands offer product tweeting, and less than 30 percent allow sharing via email. Escada, Lancel, and Pollini are compensating for their lack of e-commerce functionality by experimenting with social media-driven product sharing for their lookbooks and campaign materials. Shareability drives incremental traffic—product pages with the Facebook “like” button saw a 34 percent increase in one-month site traffic growth versus only nine percent for sites without the “like” button. Additionally, brands that included shareable content—notably, video sharing and blogs—also saw an almost 100 percent increase in traffic growth versus those without.

In Search of Search European niche fashion brands aren’t managing one of their most important storefronts: Google. This digital disconnect shows no signs of improving, as only 43 percent of brands purchase their own brand terms on Google. Ted Baker and Thomas Pink stand out among that minority of brands. They not only optimize their search with product and geolocal information, but also with paid search ads.

By Site Feature (Alexa, October 2011)

34%

without 24%

22%

20%

18%

13% 9%

Product Facebook “like”

12%

10%

Video Sharing

Blogs

Links to Social Media

Product Tweets

googl e pa i d s e a r c h r e sults : b r a n d k e y w o r d % in Top Three Paid Ads (October 2011)

67%

43%

It is noteworthy that 28 percent saw the presence of a thirdparty e-commerce provider within their “above-the-fold” organic Google search results, while 67 percent found these e-tailers appear within their top three paid search results. Even more alarming, discount sites such as eBay and Vente-Privée were purchasing against one-third of brands.

33%

E-Tailer © L2 2011 L2ThinkTank.com

with

Brand Site

Discount Site

Department Store

Media

Digital IQ Index ®:

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KEY F IN D IN G S Empty Inboxes Number of Emails, Average Across All Markets (October 2011)

Superdry

2.17 2.00

Moncler

1.48

La Perla

1.35

Agent Provocateur

1.29

Marni

1.13

Emilio Pucci

0.86

Moschino

0.75

Sergio Rossi

0.60

Slowear

5 2.

0 2.

5 0.

0 0.

0.53

Alberta Ferretti

Email sophistication is also limited, as just 30 percent provide links to social media. Eight percent of emails were shareable via social media, and 41 percent optimized the email for viewing on a mobile device. Mobile optimization is an opportunity, as onequarter of consumers in the UK, Italy, and Spain read emails on their mobile devices daily.6

T o p 1 0 : w e e k ly e m a i l f r e qu e n c y

Although more than 70 percent of Western European consumers sign up for email newsletters,5 only 65 percent of the brands in the Index offer email opt-in, and averaged only 0.29 emails per week. While more is not necessarily better, email marketing remains the most effective call-to-action vehicle for e-commerce sales. Superdry and Moncler were the only brands with robust email marketing programs, sending 2.17 and 2.0 emails per week respectively.

5. “The European Social Media and Email Marketing Study—A 6 Country Study about the Digital Dialogue between Facebook, Twitter and Email (Part 2) (European Summary Consumer Results),” Volker Wiewer and Rolf Anweiler, eCircle, December 2010. 6.

Ibid.

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KEY F IN D IN G S Socially Awkward Adoption of the big three social media platforms lags in the European niche fashion community. The average Facebook fan page of European niche fashion brands were 20 times smaller than their Digital IQ Index®: Fashion peers. Additionally, tab functionality and programming was rudimentary: only 23 percent of pages had a custom landing page, and just five percent host Facebook applications. Vivienne Westwood is on a solid trajectory for continued growth through expanding and managing this study’s largest Facebook community. Its forthcoming experimentation with F-commerce should also help the brand. Fifty-five percent of Twitter accounts retweet content, 61 percent reply to tweets and 55 percent link to the brand’s other social media properties. For example, @StellaMcCartney’s tweet stream is packed with tweets complimenting and following up with customers. Additionally, Index leaders Agent Provocateur and Furla have established personas on Twitter that successfully deliver the personality of the brand in 140 characters or less.

Vivienne Westwood is launching F-commerce soon

@StellaMcCartney creates a dialogue with its Twitter followers

European niche fashion brands’ YouTube adoption is less sophisticated than on any other social platform. Brands primarily used YouTube to showcase fashion show coverage, behind-thescenes commentary, and campaign videos. When available, much of this content simply replicates what can be found on the brands’ sites.

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KEY F IN D IN G S

to p 1 0 : fa c e b oo k “ l i k e s ”

to p 1 0 : fa c e b oo k fa n pag e g r o w t h

(October 2011)

Excluding Pages With < 2000 Fans (September–October 2011)

120,000

Stella McCartney

Missoni

111,894

Jean Paul Gaultier

Lancel

66,348

Aubade Paris

Corneliani

60,406

Kenzo

20%

Superdry Spain

Furla

19% 16% 13% 12%

Sergio Rossi

10%

00 0, 40

00 0, 30

00 0, 20

0 00 0, 10

30 %

56,071

Moschino

10%

Etro

56,100

Lancel

15 0%

139,468

Agent Provocateur

22%

Fratelli Rossetti

173,305

Lanvin

74%

Blumarine

276,705

60 %

Superdry

124%

Superdry USA

90 %

353,162

Vivienne Westwood

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KEY F IN D IN G S

b e st i n t w e e t: to p 1 0 t w i tt e r follo w e r s

to p 1 0 : fast e st- g r o w i n g t w i tt e r a c c ou n ts

(October 2011)

(September–October 2011)

13,530

@FollowWestwood

2.5%

@FollowWestwood

12,349

@Superdry

3.7%

@LANVINofficial

12,723

@balmainparis

4.5%

@EmilioPucci

2.4%

@Superdry

@kenzo_paris

8,149

@Moschinofficial

1.7%

@ted_baker

8,018

@balmainparis

1.7%

@MissoniUSA

1.6%

00 ,0

1.4%

00 ,0 15

@ted_baker

5,121

@LaPerlaLingerie

6,205

@sergiorossi

17,344

@EmilioPucci

6.1%

@JPGaultier

17,798

@JPGaultier

23.4%

@StellaMcCartney

194,554

@StellaMcCartney

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KEY F IN D IN G S Sex Sells T O P 1 0 : B r a n ds YouTube Brand Channel Upload Views (October 2011)

1,287,708

Agent Provocateur

457,434

Lanvin

249,215

Vivienne Westwood

146,513

Costume National

Stella McCartney

138,359

Turnbull & Asser

131,785

Jil Sander

34,617

Corneliani

29,021

26 0,

Agent Provocateur's Paz de la Huerta video campaign

78 0,

38,495

00 0

Trussardi

00 0

59,687

00 0

Thomas Pink

52 0,

Agent Provocateur gained viral infamy with its 2006 video featuring Kylie Minogue riding a mechanical bull. This video was later banned from television, but secured a cult-like following for the brand. Agent Provocateur’s official YouTube channel has almost 1.3 million upload views, more than 10 times the average for European niche fashion brands (121,774). The latest video series with Paz de la Huerta has generated 452,312 views on the brand’s YouTube channel. To reinforce its video reign, the brand drives video views with a custom YouTube tab on its Facebook page and a video library on its site.

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KEY F IN D IN G S Size vs. Engagement FA CEB O O K Co m m u n i t y s i z e v s . e n gag e m e n t r at e s

Success on Facebook is no longer limited to the size of a

Excluding Pages With < 2,000 Fans

brand’s page; it is also determined by its level of engagement.

(October 2011)

As a group, European niche fashion brands have relatively small communities, averaging approximately 55,000 “likes” and a Facebook interaction rate of 0.16 percent compared to Fashion

FAMILIES

Index's 0.10 percent. Aubade and Lancel are the only brands

TRIBES

to earn the elusive “Tribe” status, cultivating large communities with strong engagement. Both brands have product-centric

KEY:

posting strategies that maintain a connection with their fans.

= “TRIBES” BRANDS:

Product-centric posts are the focus of Lancel's Facebook strategy

Aubade

Brands with Large Facebook Communities and High Engagement

= BRANDS Narrowing on “tribes” categorization

Lancel

LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT

Jean Paul Gaultier

COHORTS

CROWDS

SIZE OF COMMUNITY Note: Horizontal axis (Size of Community) is graphed on a logarithmic scale.

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KEY F IN D IN G S

O V ER A CHIE V ER S & U N D ER A CHIE V ER S Actual Facebook Fans vs. Predicted Facebook Fans

Overachievers vs. Underacheivers

(Based on Google Monthly Global Search Volume, October 2011)

Overachievers:

Comparing a brand’s Facebook “likes” to the number of global monthly organic searches for its brand name on Google

98%

100%

(a proxy for brand equity online) provides a metric for identify-

89%

ing brands that are underachieving and overachieving on the

65%

social network.

53% 50%

As with Digital IQ, a bifurcation exists. Of the 36 brands with an

45%

es Er

ni ar

o un Br

ti rlu

derachievers, suggesting they have paid limited attention to the

Sl ow

official Facebook account, an overwhelming 78 percent are un-

W Viv es ie tw nn oo e d Su pe rd ry

on Facebook, Vivienne Westwood is the standout. Its community of 353,000 fans is actively promoted through the brand’s

-50%

site and email marketing.

La Ag nv en in tP ro vo ca St ell teu aM r cC ar tn ey

popular social network. Of the remaining brands overachieving

Product Resonates

Underachievers: -100%

Although European Niche Fashion brands utilize a variety of

-97% -99% -99% -99% -100%

content to engage Facebook fans, a whopping 84 percent post about products—and for good reason. Product posts garnered

fa c e b oo k p ost c o n t e n t

the highest average interaction rate, 0.6 percent. Brands were

% of Brands Using vs. Interaction Rate

almost as talkative about events, which also earned a high average interaction rate. Contrary to popular belief, two of the least effective posts at

(October 2011) 84%

0.60%

% of brands using interaction rate

0.59%

77%

generating fan interaction focused on celebrities and adver-

0.44%

tising materials, which 37 percent and 30 percent of brands

0.44% 0.31%

discuss, respectively.

37%

35%

0.29%

30%

0.22% 12%

Event

Celebrity

General Statement

Ad/Commercial

Question

Tip/Advice

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KEY F IN D IN G S

m o b i l e f e atu r e ado p t i o n % of Mobile Sites

iMobile

(October 2011)

with

Mobile adoption is considerably low among the 46 European

without

niche fashion brands included in this year’s Index. Only 33 per-

71%

29%

cent of the brands provide any mobile experience—18 percent Store Locator

have developed a mobile-optimized site and 17 percent have developed applications. Only two brands, Agent Provocateur and Blumarine, have both a mobile-optimized site and an ap-

29%

71%

plication. Furthermore, one in five brand sites do not load

E-Commerce Enabled

on a smartphone. The brands that do offer a mobile-optimized experience often do little more than personalize the mobile domain. Less than

93%

30 percent support m-commerce or incorporate a store locator.

Mobile Site Search

This low rate of brand mobile-site adoption is particularly staggering in light of the high mobile adoption rate of Europe’s

ado p t i o n of i os fu n c t i o n al i t y f e atu r e s

population. Not only do countries like Spain, Italy, and the UK boast smartphone penetration rates above 30 percent, but

% of Brands

approximately 55 percent of smartphone users—more than 10

(October 2011)

with without

percentage points above the U.S.—have devices that enable them to browse and perform web-based transactions.

67%

33%

Although it outpaces mobile site development, iOS application adoption still lags at 33 percent. Just one brand, Superdry, has an m-commerce enabled iOS app, and just 11 percent feature customer service. Furthermore, a third of brands fail to incorporate a store locator.

Store Locator

44%

56% Social Sharing

78%

22% M-Commerce

89% 7. “Mobile Year in Review,” ComScore, February 14, 2011.

11% Customer Service

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D I G I T A L PR O J EC T I O N S

L2’s roadmap for navigating the past, present, and future of European Niche Fashion online

Yesterday

Today

Tomorrow Eres

Customer Service

E-Commerce

Facebook Engagement

Online Voice

iOS Experience

YouTube Video

Market Strategy

Kenzo

Ted Baker

No email address, no web form, and no store finder; only offers one phone number with limited hours

Only brand in Index to offer live chat

Adolfo Dominguez Balmain • John Lobb

Loro Piana

Agent Provocateur Integrates brand lifestyle content with e-tail

Lookbook-centered sites equipped with bare minimum in e-commerce

Balmain • Gianfranco Ferré No official Facebook page; unaffiliated pages have cropped up to fill the void

Bruno Magli Protected Twitter account discourages followers

Adolfo Dominguez Sergio Rossi • Loro Piana Sites are too flash-heavy to load on a mobile device

Corneliani • Escada • Lancel Cookie-cutter collections of videos featuring ad campaigns, behind-the-scenes coverage, and fashion shows

Gives & Hawkes Turnbull & Asser These men’s brands stick to traditional paid media

“Eres Is at Your Service” lets you request a customer service call from a U.S. or European adviser

Emilio Pucci • Furla • La Perla Facebook programming features custom and gated tabs

Site account lets you customize your e-commerce shopping experience

Vivienne Westwood Full F-commerce soon to come

Agent Provocateur Furla • Escada Strong personality on Twitter, but isolated as only cross-platform promotion is link from site

Agent Provocateur • Blumarine Only brands with both a mobile site and an iOS presence

Agent Provocateur Scandalous video after scandalous video cements brand’s video following

Stella McCartney Sergio Rossi • Emilio Pucci Using some paid digital media

Brand personality evident in tweet stream, which is also featured in widgets on Facebook and site

Superdry Only brand with fully e-commerce enabled iPhone and iPad apps

Lanvin Viral fall 2011 campaign video ties to offline brand buys

Moncler Digital marketing is a combination of earned and paid media—Grand Central Station flash mob attracted the attention of bloggers

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European Niche Fashion

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Models Take to the Dance Floor To announce its Fall/Winter 2011 collection, Lanvin released a video lookbook shot by Stephen Meisel. The video features supermodels Karen Elson and Raquel Zimmerman performing a synchronized dance to Pitbull’s “I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)” while wearing different pieces from the collection. Introducing silliness to high fashion, the video garnered more than 150,000 views within a few days of release, delighting viewers with its self-mockery. Lanvin Creative Director, Alber Elbaz, even makes a cameo appearance at the end, showcasing his own dance moves. The video was released weeks after still images of Elson and Zimmerman in the same setting were published. Additionally, Lanvin capitalized on the video’s popularity by letting dance pairs enter a raffle to compete in a dance-off during its Fashion’s Night Out event in New York, which the brand shared with followers and fans via tweets and Facebook posts.

Lanvin’s Fall 2011 Campaign video features supermodels Karen Elson and Raquel Zimmerman dancing in unison to Pitbull’s “I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)”

Pairs could compete in a dance competition for prizes, creating more content for its social media platforms at a Lanvin FNO event in NYC

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“It’s Rutting Season” custom Facebook application

Ted Baker Goes Wild Ted Baker launched an integrated Instagram and Facebook campaign this October called “It’s Rutting Season” to promote its winter collection. The brand held events in its Glasgow, Manchester, and London stores and invited fashion bloggers including Les Garçons de Glasgow, Sara Luxe, and Mademoiselle Robot to take the brand’s Instagram feed and snap photos of in-store shoppers. Shoppers posed in an ensemble from the latest collection in a doe or stag mask and their pictures were uploaded to the brand’s global Facebook page. Rutting models were encouraged to solicit “likes” from their Facebook networks, and the two photo subjects with the most “likes” each week won a Ted Baker shopping spree. The campaign was promoted on the brand’s Twitter account as well as on the blogger/photographers’ personal digital platforms. During the promotions, Ted Baker added an average of 60 percent more fans per day than before the campaign.

Fashion bloggers took Instagram photos of shoppers on three different days, in three different UK cities

Photos were uploaded to Ted Baker’s Facebook page and Twitter feed

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European Niche Fashion

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Hyper-Local Superdry is the only brand in the Index taking a regional approach to Facebook, managing distinct pages for each major European market. In addition to regional pages, the brand’s global page provides exclusive content for fans in other geographies.

Superdry USA’s “Superdry University” campaign augments its rapid fan growth

Markets are also championing regional innovation. Superdry USA launched a campaign on October 3 targeting digitally savvy college students. Students at participating universities were encouraged to apply to become a brand ambassador for the chance to win a $1,000 Superdry wardrobe and a $500 cash prize. To qualify, applicants were required to have at least 1,000 Facebook friends and recruit 10 percent of them to become Superdry USA Facebook fans. This campaign continues to fuel Superdry USA’s staggering fan growth, which was 124 percent from mid-September to mid-October, beating the other brands in the Index by a wide margin.

The SD Global tab is incorporated on each of Superdry’s country pages, providing a link to Facebook pages across the globe © L2 2011 L2ThinkTank.com

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Moncler celebrated Fashion Week on February 13 by taking over Grand Central Station with a mob of dancers dressed in the brand’s skiwear

Moncler Takes Center Stage To celebrate Fashion Week last February, Moncler staged a flash mob in Grand Central Station. The brand hired 160 dancers clad in Moncler skiwear, as well as 200 extras in order to orchestrate a 10–minute dance routine in the station’s main concourse. To increase virality and buzz around the event, Moncler invited editorial and media guests to a pre-flash mob reception in the balcony above the terminal. Among the guests were many fashion bloggers who provided their own digital coverage of the event. Moncler did not upload a video of the dance spectacle to its YouTube channel, but instead let blogger and press videos, photos, and articles bring the event to life online. The top five videos of the event have amassed almost 150,000 views combined. Moncler has also taken other critical steps to increase its digital footprint this year, joining Facebook and Twitter in September.

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European Niche Fashion flas h of g e n i us

Stella McCartney’s iPad App

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The app includes several photos from the book Linda McCartney: Life in Photographs that were selected by Stella McCartney

Stella McCartney released the second version of its iPad app “Stella’s World” this past summer to coincide with its e-commerce launch in 28 European countries. The app features content about new collections and fashion shows, as well as selections of Linda McCartney’s photography and behind-thescenes coverage of the British Olympic Team shoot. A particularly engaging hub is the “Stella McCartney Kids” section, which is loaded with interactive features embedded in each of the campaign photos. When making a product selection on the “Kids” section, the app seamlessly directs the user to the brand’s e-commerce site.

Behind-the-scenes video of Britain’s Olympic Team in Stella McCartney’s designs in collaboration with Adidas

Coinciding with the release of the app, Stella McCartney added 28 more European countries to its e-commerce site

The “Stella McCartney Kids” section has animated features visitors can click through to change the scenery

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European Niche Fashion

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The Loro Piana Lifestyle

Interactive scenes in the “Our World” section of the site bring the brand personality to life

With the launch of e-commerce in October, Lora Piana went live with one of the most interactive online shopping experiences in the Index. Although flash technology hinders page transitions and mobile browsing, the site is beautifully designed and nabbed one of the highest brand translation scores in the Index. Illustrations of lifestyle scenes greet the user and highlight Portfonio products. Navigation to the product page is somewhat cumbersome, but once there the brand delivers up to 11 product views, strong customer service options, and the ability to favorite and gift. Additionally, the brand aims to drive visitors to retail by automatically detecting IP addresses and displaying local store, time, and weather throughout the site.

Site detects users’ locations and displays information for the nearest stores

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European Niche Fashion

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Tweets from the saucy @TheMissAP are displayed on the homepage’s Twitter widget

Agent Provocateur A key reason Agent Provocateur propelled to the top of this Index is the brand’s rich site experience and superior navigation. Site account holders can personalize their e-commerce enabled site experience by entering their sizes to display only relevant products. Additionally, users can select their preferred currency upon login. Products can be filtered by size, style, and color, and all product previews can be switched from front view to back view. The site also has a section dedicated to the current—and notorious—Paz de la Huerta spokeswoman lookbook that gives users the option to shop for outfits from each of the campaign photos. Finally, the site drives visitors to Agent Provocateur’s social media properties with homepage links to Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, and also displays a live Twitter feed widget.

Online shoppers can peruse the Paz de la Huerta campaign photos and shop the looks

Digital IQ Index ®:

European Niche Fashion

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TEAM SCOTT GALLOWAY Clinical Professor of Marketing, NYU Stern Founder, L2 Scott is a Clinical Professor at the NYU Stern School of Business where he teaches brand strategy and luxury marketing and is the founder of L2, a think tank for prestige brands. Scott is also the founder of Firebrand Partners, an operational activist firm that has invested more than $1 billion in U.S. consumer and media companies. In 1997, he founded Red Envelope, an Internetbased branded consumer gift retailer. In 1992, Scott founded Prophet, a brand strategy consultancy that employs more than 120 professionals in the United States, Europe, and Asia. Scott was elected to the World Economic Forum’s “Global Leaders of Tomorrow,” which recognizes 100 individuals under the age of 40 “whose accomplishments have had impact on a global level.” Scott has served on the boards of directors of Eddie Bauer (Nasdaq: EBHI), The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), Gateway Computer, eco-America, and UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. He received a B.A. from UCLA and an M.B.A. from UC Berkeley. Véronique Valcu L2 Véronique began her career in Deloitte Consulting’s Strategy & Operations practice where she worked with some of the world's largest corporations in retail, manufacturing, and pharma. While there, she conducted extensive social media analyses of consumer-facing brands and contributed to the firm’s growing interest in the space. Post Deloitte, she moved to the Winterberry Group where she performed strategic consulting for advertising and marketing services companies. At L2, Véronique serves as the Specialty Retail and European research lead. She received her B.A. in Communications from the University of Pennsylvania. Maureen Mullen L2 Maureen leads L2’s research and advisory practice where she helped develop the Digital IQ Index®. She has benchmarked digital marketing, e-commerce, and social media efforts of more than 300 brands across pharma, auto, luxury, specialty retail, beauty, and the public sector. Maureen also has led digital strategy consulting engagements for a variety of Fortune 1000 clients. Before joining © L2 2011 L2ThinkTank.com

L2, Maureen was with Triage Consulting Group and led managed care payment review and payment benchmarking projects for hospitals, including UCLA Medical Center, UCSF, and HCA. Maureen has a B.A. in Human Biology from Stanford University and an M.B.A. from NYU Stern. Lloyd Salmons Brand Translation, Outside Line Lloyd co-founded the social media agency Outside Line back in 2000. Since then Outside Line have been busy building campaigns and communities for global brands including Diesel, Budweiser, and Virgin Galactic. Prior to this he was responsible for setting up the international new-media marketing network at EMI, working across campaigns for artists such as The Beatles, Queen, Blur, Gorrilaz, Radiohead, and Robbie Williams. These campaigns pioneered online music marketing techniques and won a variety of awards and accolades for digital marketing. Lloyd has also been chairman of the IAB Social Media Council helping to put his experience in to ensuring best practice across the industry. Emily Hallquist L2 Emily is a research associate at L2 where she works with the research team on the Digital IQ Index® reports. Her background is in international relations, and she interned last year with International Business-Government Counsellors (IBC) in Washington, D.C.. At IBC, she assisted on client engagements pertaining to their global operations. Emily received a B.A. in Public Policy with minors in Earth and Ocean Sciences and Political Science from Duke University. R. Danielle Bailey L2 Danielle began her career at The Home Depot, Inc., where she led a variety of internal consulting engagements focused on supply chain, merchandising, and in-store process improvement. She went on to manage the implementation of award-winning mobile initiatives for several large media clients, including The New York Times Company, NBC Universal, Disney/ABC, Maxim magazine, and Zagat. Danielle has a B.S. in Systems Engineering from the University of Virginia and an M.B.A. from NYU Stern.

CHRISTINE PATTON Creative Director, L2 Christine is a brand and marketing consultant with more than 15 years of experience creating brand identities and marketing communications for aspirational and luxury brands. As creative director of L2, she leads the translation of the L2 brand across all touchpoints, with a particular focus on the visual packaging of L2’s research.She began her career at Cosí, where she developed the brand and oversaw its evolution from concept through growth to 100 restaurants. Since then she has provided creative direction for a wide array of clients, including the launch of Kidville and CosmoGIRL! magazine. Christine received a B.A. in Economics and Journalism from the University of Connecticut and an M.B.A from NYU Stern. Jessica Braga L2 Jessica, a freelance art director, specializes in identity, iconography, event graphics, and invitations. Initially beginning her career in fashion, designing textiles and prints at Elie Tahari’s design studio in New York City, she then focused on the Elie Tahari brand aesthetic and consistency in design across its many developing disciplines. Desiring to explore other facets of design, she went on to become the art director of a small, prestigious design firm in Chelsea, where she focused on event graphics, digital and print collateral, and brand aesthetics for companies both large and small. Jessica holds a B.F.A. in Graphic Design, as well as an A.A.S. in Illustration, from Rochester Institute of Technology. Aaron Bunge L2 Aaron is a freelance graphic designer who specializes in print design, branding and identity, packaging, and web design. His approach to design is both aesthetic and functional; characterized by clear, intelligent design that is always appropriate to the project at hand. He began his career tailoring projects for the Chinese, Australian, and U.S. markets, across multiple design disciplines, and in multiple languages. Aaron has a B.F.A. in Graphic Design from Iowa State University.

UPCOMING EVENTS L2 Clinic The Social Graph EUROPE

L2 is a think tank for digital innovation.

11.21.11 Paris

We are a membership organization that brings together thought leadership from academia and industry to drive digital marketing innovation.

L2 Clinic Mobile 01.19.12 New York City

Resear ch

01.24.12 Paris

Digital IQ Index®: The definitive benchmark for online competence, Digital IQ Index® reports score brands against peers on more than 350 quantitative and qualitative data points, diagnosing their digital strengths and weaknesses.

EVEN T S

L2 Clinic Digital Marketing 04.13.12 New York City 05.22.12 Paris

Forums: Big-picture thinking and game-changing innovations meet education and entertainment. The largest gatherings of prestige executives in North America.

L2 Clinic Social Media

300+ attendees

06.14.12 New York City

Clinics: Executive education in a classroom setting with a balance of theory, tactics, and case studies.

120 –150 attendees

UPCOMING Research

Working Lunches: Members-only lunches led by digital thought leaders and academics.

Digital IQ Index® Reports:

Prestige 100® Reports:

Topic immersion in a relaxed environment that encourages open discussion.

European Specialty Retail

Mobile

40 – 60 attendees

Travel

Facebook

Magazines

Emerging Markets

MBA Mashups: Access and introduction to digital marketing talent from top MBA schools.

co n s ulti ng Advisory Services: L2 works with brands to garner greater return on investment in digital initiatives. Advisory work includes Digital Roadmaps, Social Media Strategy, and Site Optimization engagements.

upcoming member benifits Members Site: In Q1 L2 will launch real-time tracking of digital metrics

MEM BE R SHIP For membership info and inquiries: membership@L2ThinkTank.com

(vs. peers).

A Think Tank for DIGITAL INNOVATION

51 East 12th Street, 2nd Floor New York, NY 10003 W: L2ThinkTank.com E: info@L2ThinkTank.com

ÂŠ L2 2011 L2ThinkTank.com