Dolce & Gabbana Trend Report Leah Brooks

Leah Brooks

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Leah Brooks

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Everything is possible because, in one second, everything can change.

(Domenico Dolce)

Style is personality. It’s having the ability to look at things beyond fashion and the self-confidence to transform even the simplest thing into something special. It is a natural quality you cannot learn and there are no rules to follow.

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(Dolce and Gabbana)

To me , flowers are happiness.

(Stefano Gabbana)

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CONTENTS 4

SUMMARY

5&6

CHOSEN BRAND

7&8

BRAND IDENTITY

9 & 10

BRAND CONSUMERS

11 & 12

BRAND POSITIONING

13-16

COMMUNICATIONS MIX ADVERTSING- 14 PR- 14 PERSONAL SELLING- 15 SALES PROMOTION- 15 DIRECT MARKETING- 16 SOCIAL MEDIA- 16

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CONCLUSION

18 & 19

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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SUMMARY

Dolce and Gabbana captures the beauty in fashion, making each collection reflect their Italian heritage by creating sexy and bold garments with bursts of colour. The brand that has been chosen for this report is Dolce and Gabbana as it is very current in today’s fashion industry and is one of the most popular luxury brands to date. This report will evaluate and explore Dolce and Gabbana as a brand whilst mentioning factors such as; brand identity, consumers, positioning of the brand and how the brand advertises itself.

(Dolce and Gabbana.com)

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Dolce and Gabbana is a luxury fashion house which was founded by two Italian designers named Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana in 1985 in Legnano, Italy. Whilst working as assistants in an atelier in Milan the two of them met. Partners in life and in business, the Italian designers showcased their first women’s collection in 1986 in Milan, with their first boutique opening in 1990 and their first stand-alone store opening in 2004, London, England. Their partnership within the business started out with them as a couple, however in 2005 this relationship ended and they carried on the business as friends. Dolce and Gabbana currently have more than 83 stores worldwide including; USA, Italy and China. Dolce and Gabbana decided to stop building more stores 4 years ago and instead are focusing on reformatting their current stores.

Dolce and Gabbana design very luxurious pieces for their brand with celebrities such as; Madonna, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman wearing their designs. They have created some of the most figure hugging and sexiest dresses for women, making their brand more appealing to celebrities with a high desire for glamour. They can take credit for making women feel empowered and loved.

The Dolce and Gabbana website states “The Dolce & Gabbana woman is strong: she likes herself and knows she is liked.

A cosmopolitan woman who has toured the world but who doesn’t forget her roots”.

Dolce and Gabbana’s unique style gives them a strong brand identity throughout their various product ranges, from dresses to fragrances and eyewear to beauty products.

The methodology used to collate information was through a trip to London by visiting different Dolce and Gabbana stores whilst also conducting further research afterwards from; books, websites and magazines. Due to the growth and increasing popularity of the brand there was a lot to discuss and read through from the different sources found.

(Dolce and Gabbana.com)

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“The visible elements of a brand (such as colors, design, logotype, name, symbol) that together identify and distinguish the brand in the consumers’ mind.� (What is brand identity? Definition and meaning, 2016).

Dolce and Gabbana is a modern luxurious brand that expresses styles with femininity and pure elegance, including heavy embellishments to create a bold and defying charm amongst the brand. By combining both their last names together it has created the meaningful brand that we know today. The strong identity of this brand has flourished since it was established in 1985, making each collection more extraordinary each season.

Dolce and Gabbana are constantly making their brand identity stronger by ensuring that each collection is as unique as the last one, especially with their Spring/Summer 2017 Tropico Italiano collection. This collection mixes both traditional Italian symbols with ice creams and sequins giving a tropical feel, whilst still keeping the very bold and beautiful signature look of their brand.

The brand identity is reflected through their logo and branding as it creates a sense of sophistication and glamour through the use of gold, white and black. Dolce and Gabbana are communicating that their products are fun and loud to wear, with the bold embellishments, therefore they are created for people who are outgoing. The brand is distinct through the use of Italian fabrics and by incorporating the Italian heritage into the products, using embellishments and prints to achieve this.

(Dolce and Gabbana.com)

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“ A buyer of the brand product or service (Davis, 2009).

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Dolce and Gabbana own two brands; D&G which is a fashion label inspired by street and contemporary music, with Dolce & Gabbana being the more luxurious and superior brand of the two. D&G appeals to the younger market, people aged 20-25 as it has a less conventional take on fashion and focuses on freedom. On the other hand with Dolce and Gabbana, this is a far more deluxe brand, due to its tailored content mixed with Mediterranean styles; therefore this brand would be more suited to a more mature wealthy market.

Dolce and Gabbana cater to most age ranges in the market whether it be; Women, Men, Junior or the Elderly. However the higher percentage of sales is from the Womenswear as they offer a large range of clothes for women including dresses, handbags and perfumes. The consumers for this brand are people aged over 25 who are either celebrities or business women who earn over £100,000 a year. The majority of Dolce and Gabbana’s consumers are celebrities, Kylie Minogue being one of them as they have designed many of her stage outfits which are very fun and bold.

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Leah Brooks

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“Where a brand sits in relation to its competitors.” (Davis, 2009).

Dolce and Gabbana is positioned very highly in the fashion market as it is a classy and elegant brand, therefore is sold in luxury department stores like Harrods and Selfridges. In fashion magazines such as Vogue, Dolce and Gabbana are positioned towards the front of magazines as the more expensive brands are placed at the beginning, being seen as the most important.

Gucci, Versace and Fendi are competitors of Dolce and Gabbana with them all being luxury brands.

Gucci is the largest competitor for Dolce and Gabbana as quite a few of their products are similar with Gucci using; bold prints and fun patterns as seen in D&G’s collections. In Gucci’s Spring/Summer 2017 collection they have used a lot of bright colours and fun prints creating a very loud feel to their collection, D&G have done similar to this in their S/S collection ‘Tropico Italiano’. Also the prices of the ready to wear items from both brands are alike, whereas at Versace you could expect to pay a lot less for a dress.

Dolce and Gabbana create strong emotion within their brand as they incorporate their Italian heritage into their products by using Italian fabrics. Their brand is strong with their unique selling points being distinct as D&G create very sexy, beautiful and feminine pieces as well as mixing texture with embellishments to create a fun feel.

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ADVERTISING Dolce and Gabbana’s TV advertisements are very unique as they incorporate a lot of elements creating beautiful adverts with a narrative. One of their most remarkable ads to date is the Dolce Rosa Excelsa perfume advert featuring Sophia Loren, in which she and her five sons fix up a rundown building in Sicily.

Afterwards everyone gets cleaned up putting on their beautiful Dolce suits and dresses for a glamorous party. The film was directed by Giuseppe Tornatore with the dramatic music being composed by Ennio Morricone.

This perfume advert is a perfect representation of their brand

“A non-personal form of communication that uses paid-for media to deliver messages to target audiences.”

(Fill, 2009).

as it shows the Italian heritage allowing consumers to have an emotional connection. Dolce and Gabbana have however been known for their controversial ad campaigns, one being in 2007, where they used shock techniques to draw attention to the ad such as; sex appeal and gender stereotyping.

(Dailymai.co.uk)

PR In 2016 Dolce and Gabbana created a doll for the Italian Doll Convention which went to auction and sold for €680, with all the proceeds going to the Dynamo Camp Charity which supports the cost and cure for terminally ill children. They have also created dolls of a similar design for UNICEF charity in the past. Dolce and Gabbana have also dressed the AC Milan and Chelsea soccer sides as well as Italy’s national football team.

In 2010 D&G teamed up with Milano Thunder Italian boxing team to sign a first sponsorship deal as they extend their brand into sports clothing, releasing a sportswear line ‘Dolce and “A non-personal form of communication used by companies to build trust, goodwill, interest and ultimately relationships, with a range of stakeholders.”

(Fill, 2009).

Gabbana Gym’. The actress Scarlett Johansson is featured in a lot of Dolce and Gabbana’s perfume and beauty adverts such as; ‘the one’ fragrance, by using fame to market their products it makes the brand more identifiable.

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PERSONAL SELLING

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The use of personal communication with the goal of informing and persuading customers to purchase products and services.

(Fill, 2009).

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Dolce and Gabbana products are sold in small boutiques in various luxury department stores such as; Harrods and Selfridges in London and Harvey Nichols which is located in 7 stores around the UK. Their products are also sold in pop up shops one being the JCP Pop-Up Shop in New York which opens annually, where discounted Dolce and Gabbana products are sold. With this pop up shop being a charity fundraiser, the prices are far lower than D&G boutiques and all the proceeds from the sales go to supporting JCP’s educational programme. An online discount store called ‘Yoox.com’ also sells Dolce’s products but at a lower price than in store.

SALES PROMOTION

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Activities that provide extra value or incentives to customers, employees, or distributors to generate immediate sales.

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Dolce and Gabbana ensure that every part of their brand is made to perfection in order to sustain the title and position of their brand.

One way in which they do so is by making sure that their packaging is (Swanson and Everett, 2016). as luxurious as the products they sell. The packaging for their products reflects the brand in a positive way as it creates a contemporary and professional feel with the use of a simplistic design consisting of a black and white colour theme with a bold font.

The Dolce and Gabbana stores are very grand and lavish much like their boutique on Old Bond Street in London. This store creates a formal impression by having red quilted sofas next to the shoes allowing customers to feel comfortable whilst browsing the store.

Their boutiques have a very glamourous feel due to the black glossy walls, glass cabinets and extravagant window displays.

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DIRECT MARKETING “Process by which organisations communicate directly with target customers to generate a response or transaction.” (Swanson and Everett, 2016).

As you visit the Dolce and Gabbana webpage there is a menu at the bottom of the page where you can sign up to their newsletter via email, Facebook or Linkedin. By signing up to the newsletter you will receive the latest Dolce and Gabbana news, upcoming collections, fashion shows, events and news about celebrities who are wearing D&G. When you are signing up for their newsletter you are given the choice as to what information you would like to receive from them whether it be regarding their Online store, Beauty, Corporate or Martini®.

SOCIAL MEDIA “Forms of electronic communication through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages and other content.” (Swanson and Everett, 2016).

Social media contributes to the success of Dolce and Gabbana very much so with Instagram being the most popular social media site for them to use, accumulating over 11 million followers. On their Instagram page they post various different images in order to promote their brand for example; recent catwalks, magazine covers and celebrities wearing D&G. “Social media stars have brought a fresh buzz to Milan Fashion Week.” (Press, 2016). These young stars were invited to the Milan fashion week this year and were seated on the front row to witness the unveiling of D&G’s S/S 2017 collection. Amongst the group of young celebrities were Cameron Dallas and Sistine Stallone, with many of the internet stars being from Hollywood.

(Dolce and Gabbana.com)

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CONCLUSION

In conclusion, since Dolce and Gabbana established their brand in 1985 they have come a long way as their brand has grown becoming more and more popular with the expansion of their collections. This brand will continue to grow in the future as with each collection they release is new and exciting, whilst still keeping the Italian style flowing.

(Dolce and Gabbana.com)

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BIBLIOGRAPHY Advameg (1995) Encyclopaedia of World Biography, http://www.notablebiographies.com/newsmakers2/2005-A-Fi/Dolce-Domenico-and-Gabbana-Stefano.html (Accessed: 6 November 2016).

AQR (no date) Available at: https://www.aqr.org.uk/glossary/brand-positioning (Accessed: 7 November 2016).

Craven, J. (2008) VOGUE, http://www.vogue.co.uk/article/dolce-and-gabbana-biography (Accessed: 6 November 2016).

Davis, M. (2009) The fundamentals of branding. Lausanne, Switzerland: Berg Publishers. Pages: 170172.

Dolce (2016b) http://www.dolcegabbana.com (Accessed: 16 November 2016).

Fill, C. (2009) Marketing communications: Interactivity, communities and content. 5th edn. Harlow, England: Prentice Hall/ Financial Times. Pages: 922-935.

Fragrancex, http://www.fragrancex.com/products/_bid_dolce---am---gabbana-am-cid_perfume-amlid_d__brand_history.html (Accessed: 6 November 2016).

Global Blue (2016), http://www.globalblue.com/brands/dolce-gabbana/ (Accessed: 6 November 2016).

Hoang, L. (2016) Business of Fashion, https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/news-analysis/ dolce-gabbanas-local-retail-revolution (Accessed: 6 November 2016).

LLC, K. (1998) KnowThis.Com, http://www.knowthis.com/sales-promotion/what-is-sales-promotion (Accessed: 7 November 2016).

Pinterest (2016) Available at: https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/376050637613521052/ (Accessed: 16 November 2016).

Pollick, M. (2016) WiseGEEK, http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-direct-marketing.htm#didyouknowout (Accessed: 7 November 2016).

Press, A. (2016) Young stars of social media fill Dolce&Gabbana front row, http://www.dailymail. co.uk/wires/ap/article-3806698/Young-stars-social-media-Dolce-Gabbana-row.html (Accessed: 9 November 2016).

Reinach, S.S. (1995) Dolce & Gabbana brand history, http://fashion-history.lovetoknow.com/fashion-clothing-industry/fashion-designers/dolce-gabbana-brand-history (Accessed: 6 November 2016).

Reuters (2010) Daily News, http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/fashion/trunk-show-designers-dolce-gabbana-sponsor-italian-boxing-team-article-1.187777 (Accessed: 6 November 2016).

Schwab, I. (2016) Watch Sophia Loren renovate an Italian palazzo, http://www.llnyc. com/41105-watch-sophia-loren-renovate-an-italian-palazzo (Accessed: 6 November 2016).

Stern, C. (2015) Sophia Loren, 81, stars in dolce & Gabbana lipstick campaign. http://www.dailymail. co.uk/femail/article-3243534/Sophia-Loren-81-stars-new-Dolce-Gabbana-lipstick-campaign-modeling-shade-designers-honor.html (Accessed: 16 November 2016).

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Swanson, K.K. and Everett, J.C. (2016) Promotion in the merchandising environment. 3rd edn. New York: Bloomsbury Academic USA. Pages: 390-403.

Terms, P.I. (2016) Prezi.Com, https://prezi.com/eawrii2oz8nk/copy-of-dolce-gabanna-presentation/ (Accessed: 6 November 2016).

What is brand identity? Definition and meaning (2016), http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/brand-identity.html (Accessed: 7 November 2016).

Zigu (2008) Mbaskool.Com, http://www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/lifestyle-and-retail/990-dolceand-gabbana.html (Accessed: 6 November 2016).

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(Dolce and Gabbana.com)