Loewe Brief by Samantha Crawford

Corporate Profile

oewe’s history begins in 1846 when

By uniting the skill that Enrique Loewe

craftsmen opened a leather goods

Roessberg had with the creativity and expertise

workshop

royal

in working with leather of the Spanish

marriages were soon to take place in Madrid.

craftsmen the brand laid the foundations for

The marriage of Her Majesty Isabel II of

its success.

Madrid.

Two

Bourbon to the Duke of Cadiz and the marriage of the Princess Maria Luisa Fernanda to the

Loewe’s real success began when it was

Duke of Montpensier. The royal family was

recognised as the “Official Supplier to the

soon to become very important to the brand.

Spanish Royal Crown” in 1905.

Due to this

recognition by the Spanish Royal Family, Loewe takes its name from the German

Loewe earned its reputation for being the

craftsman Enrique Loewe Roessberg, who

most luxurious and prestigious store in

was a specialist in working with leather. He

Madrid. The brand’s success in Madrid made

established the brand by teaming up with

them confident in themselves and they began

the owners of the leather goods workshop in

to expand their stores across Spain.

Madrid.

the

late

1960’s

Loewe

expanded

Loewe opened its very first Men’s Ready-to-

internationally by opening a new store

Wear boutique in Madrid. In 1996 Loewe was

on London’s infamous street, Bond Street.

bought by the LVMH group. In 1997, Narciso

Soon the brand was expanding into the fashion

Rodríguez started to work with Loewe and

industry and designers such as Karl Lagerfeld,

designed the first women’s Ready-to-Wear

Giorgio Armani and Laura Biagiotti were

Collection in Paris.

designing the brand’s first women’s Readyto-Wear Collections. Loewe’s first women’s

Loewe, like many other fashion houses, has

fragrance “L” was brought out in 1972.

seasonal ready to wear collections, however its leather accessories are their most saught after

Four years later, in 1976 the brand expanded

items and are currently selling very well, due

into Japan, to both Hong Kong and Tokyo,

to the trend in hand crafted goods and also

where it currently has upwards of 35 stores.

due to the importance of a brand’s heritage

Today tourism in Spain is always on the

within the luxury market.

rise and some people take Loewe leather goods home as a luxury souvenir. In 1986

II.

Market Position

oewe has the highest quality leather

Other similar brands do not yet offer this

products in Spain. The brand positions

experience, so the brand should always be

itself high in quality as the goods hand

about making this its strong point. It should

crafted in Spain, employing poeple from Spain.

use this connection with art. It should try to

Its heritage brings the brand high prestige.

show its heritage will sill appearing fresh and

Compared to other luxury brands Loewe

on trend.

has a good position. Handcrafted goods are currently highly sought after and the brand is expanding itself outside its products. in 2012 the brand opened GalerĂa Loewe, where the brand collaborates with photographers and artists to show more of the brandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s character. In the gallery the brand also displays its most iconic bags and window displays, along with interactive visual displays..

III.

Cu r re nt Situation

oewe is still a leading luxury brand. Its

The brand is recognised by international

most recent collection of handbags,

celebrities and designers, however confidence

Collecion

is lacking amoung the current target who are

Oro,

sold

out

despite

the communication failure it had with the

the people currently driving sales.

collection’s YouTube video. Loewe’s ss 13 collection was inspired by Gala In

order

help

move

past

small

communication disaster that Loewe had when it created the YouTube video for its Oro Collection (see section IX. - what not to do), it is vitally important that the brand continues to nuture the relationships that it has with its target, to reassure it that they are the important ones, and to remind the world that it knows its core values.

Dalí, Spanish surrealist artist Salvador Dalí’s wife.

IV.

Communication Background

oewe is very active on social media

Loeweâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s latest ads feature Penelope Cruz are

platforms,, Instagram, Facebook and

coherent with the brandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s previous campaigns.

Pinterest. It should continue to be

It is important to always have a link to Spain

active on these social media platforms as it

in the advertising. It is risky to use celebrities

will continue to bring in a fresh image for the

as they have a reputation and are not always

brand, and attract younger consumers. It also

liked by all. However, Loewe can continue to

shows that the brand is current and up to date.

connect to Spain through the styling, location, and mood set in its advertising and other

The brand needs to continue to make steps to rebuild its image on YouTube after its Collecion Oro video failure. Perhaps behind the scenes videos of photoshoots and advertisements would help to alleviate the damage done on YouTube and to alleviate any remaining tension.

communication.

Target Market

omen between the age of 30

Loewe could also target those outside of its

and 70 are the brand’s most

usual target by making sure they represent

important target. They were

themselves with an artistic edge, espeiclly in

affected by Loewe’s Oro Collection video, and

editorials and it the media. However, there is a

it is them that the brand must reassure with

fine line between edgy high fashion and plain

all its future communication. Business women

mainstream edgy.

and also women who do not have to work due to the high income of their partner/husband.

Both women in our target and younger are impostrant to be impacted by the collection

In Spain especially the brand should also

and the brand’s efforts to move passed the

appeal to the younger Spanish population,

Coleccion Oro downfall. It is also important

such as the daughters of existing customers.

that opinion leaders, celebrities and the

They can do this by ensuring that their

industry’s critics see Loewe in a new light.

editorials have an edge.

VI.

Objectives

pain is the essence of Loewe, it is a

Vevers is doing at Loewe. Finally, to create a

country of great architects, chefs,

stronger tie in current communication between

and actors and actresses who were

the brand and art and history. By reating

winning Oscars. Madrid is a strong symbol of

future editorials and general brand desgin to

Spain’s personality, and this identity survives

Salvador Dali. After the brand’s failure with its

in the brand Loewe. Spain is country with

Oro Collection video, now is the time to mend

a rich culture. A history of great artists; El

the broken trust that the brand’s target has

Greco, Velázquez, Goya, Picasso, Dalí. and of

with the brand and its image.

great writers; Cervantes and García Lorca, and of great directors; Luis Buñuel and Pedro Almodóvar Another objective is to launch the collection with great recognition in the media. To be sure that the target is interested in what Stuart

VII.

Inspiration

onsidering that Penelope Cruz is

In order to capture this essence we should

already embodying the celebrities

have

that helped aid in the brand’s success

strange, surrealist objects, with only the most

classy

yet

playful

editorials

with

in its early days, the other key component to

empowering female figures.

the brand’s success is its link to Spain and to

of Kate Moss were taken in the Ritz Carlton,

its culture, the artists and film stars.

which is where a lot of Loewe’s advertising

These images

has been photographed. It is symbolic of the The inspiration for the Spring Summer 2013

brand’s heritage and how the model, Kate Moss,

collection came from strong glamourous

is positioned in the room really works, as she

women who embody the essence of Salvador

is not the centre of attention but she doesn’t

Dalí’s wife, Gala Dalí. Kate Moss is a strong

need to be as she is such a strong character

model who almost always characterises a

that our attention goes directly to her, despite

strong woman, with elegance and grace in

the beautiful surroundings of the hotel room.

editorials.

VIII.

What Not To Do

oewe made a huge mistake when

the classiness that Loewe always has in its

it created the advertising for the

advertising. Considering that almost 50% of

Colecion

hangbag

Spanish youth are unemployed it was not a

collection featuring neon colour bags. It made

wise move to have such young models used

a YouTube video that was highly critisised as

in the advertising. They do not represent the

the models it featured had an urban, aletnative

brands target and in this case the phrase “any

style which did not match the brand’s image.

press is good press” does not apply.

The video featured up and coming teenagers,

The video has even been made into a parody,

who were also some famous celebrities children.

which has over 1 million views on YouTube,

It was set in Madrid. The models/actors have a

over 7 000 likes and only 241 dislikes. Loewe

“hipster” look, due to their hair and style. Many

remained silent despite all of the criticism

of them have shaved hair, tattoos and wear

that it received during this time. From now

creepers and jewellery with crosses. They are

on the brand must be very sure of all of its

also wearing their own clothes.

communication before it releases it to the

Oro,

new

The video

was highly criticised as it does not fit with

public.

IX.

Editorial Location & model

alvador Dali’s house in Figueres,

images may appear classier and less forceful

Spain

connection

if shot in the hotel Ritz Carlton Madrid. It

between Dalí and Loewe without

would also be reassuring for the target as they

being too obvious. Other options are the

would have a connection to the brand’s past

museum in Figueres which would make the

advertisements and not feel like it’s trying too

connection with Salvador Dalí more obvious

hard to be edgy.

will

make

the

and add a more surrealist edge to the editorial shots. Another option would be to continue

The model Jessica Stam highly resembles Gala

with what the brand has already been doing

Dalí with the same hairstyle and make up. The

and continue to shoot the advertisements in

clothing will be Loewe’s Spring Summer 2013

the hotel rooms of the Ritz Carlton, however

collection however, and the model will be in

here we might lose the Salvador Dalí touch.

more real life situations surrounded by more

However, depending on how strong the model,

surrealist objects. For example, her drinking

hair and make-up and styling is, it may be

coffee, stirring it with the Dalí spoon, set in

apparant enough that she is Gala Dalí and the

the kitchen of his house.

Photographer

ikael Jansson, known for his classic yet dark and mysterious images, the editorial should have a classic

style with a dark twist, shot in black and white to resemble old photographs of Gala DalĂ. He has shot for Vogue and Interview magazine as well as luxury designers Cavlin Klein and Dior. He has a good reputation, and will fit the objectives for this strategy.

Lookbook

REF: 1400

REF: 1401

REF: 1402

REF: 1403

Mini - site

http://galadalicollection.wordpress.com

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ISSUU link: http://issuu.com/loewecommunication/docs/loewebrief Brief by Samantha Crawford Computer Tools BA FASHION MARKETING AND COMMUNICATION Level 5