The Molly Goddard Virtual World by nish.yadagiri

THE

MOLLY GODDARD VIRTUAL WORLD

Nishtha Yadagiri 18024464 BA Fashion Marketing Year 3 Final Major Project Dr Nina Van Volkinburg

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I, Nishtha Yadagiri, certify that this is an original piece of work. I have acknowledged all sources and citations. No section of this essay has been plagiarised. While working through this market development report, I received an enormous amount of support and assistance. I am extremely grateful for all my tutors, however, I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor Nina Van Volkinburg, who was extremely patient and supportive towards my process. I would also like to thank all the participants who agreed to take part in my primary research. I am thankful for the time they took out of their day to help me and for their opinions and inputs within my area of research. Finally, to my friends, family and boyfriend, my deepest gratitude. Your encouragement and belief in me kept me going through some difficult times and I very much appreciate that.

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PROJECT UMMAR

After the pandemic, 80% of luxury brands took a hit on their top lines, with the sales decreasing by 40% (LSN Global, 2020). This highlights the fragility of the current luxury market and the reliance it has on physical spaces, along with the need for this space to conceive a creative and innovative transformation. The unravelling of the digital decade will aid this transformation, allowing luxury to exist in other realms and assisting the industry in moving away from the dependency of human-to-human, tactile movements.

Since the last three years in the UK, 53% of consumers that bought luxury fashion products did so online and the online e-commerce industry is only predicted to increase tenfold by 2025 (Mintel, 2020). The luxury industry needs to respond to the rising digital demands of the global, hyper-connected luxury consumers. The founding partner of a technology-based studio explains the importance of luxury fashion and technology, and how brands should ‘treat technology as another medium with which to paint a masterpiece’ (LSN Global, 2020) - a means through which brand missions could be conveyed and elevated through the use of the digital world. Furthermore, with the effects of the pandemic pushing everyone online, the way consumers engage with brands is now focussed digitally.

In 2019, a study was conducted by Forbes that highlights the significance of millennials and Gen Z in the luxury market. This demographic currently represents about 32% of investment in the luxury market, however, they are expected to reach a rising 50% by the year 2025 (Forbes, 2019). This demographic is also very relevant in the digital landscape, with many connecting through online communities and finding comfort in the escapism of their digital selves.

Therefore, this market development report focuses on how the brand, Molly Goddard, could improve their current brand strategies and target these consumers and their rising demand drivers in the luxury industry. To achieve this successfully, primary and secondary research will be employed to establish the brand’s current strategies, along with their current strengths and weaknesses. This is where primary research surveys revealed there was an evident lack of awareness of the brand amongst the Gen Z and Early Millennial market. Despite their recent move into the pop-culture moment, there is less engagement and awareness with the potential consumers of Molly Goddard, they have a large social following however not many comments and shares. This identified an area of opportunity for the brand to improve their competitive advantage. Further research showcased evident similarities between the existing and potential target consumers for the brand, including being self-expressive individuals, who are confident and view fashion as investment. The gaps in the brand’s strategy, along with consumer similarities, places Molly Goddard at an ideal opportunity to penetrate the Gen Z and Early Millennial market. The proposed campaign aims to increase Gen Z and Early Millennial consumer engagement and awareness for Molly Goddard through the collaboration of their new seasonal launch on a virtual gaming platform. The risks presented by the campaign have potential for high impact, their likelihood is considerably low, with many being able to be resolved efficiently. The campaign carries out over 16 weeks, utlising, experiential retail, immersive technologies, email marketing, influencer affluence and earned media to ensure that they created a strong multichannel marketing strategy in order to encourage brand loyalty and positive brand associations.

Word Count: 11, 869

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IST OF ABLES

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IST OF IGURES

CONTENTS 07

RATIONALE

Price Promotion People Process Physical Evidence

Value Proposition Canvas

32 31 34

Case Study: FIA Porter’s 5 Forces Analysis Consumer Trend Canvas

INTERNAL ANALYSIS

STRATEGY SUMMARY

11 12 14 15 16 17 18

Brand Timeline Consumer Analysis Target Consumer Brand Prism Current Strategy TOWS Analysis 7P’s Marketing Mix Analysis

36 37 38 39 40 41

EXTERNAL ANALYSIS

42 43 44

Proposed Strategy Ansoff Matrix Aims & SMART objectives Campaign Outline Campaign Justification Communications: DRIP Analysis Future Competitive Position Campaign Target Consumer Consumer Response

25 27

Trend Drivers Related Trend Future Consumer PESTEL Analysis Case Study: Gucci

ARTEFACT

REFERENCES

46 50

Product Place

IMAGE REFERENCES

28 29 31

52 56 57 58 59

COSTING

60 61

Campaign Costings Budget Explained

RISK, OPPORTUNITY & SENSITIVITY

72 APPENDIX 1 Focus Group Transcript

APPENDIX 2 Primary Research Survey Results

APPENDIX 3 Netnographic Research

APPENDIX 4 Consent Forms

CONCLUSION 80

APPENDIX 5

APPENDIX 6

Digitisation Form

Ethics Form

RATIONALE

Brand Introduction Born in London, Molly Goddard has exponentially grown from the small label that started in 2014 to an eponymous luxury fashion brand. Known iconically through the signature tulle dresses, the designer luxury label has added organdy silk white and taffeta to the field, along with the range of products expanding to outwear, separates, and menswear, consistently maintaining the same bold, exciting and fantastical designs (BoF, n.d.). The brand reach may be international, targeting many major countries globally, however, it sticks to a close relationship and community of employees, manufactures, and suppliers - with a conscious decision to be more sustainable and produce less waste when designing (Net-A-Porter, 2020). Molly Goddard collections are carried in some major stockists, however, the label also recently released their e-commerce store that serves as a ‘click and enquire’ store, in an attempt to provide information and receive consumer feedback (Another Mag, 2020). Whilst the brand has often appeared on headlines in the fashion industry, it has been primarily due to the hand-crafted, audacious design of her products and collaborations.

The brand reach is extensive on social media and in the industry, however, primary research reveals a lack of interaction with consumers. Since Molly Goddard relies on physical spaces for the majority of consumer interaction, with the effect of the pandemic, there is a gap in the market to be filled in terms of taking on a more digitally innovative e-commerce stance. Currently, the main promotional aspect of the brand involves detailed interviews with Molly Goddard and relevant fashion and marketing journalists, although this provides insight into the personality of the brand there is a potential here to engage more with consumers on that similar personal level. To make full use of their social platform reach the label needs to connect with its consumers more creatively through utilising newer innovations and tactical engagement marketing techniques.

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RATIONALE

Insight and Solution A BoF (2020) interview states that ‘people are really wanting to know where to put their hard-earned money’, this is an opportunity for the brand to create a space that exudes value, meaning, attention, and a personal touch. The lives of most consumers now are being spent online, with this and the increasing interest in gaming, the virtual apparel market now includes collaborations with luxury fashion brands, such as Louis Vuitton (WGSN, 2020). Therefore, progressing into something new and innovative, such as an interactive VR gaming experience, would not differ much from the brand ethos. Gaming, also, includes a range of virtual experiences for everyone, by 2020 the gaming world had approximately 3.4 billion global users, becoming the space for individuals to educate, socialise and experiment (WGSN, 2020). The current main target consumer for Molly Goddard is millennial women between the ages of 25 and 35 years of age, of middle to high-class stature. This innovative direction will hope to engage more interactions with a slightly younger market segment of an audience of Gen Z and Early Millennials.

Specifically, this campaign will focus on the ‘joy seekers’ within the younger demographic, and the consumers that value experience. According to a shoppers forecast 2021 report, these groups will be investing more into brands that prioritise experiential retail and independent brands with brand identities aligning with their own values. This demographic is looking to add a little more joy to their lives that have been affected by the severity of lockdown. With more focus on developing a strategic campaign that involves the VR experience of gaming, the brand’s strong values can be conveyed more effectively and gain more traction with the younger consumers. It will hope to provide an experience that justifies consumers investing in this independent luxury brand by creating meaning and purpose. Therefore, this report will explore the analysis of Molly Goddard entering the world of innovative experiential digital retail on gaming platforms through engaging virtual reality experiences, to gain awareness amongst the Gen Z and Early Millennial market and increase engagement with new and existing consumers.

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Figure 01. ‘The Value Proposition Canvas’ highlights how the Virtual Molly Goddard world campaigns products and services provide the perfect product-market fit to enhance the gains perceived by Gen Z and Early Millennial consumers, while simultaneously easing their pains. The campaign offers a multi-channel mixed reality retail experience that provides an interactive community and social space to ease the disconnect in the online retail environment for consumers, along with creating a space that allows for creative virtual escapism.

VALUE PROPOSITION CANVAS | 09

INTERNAL ANALYSIS | 10

BRA ND TIM ELIN E

2014

Hired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art to create merchandise for the Met Gala (Vogue, 2019)

2016 Won the British Emerging Talent Award at the 2016 Fashion Awards (McAlpine, 2018)

2017

The first Resort collection was shown at the V&A museum, the first exhibition to be hosted in the Sainsbury Gallery and selected as a finalist in the 2017 LVMH Prize (BoF, n.d.)

2018

Figure 02. This figure presents a brief move through the main highlights of the brand’s history

Initial label launch at a live runway show

Won the Vogue Designer Fashion Fund (British Fashion Council, 2018)

Menswear launch at the Autumn/Winter 2020, along with the e-commerce store (Stansfield, 2020)

2020

2019

2015

Second collection presented as a mock life-drawing class and got noticed by Dover Street Market where the first big order came to play (Vogue, 2015)

Launch of the first bridal collection of 12 dresses in November (Harper’s Bazaar, 2020)

ONSUME ANALYSIS

DEMOGRAPHICS PSYCHOGRAPHICS

Traditionally the target consumer for the brand are millennial women aged between 25 to 35 years of age. After the brand’s new autumn/winter 2020 range, however, the brand showcased its first menswear range, diving into the male demographic in the same outward manner as her initial female consumers.

The brand values center around reflecting ‘the reality of how women are today’ (McAlpine, 2018), capturing different personalities, bodies, and interests, and serving as a form of selfexpression for consumers.

The designer of Molly Goddard wanted the clothes to be fairly accessible to most with a reasonable income and for most age ranges too, hence the pricing ranging from £400 to £1200 (Conti, 2015). Therefore, a loyal consumer for the brand would sit at a higher paid role in the community, holding a senior role within their company. Thus socio-economically categorised in the type B grading category (National Readership Survey, 2021), with an ability to maintain their wealth throughout their lifetime.

Described as “straight-forward, uninhibited and comfortably overdressed”, the Molly Goddard consumer is unapologetically confident (L’Officiel, 2020).

Considering the uniqueness, the handmade element, and the attention-to-detail clothing of each of Molly Goddard’s pieces, the ideal consumers would also have a love and appreciation for the creative process.

The brand itself is fairly conscious about waste, appealing to the eco-conscious millennial market of today - ideal for consumers conscious about the environment. The consumer reflects a confident person who would prefer to simply ‘do what they want’ and wear what they want regardless of fashionability (Schneier, 2020).

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ONSUME ANALYSIS

GEOGRAPHICS BEHAVIOURAL

As the brand relies mainly on the online e-commerce aspect, the reach is international. The brand’s geographical market reach spans across many major countries, stocked in the UK, North America, Europe, Asia, Middle East, and Nigeria (Tan, 2019). The UK, the US, and Japan being the strongest and biggest markets (L’Officiel, 2020).

The Molly Goddard consumer would be someone with an eye for new trends, placing more value on quality than quantity, and willing to be spending more money on durable and fashionable products.

Cities in these large countries are what accept the wild style of Molly Goddard and as such, the consumers of the brand would mainly reside in central urban city landscapes, most of which are filled with rising fashionistas, trendsetters, and socialists.

In accordance with their disposable income, the ideal consumer would not consider the price of the products as an issue and would greatly value the individuality of each piece.

The brand collections are also held in some of the world’s largest stockists, such as Dover Street Market, Browns, Comme De Garcons, Matches, etc. widening the global reach extensively (BoF, n.d.).

When analysing the brand’s Instagram, the similar accounts subscribed to by their followers are bold luxury brands such as Simone Rocha, Alexander McQueen, and Vivienne Westwood (Molly Goddard, 2021). This suggests that their consumers tend to appreciate luxury fashion and are loyal customers to these luxury brands.

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SUSIE LAU

LOUISE CHEN

Age: 32

Age: 25

Occupation: Blogger, Social Media Influencer figure

Occupation: DJ, party promoter, and producer

Income: £40,000 - £62,500

Income: £30,000- £40,000 a year

Hobbies: Loves journalism, travelling, and writing about fashion media, interesting people, and exhibitions. Enjoys spending time with her daughter and baking.

Hobbies: Hosts radio shows to showcase the full range of her taste while hosting famous creative guests (MixMag, 2020). Loves collecting records and being able to share her creativity online with fans.

Preferences/Lifestyle: Has a genuine passion for fashion and loves supporting ‘indie designers’ such as Simone Rocha, Molly Goddard, and Marine Serre (Farra, 2019). Enjoys educating her audience about international Chinese fashion and the culture behind the aesthetic.

TAR GET CON SUM ER

Preferences/Lifestyle: Believes that this is the time to connect with your inner self and focus on your mental and physical being. Enjoys the occasional workouts as mood boosters, along with reading autobiographical or self-help books to educate herself about the situation that everyone is living in. Believes in supporting the underground scene and local businesses instead of big fast fashion corporations. Describes herself as a ‘cute tomboy’ but gives ‘girly’ a go, her favourite designers are Prada, Lemaire, JW Anderson, Molly Goddard, etc. (Vogue, 2020)

Figure 03. This figure takes into account the demographics of the Molly Goddard consumers and presents them in concise profiles, derived from the brand’s existing consumers.

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Figure 04. Brand Identity Prism (Kapferer, 2009). To understand what makes Molly Goddard an eponymous brand in the luxury fashion industry, the matrix analyses the key elements of what makes up a strong brand identity considering their significance between company and consumer.

BRAND PRISM

Physique

Relationship

Reflection

Molly Goddard has always maintained bold and vivid designs in the physicality of the products recognised in her work, known for the hand-crafted techniques of ‘hand pleating, smocking and crocheting’ (BoF, 2018), however, the iconic ‘puffball frocks smocked in coloured tulle’ is the most popular brand association (Thawley, 2019).

Molly Goddard’s brand, with her creative background, was initially created with the innovators and early adopters in mind. However, after the display of products through celebrities such as Rihanna and Adwoa Aboah and features in popular shows such as ‘Killing Eve’, the distribution has the potential to shift to the early majority consumers. The brand presents a sort of feminist narrative where the designer encourages the feminine products to be worn ironically by strong characters, such as when consumers wore the iconic pink tulle Villanelle dress for Halloween costumes (Pithers, 2019).

While the clothes that the brand presents have had a sense of femininity to them, the styling is where consumers can adapt and make the outfit truly their own and that is what the designer intended. The iconic pieces are styled in an infinite amount of ways by her many loyal consumers and Goddard mentions how it is difficult to define the ideal customer style as it’s a real mix of inspiration and innovation (Net-A-Porter, 2020).

Consumers now are more attentive towards the culture and principles laid out by the brand and the brand values, with 39% of US consumers admitting to actively researching company values to make sure they align with personal beliefs (Buller and Josephs, 2021). Whilst the brand values have previously practiced glamour and fun, their recent collections contain a conscious effort to think more sustainably, sharing transparency about the fabrics used and where they were sourced in an effort to value the environment (Wightman-Stone, 2021).

Molly Goddard tends to create such iconic pieces that the brand does not have one image to which the consumers can view themselves as, the designs and inspirations behind her fashion are ever-changing and explains in an interview how she wants the wearers of the brand to feel ‘happy, comfortable and confident’ (Vogue, 2020). With the recent political and social climate being sombre, the brand decided to stand firm by creating joyful and exciting clothes that ultimately act as mood boosters for consumers. Goddard quoted, during the pandemic, that despite people wearing tracksuits while working from home, everyone on the team wore dresses to work every day (Net-A-Porter, 2020). The brand embodies confidence and consistency, therefore, allowing consumers to view their own identity as such. A previous consumer described the products as ’wearing a feeling’ (Israel, 2016), building on a surreal, fantasy sense.

Molly Goddard has ‘her models express attitude and personality...the models are lively, expressive, creating a sense of ownership’ (Hopley-Jones, 2017). Goddard’s shows are one of the key points where the exciting personality of the brand and designer comes out through the atmosphere and models, from mock life-drawing classes to pop-up sandwich factories during the runway shows, the brand fashion show is all about showcasing a more true identity to consumers. Described by people as the ‘master of the unexpected’ her shows, similar to the clothes, are meant to ‘be about having fun’ (Israel, 2016).

Personality

Culture

Self-Image | 15

NEW

EXISTING

Market Penetration Strategy

Product Development Strategy

Market Development Strategy

Diversification Strategy

MARKETS

EXISTING

NEW

PRODUCTS

CURRENT STRATEGY Molly Goddard utilises their market penetration strategies including earned influencer marketing and the use of their e-commerce store as means for consumers to ‘click and enquire’, an attempt to provide information and receive feedback (Another Mag, 2020). This provided another personalised touchpoint for the brands’ consumers. With 286,000 followers on Instagram (2021) the brand has used collaborations, such as UGG x Molly Goddard (UGG.com, 2021), and product placement to their strength, with no use of paid marketing on their platforms. The brand also largely gained its traction in 2019 through the cameo of their pink tulle dress on Killing Eve, the BBC tv series, signifying a major pop-culture moment and opening up the demographic to the Early Majority consumers. These strategies, along with the intricate, creative, one-of-a-kind products have helped strengthen Molly Goddard’s consumer relationships and expand the market reach.

Figure 05. Ansoff Matrix (Ansoff, 1957)

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TOWS ANALYSIS Figure 06. TOWS matrix. After taking into account external industry factors against the internal brand analysis, the TOWS matrix distinguishes the strengths and weaknesses in the brand’s management and environmental factors to provide a strategic range of opportunities and threats for the brand (Molly Goddard) to utilise (Weihrich, 1982).

STRENGTHS

- Since the start of the brand, the unique products have gained a lot of traction through product placement; after which the brand sales rose by 85% (Pithers, 2019). - The E-commerce store has been fully set up with the intent of having a space where consumers could enquire about products, encouraging awareness for custom-made products (Another Mag, 2020). - Working mainly with manufacturers in Europe has allowed the brand to create a pre-collection during the pandemic (Net-A-Porter, 2020). Building a strong community of factories and people has given the brand a strong trusting relationship with its production team, reducing limitations. - Her fashion shows are created with such an intimate setting in mind and presented in an incredibly unique way each time that they are described as a very ‘craft-based’ approach (V&A, 2020). Her shows are ‘engaging and imaginative’ (Finnigan, 2021)

OPPORTUNITIES - With the recent menswear launch in 2020, there is an opportunity in the market to raise awareness for the male market, especially with the small launch having a big impact (Esquire, 2020). - Collaborating with other big fashion labels, with a bigger focus on accessories, such as UGG gained awareness for both brands towards the young millennial market and their interest in comfort (VogueBusiness, 2020). - Their recent step into becoming more open during interviews about their manufacturing process targeted the eco-conscious consumers of today, with 71% of consumer saying they ‘would be willing to change shopping habits for brands that provide transparency’ (WGSN, 2021)

THREATS - With the expansion of more independent younger designers launching their small businesses with lower prices, the brand has increased competition. Creating a gap in the relationship between brand and consumer. Especially with younger consumers making a conscious effort to help local businesses that appear more authentic and creative (see consumer profile 2). - Consumers putting more weight on comfort and casual attire due to the pandemic and work from home situations could be putting Molly Goddards’ whimsical styles off-trend.

S/O The recent transparency with the supply and manufacturing of Molly Goddard products could lead to targeting the more eco-conscious consumers of today. WGSN states that 73% of consumers value the traceability of products as an important part of their purchase decision (wgsn, 2021). Taking into consideration the Pareto - 80/20 rule (Pareto, 1906) using their e-store to have more information about the supply chain of each product would increase sales revenue between spending consumers, convincing the loyal consumers to purchase more often through providing transparency.

S/T Molly Goddard consumers, already being used to the fast-paced, unparalleled nature of the brand’s runways, will need an engaging medium to showcase the coming collections in order to stand out from the rising competition and keep up the standard of being unexpected. To captivate the current younger target market in the luxury world, uniqueness and the need for speed are essential, and making use of the recent developing world of digital fashion and VR would do just that for the brand. VR and gaming provides an opportunity for brands to directly communicate with consumers, creating a relationship for engagement and the technology provides the space for innovation (WGSN, 2019)

WEAKNESSES - Lack of engagement through sharing and commenting on social media channels such as Instagram and Youtube. Through analysing their Instagram profile, there is minimal engagement through comment with the average amount of comments on each post being 10-15, despite having 289k followers (Molly Goddard, 2021) - Still quite a young designer brand without a strong customer loyalty approach and a lack of long history considering the luxury brand outlook. - lack of recognition within the younger market and outside of the fashion industry, primary research showed that only 27.8% of 18-24-year-olds knew of the brand name (refer to survey results in Appendix 1). - Although the initial step into menswear was taken, the collection is very limited and was created out of a personal request of close relationships (Vogue, 2020), with not much information available on expansion.

W/O By utilising the power of marketing and the recent influx of people using social media to their advantage, the brand could gain increased engagement for their male market that is at a disadvantage currently. The opportunity lies in the long-term changes in marketing using the 60/40 rule of 60% of investing into brand building and 40% towards short-term activations (WGSN, 2021) that will assist in building a stronger relationship with their new, emerging market of younger consumer and male consumers.

W/T

Without a loyal consistent purchasing consumer base, the rising younger competition, and the current economic recession - the brand could tackle this issue by introducing paying through installments. Similar to higher price point brands such as Story MFG utilising Quadpay, by allowing consumers to shop online but pay in installments postpurchase (Quadpay, 2021)

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RODUC

In order to review the brand’s competitive strategies, the consumer journey and current brand offerings, the 7P’s of marketing will be analysed over the next several pages.

The Molly Goddard products are very distinguishable, unique and bold designs. Due to the handcrafted nature of the items and a focus on ‘fabric research’ (BoF, 2019), the brand produces complex, extravagant products. Sourcing of fabrics for products is fairly exclusive and researched well by the brand, and recent developments have led to increased transparency of their manufacturing process, mainly sourcing from the UK, Italy, and Portugal (Hodin, n.d.). There is also little to no mass production for the brand as the emphasis is on better quality and smaller quantities (Schneier, 2020). After the effects of the pandemic postponing weddings globally, Goddard saw an opportunity to create made-to-order dresses for brides for their last-minute weddings (Pithers, 2020). The exclusive nature of each gown being designed, specifically and with incredible detail, for each bride fits perfectly into the brands’ ethos, whilst simultaneously filling a gap in the bridal wear market.

£280

PLACE

PRICE

The custom-made pieces and bridal wear collections are primarily held on the brand e-commerce site, however, the other principal stock can be found at major well-known luxury stockists such as Browns, MATCHES, Net-A-Porter, and others across the UK, Europe, Asia, North America, Nigeria, and the Middle East (Financial Times, 2020).

£5109

The price for most products, including collaborations, ranges from £280 - £5,109, subjective to the brands’ made-to-order and runway pieces. The accessories range towards the slightly more affordable side, with the runway pieces from past season collections sold at a reduced price after a certain period. Farfetch (2021), Vestiaire Collective and a few other fashion retailers provide sale prices for last-chance pieces.

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ROMOTIO

PAID

The majority of the brand’s promotions stem from owned and earned media which makes it appear as though there is less interest in the marketing of their products. However, netnographic SEO research revealed that many of the paid searches still feature Molly Goddard products, through the websites of other large fashion retailers stocking the brand. This provides a cost-effective option for the brand but may limit their audience reach to their e-commerce store.

OWNED

The Molly Goddard website provides access to sign up for their newsletter, however, there is minimal advertising of this feature across their other platforms. Additionally, the emails are extremely sporadic and the content focuses primarily on the promotion of new launches and products (see Appendix 3), less so on emotive marketing which is a missed opportunity to target their millennial audience who value email communications that showcase personalisation and builds intimate relationships (WGSN, 2018). Matches Fashion provides insight into the label updates through their website where consumers can sign up for updates for specific designers and their latest arrivals (MatchesFashion, 2021) (see Appendix 3). Their Instagram also promotes the opening of any physical stores stocking the label, which is an essential tool to make their audience aware of the brands physical touchpoints, such as the Dover Street Market’s Molly Goddard section (Molly Goddard, 2021) (as seen in the page above).

EARNED

The brand has strong relationships with high-profile individuals within the celebrity industry, such as Edie Campbell, Rihanna, and model Adwoa Aboah, all of whom proclaim their love for the designer online (McAlpine, 2018). Rihanna’s appearance, in Molly Goddard products, is also significantly responsible for the increased interest of the US market in the brand (Vogue, 2019). Influencers have also worn the iconic dresses in music videos, for street-style shots as well as to a Golden Globes ceremony (Rosamund Pike) (Forbes, 2021). Video interviews, fashion publications and fashion studios hosted by companies, such as SHOWstudio, Matches Fashion, Vogue, and V&A Museum, have provided increased brand awareness and audience reach for Molly Goddard. The cameo of their pink tulle dress on Killing Eve, the BBC tv series, and the promotion of the show that came after caused the dress to gain major popularity globally (Vogue, 2019). Furthermore, the photogenic aesthetic of the Dover Street Market display encourages their younger millennial audience to post their experiences on social media - translating to User Generated Content for the brand.

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PROCESS Their ‘enquire to buy’ e-commerce store ensures a personal interaction with the brand and consumer, allowing them to engage easier with their audience and gather feedback through customer service fields (Newbold, 2020).

Their social media platforms (Instagram and Facebook) also provide opportunities to interact with consumers through comments and gain further insight into the online consumer journey. Furthermore, the news of new products and collections reach consumers through their email newsletter, along with any brand strategy developments through trusted fashion publication articles, promoting consumer desire.

PEOPLE The internal environment of Molly Goddard is not very publicised as it is a privately owned company and according to the Business of Fashion (2021) the number of employees ranges from 2 - 10. The team works very closely together, especially through the pandemic, to create the SS21 collection (Pithers, 2020).

As seen on their Instagram, often the designer’s family takes up part of the team, with Molly Goddard’s sister and mother assisting with collection launches (see Appendix 3). The brand also works with major consultants to stay consistent with their brand values and identity, especially important for such independent luxury designer brands (Forbes, 2019).

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HYSICA VIDENC

Figure 07. NOW Gallery x Molly Goddard exhibit (NOW Gallery, 2016)

The Dover Street Market space reserved for Molly Goddard provides a visual physical aesthetic to the brand, providing an offline touchpoint for consumers. Other physical touchpoints for the brand include the Molly Goddard live fashion shows and the interactive exhibitions, such as the collaboration with NOW Gallery (see figure 07) where the audience was encouraged to interact with the exhibition (NOW Gallery, 2016), allowing consumers to appreciate the brand’s creative process.

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EXTERNAL ANALYSIS | 23

SIZE & MARKET Across the US, UK, France, Australia, Netherlands, and Germany the buying power of the Gen Z market is predicted to rise to $3.1 trillion (WGSN, 2021). Since this market’s purchasing demands are increasing exponentially, luxury brands need to target this demographic now to truly understand their complex demand drivers.

Whilst currently the Gen Z demographic has a lower purchase rate than even Early Millennials, they have an extremely dominant influence in the fashion market and how fast the luxury market evolves (Forbes, 2019).

McKinsey & Co. (2020) specifies, approximately 28% of consumers, most of which constitute Gen Z and Millenials, expect to purchase more online than in physical stores as a result of the pandemic, giving all the more importance for brands to develop their online consumer touchpoints.

Globally Gen Z makes up about 20% of the world’s population, giving them their own consumer buying power and their incredibly influencing impact on trends (BoF, 2020) In 2019, a study was conducted in the UK by Forbes that highlights the significance of Millennials and Gen Z in the luxury market. This demographic currently represents about 32% of investment in the luxury market, however, they are expected to reach a rising 50% by the year 2025 (Forbes, 2019).

DEMOGRAPHICS The surge in interest towards the digital world for the Early Millennials and Gen Z has also been influenced by their feelings towards sustainability. Especially with 41% of the demographic holding brands and companies responsible in their efforts to do what’s good for the planet (Mintel, 2020). This has already shown its effects in the luxury market, with 241,000 tons of carbon dioxide being released due to fashion shows and wholesale fashion purchasing process, the digitisation of fashion weeks has significantly cut down the carbon footprint (LSN Global, 2020).

Afterpay’s Nick Molnar shares that, brands focusing on engagement and building relationships over promoting commerce would ‘create trust and a sustained period of relevance’ in the Gen Z market, (BoF, 2020).

To engage the attention of the Gen Z market, it is essential for brands to favour humour for content and aim for ‘fun’ over exciting and romantic for post-pandemic marketing (WGSN, 2021).

The digital acceleration of today is a relevant demand driver for the Gen Z target, where individuals are enthralled by the endless blissful escapism and creative possibilities of what digital platforms offer (WGSN, 2021).

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TRE ND DRI VER S

IN CULTURE

IN SOCIETY

Virtual Lives

Metaverse

Since lockdown measures came into place and individuals became accustomed to physical separation, the need for ‘escapism and improved technology’ is all the more relevant in consumer lives that are now seeking more satisfying digital experiences (Mintel, 2020).

The Metaverse is known as a shared digital realm that drives design and culture, a space that can connect third-platform services and places - an ‘ultimate convergence of digital and physical reality’ (WGSN, 2020).

Furthermore, the pandemic has accelerated the innovation of new technological behaviours where digital content consumption is on the rise and approximately, on average, ‘six hours and 59 minutes’ are spent daily on the consumption of global online content (LSN Global, 2021).

This system provides the ultimate opportunity for brands to provide engagement for consumers in real-time across multiple platforms and provide interactive content.

The Tech Paradox There has been a developing digital transformation in the last few years where opportunities, new tools, and innovations providing inclusivity and accessibility are emerging to reach the full potential of people’s lives connecting through technology (WGSN, 2020). A Mintel report states the increase in daily usage of technological products by Gen Z consumers since COVID-19, especially due to media consumption and education (Mintel, 2020). This tech paradox has brought about a subset of people that make up approximately 23% of the total audience that spends five times as much money on e-commerce than other users (BoF, 2020)

Boredom Boom Being stuck at home has triggered an emotional response from Gen Z as many of them try to battle keeping themselves entertained. Many have turned to social media engulfing their lives and apps such as TikTik to romanticize online lives. However, this boredom boom has encouraged more creativity of the internet with the consumers adopting alter identities online and role-playing characters across platforms with millennial and Gen Z consumers having driven up GameStop stock prices, disrupting the industry (WGSN, 2021)

Mintel predictions, for what happens next in virtual lives, shows the rise of digital events in digital universes that will eventually replace offline events, providing a more accessible, engaging, and enjoyable experience for online audiences across the world (Mintel, 2020)

Gaming The virtual world of gaming has also brought about a modern form of online communications for brands and consumers. LSN Global (2021) reiterates the rise of an era of immersive and interactive virtual exploration becoming a fundamental social hub for consumers, a place where individuals are spending their time and money. Multiplayers games available online provide even more engagement for consumers, becoming part of their social lives. With millions of people being involved in gaming and the technology improving exponentially, the gaming world becomes an extension of the real world, providing a prime market for other industries such as fashion brands to enter (BoF, 2021). Live streaming platforms are now part of the mainstream, allowing consumers to experience and engage in real-time - a Twitch stream before the US election attracted 435,000 viewers, such platforms have such an extensive reach that this could be another key area for other industries to enter. Although the massive spark in gaming rose due to the pandemic, approximately 40% of new gamers have said that they will maintain their gaming streak and continue to play - with the Future of Gaming report stating that 52% of gamers play for social reasons, 44% for escapism and 33% for shared moments (WGSN, 2021).

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TRE ND DRI VER S

IN RETAIL Experience

The online digital world has made experience available to the vast majority, and as the markets continue to be detached, there is a drive for escapism and shared digital experiences - to 34% of consumers in the UK an online app used to experience a virtual exhibition would appeal to them (Mintel, 2020). Brands that connect consumers and bring joy and entertainment, during the challenging times brought by the pandemic, will have a big impact on brand and consumer interaction in retail (Mintel, 2020). Retail, now, is considered the last aspect where brands can cement the consumer connections that should already have been built through Direct-To-Consumer online marketing and wholesale.

Virtual Fashion The demand for audio-visual stimulation for consumers is towering at the moment with the stores and runways being restricted. With 67% of adults in the UK valuing experiences more than material possessions, the need for brands to move to the worlds of virtual fashion to provide more fresh and experiential ways to encounter new collections is essential (Mintel, 2020). The endless possibilities of directions that immersive VR in the fashion world would provide an opportunity for brands to take consumers on the journey behind collections. This would allow the exploration of a more narrative take, completely reimagining the live show experience and revolutionising how the fashion industry communicates (FIA, 2020).

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VALUE OF EXPERIENCE By creating a memorable experience, through engagement, personalised service, and storytelling, early on in the consumer touchpoint journey, brands will be creating a stronger foundation (BoF, 2021).

THER ELATED REND

WGSN predicts that we will see more brands merging in-game experiences to IRL entertainment to provide an all-around connective customer experience for the Gen Z market, with research from Oxford supporting the benefits of gaming in the younger community, helping their mental health through virtual social relationships (WGSN, 2021). The experience of connecting with online communities through shared identities and shared passions appeals to 86% of the Gen Z community (LSN Global, 2021) with society accepting the akin nature of the internet. A Forbes article describes how ‘Gen Z consider their digital avatars an extension of themselves’ hence explaining the reasoning behind their want for unique experiences and individuality (Forbes, 2021). Virtual stores and showrooms are also an inventive mode for luxury brands to differentiate themselves from the competition, along with adding a more immersive online experience. Whilst offline engagement is still relevant after the social distancing effects of the pandemic, a virtual experience allows for a new display of creativity and a more ‘serendipitous discovery’ for consumers - key for increasing engagement through positive and joyful experiences (Marian, 2020). This experience is solidified by ‘bringing a personal touch back to a digital world’ from the merging of physical and digital experiences, with 86% of online shoppers preferring to interact with a human in order to build trust and relationships with brands (BoF, 2020).

DEMOGRAPHICS The Early Millennial and Gen Z consumers, after watching and experiencing the current Covid-crisis, their spending and consumption is an ‘expression of identity’ where they are more interested in the story behind products and the brand (BoF, 2020). A general market survey concluded that 57.1% of 18-24-year-olds value the experience of a brand and the interactions with them more than the products (see Appendix 2); communicating and connecting with brands will remain most important and feel most comfortable for them

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UTURE ONSUME

JOYSEEKER The chaotic, emotionally draining events of 2020 have given way to a new demographic of joy-seeking consumers that are looking to treat themselves in little luxuries, searching for moments of happiness and escapism. These consumers are looking to spend their income on brands that uplift them and make them feel positive about the future. Brands will benefit from gaining loyalty from these consumers, by allowing them to regain a sense of control of their life and provide fun, cheerful experiences (WGSN, 2020). Experiential e-commerce and immersive online experiences will bring a sense of excitement and discovery to their consumer online journeys. The interactive and inclusive ways of the online commerce experience are one of the more appealing aspects of the rise in technology for the joy seekers, focusing more on engagement with brands driving their interests. The escapism demand driver for these consumers translates to the makings of digital identities that comprise around 3.5 billion individuals with more than 55% of purchasing power (Forbes, 2021). This brings about a new way for luxury brands to market to consumers through Direct-to-Avatar business models that target social virtual environments. These consumers are also concerned about affairs of authenticity, exclusivity, and the environment (Forbes, 2021).

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Figure 08. PESTEL Analysis. Due to the uncertainties brought about by the Global Pandemic, Brexit and other cultural activism movements, the fashion industry has been at an ever-changing state with varying trends and demand drivers. These external environmental factors will be considered in the PESTEL analysis, along with consideration into the impact of these factors on the brand, to strategically evaluate the macro trend of the Gen Z and Early Millennial consumers.

IMPACT

ISSUE

Political

PESTEL ANALYSIS Economical

Social

Due to Brexit officially being at play, according to the British Fashion Council (2021), some new checks and procedures are being introduced at the borders between the UK and the EU that will lead to additional costs in doing business in Europe. Furthermore, there is a lack of clarity in the fashion industry around short-term work visas and the effects of Covid on gathering for promotional events like fashion weeks (Vogue, 2020).

According to the Financial Times (2021), the world’s largest economies reside in the US, India, China, Japan and Germany. Since, traditionally, in the fashion industry brands pay suppliers weeks to months after delivery, suppliers were at risk after the impact of the pandemic. Major fashion brands cancelled orders and stopped payments for already placed orders. In Bangladesh, about 1089 garment factories have had cancelled orders, causing them around $1.5 billion in losses (Fashion Revolution, 2021).

The future of retail and shopping is on the change and brands are required to offer more creative experiences to build trusting relationships with consumers. The shoppers forecast for 2021 predicts the advance of highly immersive online experiences that bring a sense of surprise and discovery for consumers giving them more reason to invest in brands in a time of recession (WGSN, 2021)

Due to most of the supply and manufacture for the brand Molly Goddard coming from parts of the UK and the EU, it will mean a longer delivery time for consumers and higher costs for certain material supplies. According to their website, EU customers will be subjected to VAT and import duty when buying non-EU products (MollyGoddard.com, 2021). The brand will have to put extra focus on their processes to ensure that the rates and delivery rates do not increase exponentially for consumers.

Molly Goddard was directly affected by the major retailers cancelling their orders due to the pandemic, and with a 90% wholesale model, the annual doubling turnover of the brand since 2016 will not be seen for the end of 2020. (Financial Times, 2020). Due to this drawback at the start of 2020, the designer decided to shrink the budget for main collections and focus on the more commercial pre-collection pieces.

Since the brand mainly operates online, with no physical space of their own, it will need to find more creative, engaging ways to reach this new prediction of retail. Whilst the brand is recently gaining traction, due to the pop-culture moment of starring in a BBC series, it is important to respond to these social changes in a way that does not lose their brand identity as a niche luxury designer.

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PESTEL ANALYSIS

ISSUE

Technological In an attempt to reach the younger consumers and remain relevant the fashion industry is going through many technological shifts. The customer journey is focused on elevating customer engagement and deepening community relationships. The way in which consumers consume fashion has been completely transformed by technologies such as VR and AI, with 1 in 5 shoppers valuing AR in stores in demand for phygital shopping experiences (LSN Global, 2021).

IMPACT

Since the pandemic, the online gaming and streaming traffic has been on an incline, Verizon has noted a 75% gaming traffic rise, with a 10% increase for Twitch and Youtube Gaming views by 15% in March (WGSN, 2020).

Currently luxury is available to 1% of the population, however, through the virtual world, the reach could be for the rest of the 99% (LSN Global, 2020). Although Molly Goddard has mainly operated online, they are yet to utilise the technologies of today available to the luxury market to remain relevant to their target consumers. Since more millennials, now than ever, are involved in the latest technologies and gaming as part of their daily routine.

Environmental With eco-anxiety reaching new heights, 67% of consumers globally are extremely anxious about the impact of climate change on the plant (WGSN, 2021). Mintel reports state that people have become more ethical towards the environment and people, and the effects of Covid-19 have increased consumer demand for brands showcasing a transparent supply chain. 2 in 5 consumers care about where their fashion products come from, with brands that showcase sustainability causing 35% more consumers (Mintel, 2020).

Although the brand does not operate through their own physical retail space, the internet can be responsible for 3% of global carbon emissions, e-warriors online have heightened environmental concerns about packaging and the retail experience (WGSN, 2020). This is an advantage for Molly Goddard, a brand that does not produce extremely commercialised products and has recently been increasingly transparent about their supply chain.

Legal

The UK has banned all large public gatherings (GOV.UK, 2021) in an attempt to limit the spread of the virus, effects of which will be played out until the end of 2021 at the very least.

Due to this, the reliance that Molly Goddard has on live fashion runway shows to interact and engage with their audience has been hindered. There is a need to be more creative and replace this loss in engagement elsewhere.

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ASE STUD UCCI

The spike in gaming in 2020 has led to luxury brands such as Gucci and Glossier collaborating with Animal Crossing by releasing in-game apparel, an interactive island, or even editable outfits for users. In early 2020, a Gucci Guilty virtual island was launched on the game Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Ong, 2021), a new version of the popular Nintendo Switch game that gained an enormous amount of traction during the pandemic.

The brand worked with three content creators, known in the gaming community, to help design the interactive island. Gucci launched this island in collaboration with the launch of the new Gucci Guilty scent release, with the key scents presented on the island in an orchid, with the setting juxtaposed similar to that of the Gucci Guilty campaign video. GG island portrays the iconic brand aesthetics while providing fun, interactive games, special content and takeaways products for players to enjoy.

Engagement was the purpose rooted behind the event, and by creating a buzz after the launch through a walk-through tutorial featured on one of the creators, namely LexPlay’s, channel with her huge following. Along with another creator taking to Twitch for a Livestream tutorial on the multi-player functions for the mini-games (Khoo, 2021). These videos helped encourage more consumers to download and interact with the brand, through the game. Players could also share their Gucci-inspired outfits on their avatars through social media, providing them with increased engagement and drawing attention to their capital items.

Figure 09. Gucci Island x Animal Crossing (Ong, 2021)

ASE STUD IA

After the fashion shows in 2020 being forced online, The Fabric of Reality was launched in collaboration with RYOT at the virtual Museum of Other Realities (MOR).

This fully immersive fashion show provided unique experiences and was targeted to take the audience on a journey exploring the narrative and story behind each collection (FIA, 2021). Simply being online does not provide the same excitement as a physical show for consumers and there is much more creativity that can be explored through virtual environments showcasing fashion.

Through utilising this technology and creativity, the digital event provided an extremely immersive and interactive online experience. It allowed the creators to narrate their stories and express the emotional reality of each self-contained universe. By allowing the audience to attend the launch event in VR and online aspects, the company provided creative awareness for the studio and catered to the next-gen experiences and brought an increased ROI for the year after. After the event, the majority of attendees said they understood (90%) and respected (84%) the designers better (Campaign Experience Awards, 2021).

Figure 10. FIA Fabric of Reality Show (FIA, 2021)

BARGAINING POWER OF SUPPLIERS LOW Molly Goddard has a close relationship with their suppliers, as the majority of the production reins in the UK. Due to this closeness, the brand has a high bargaining power to source good rates and ensure reliance. Although the pandemic has proved that despite the small team and effects of Brexit, the brand has still managed to launch their SS20 and SS21 collections. The main challenges for the small team, however, come from bringing items in from the EU and shipping out of the UK (Finnagan, 2021).

COMPETITIVE INDUSTRY RIVALRY THREAT OF NEW ENTRANT HIGH Amid the pandemic there have been rises in small businesses supporting more independent creatives emerging in the industry, along with companies rebranding to leverage shifting competition there is a need to stand out in the crowd (WGSN, 2021). Consumers are becoming more aware of where their money is going thus independent designers with lower pricing will be targeting the same market as Molly Goddard, putting the brand at a threat.

MODERATE The digitisation of luxury fashion has already influenced many brands, such as Gucci and Balenciaga, especially with consumers using the digital world and gaming as ‘a space for selfexpression’ (LSN Global, 2020). By entering the virtual world and utilising the new technological innovations of VR and gaming, the brand will be rising with the competition and attracting the younger generations that have incredible influential power in the fashion industry, as mentioned in the evaluation of the Gen Z and Millennial market previously. With the combination of the unparalleled, distinct designs of the brand and the immersive world of the digital universe the brand could differentiate itself from current and future competition and threats.

THREAT OF SUBSTITUTES LOW The brand produces such exclusive and exceptional designs that have often caught the eye of high street fashion stores, such as ASOS, Pretty Little Thing, who replicate simpler versions of the products after major collection drops (Dutton, 2021). Nonetheless, the already loyal consumers buy into the brand due to the values and designer, not just the products. Therefore primary research revealed that the threat comes from a majority of Gen Z and Millennials not being aware of the brand (see Appendix 2) and therefore, buying into high street brands. By focusing on community marketing, Molly Goddard can differentiate themselves to their new audience.

BARGAINING POWER OF BUYERS MODERATE Molly Goddard consumers treat the products as creative artistic pieces, therefore, they have an established loyal following for their one-of-a-kind pieces and attracting fierce and feminine women that are certain of their purchase decisions (Dacre, 2020). The brand only occasionally provides discounts through retailers and thus, the consumer does not have much bargaining power in that sense. However, with the rising new competition in the fashion industry, the brand needs to prioritise consumer engagement to maintain loyalty.

Figure 11. The Porter’s 5 Forces (2008) table evaluates the competitive factors within the industry to determine the best long-term profitability strategy for Molly Goddard, the strengths and weaknesses of each element, and how the brand could benefit from pursuing the technological trend in the Gen Z and Early Millennial market.

PORTER’S 5 FORCES

ANALYSE

BASIC NEEDS Fulfill the consumer desire for escapism through immersive experiences. Increase sense of community and connection, addressing social needs through social interactive content. Accessing both innovation and style within one brand. Providing creative formats for brand interactions, increasing loyalty. Creates excitement through the use of new technologies and remaining relevant with new generations. Providing freedom in the virtual worlds, that showcases the narrative behind the brand.

DRIVERS OF CHANGE

INNOVATION POTENTIAL

As the offline and online lives of consumers are becoming increasingly blurred, fashion has been pushed to collaborate with the virtual world to cater to the wider audience in which instance luxury fashion could be available for everyone and become less democratised.

The innovation will take advantage of the interactive and immersive ways of the gaming world, providing the perfect format for attracting the younger generations and the consumers that value experiences and the act of doing something, rather than the product. By providing experiences online, the brand can encourage engagement and awareness in the Gen Z and Early Millennial market and has the advantage of reducing waste by having virtual fashion features.

2020 has been the year of emotional acceleration where, amongst the heavy-hitting news across multiple online platforms, consumers have struggled to process emotions. Due to these emotional states, consumers are looking for experiences that enhance mood and uplift through optimism and by providing a new appreciation of communities.

APPLY

With the trends of sustainability being on the minds of consumers, the aspect of virtual clothes that has a significantly lesser carbon footprint is extremely appealing to the younger generations. These technologies are targeted to reimagine what consumers know as fashion in the digital era (TrendHunter, 2021). The gaming landscape, emerging from the concepts of escapism, has become a format for digital aesthetic identity and expression where brands are now providing access to digital garments that have been allowing consumers to extend their physical identities to their digital selves (LSN Global, 2020).

The brand could utilise their large following online to create a sense of community and encourage new and loyal consumers already aware of the brand, to embrace this new mode of communication whilst engaging and providing social experiences to boost their morale. Furthermore, this could be the ideal method to communicate the brand and designer’s narrative to the younger generations in a meaningful way that is captivating yet collective.

EMERGING CONSUMER EXPECTATIONS

INSPIRATION

WHO

Creativity through innovation is now an expectation for consumers, with multiple brands across the industry already maximising their technological potentials this leaves much competition for others. This creativity through the virtual world will make for vivid, unforgettable experiences for consumers that will translate to higher engagement for brands.

Gen Z and Early Millennial consumers are those that are seeking joy in their lives through the value of experiences as a key demand driver.

Consumers expect brands to consider their emotions and need for forming close relationships in this time of disconnect. Forming communities are essential to maintain the mental and physical wellbeing of individuals and brands that should look to replicate this sense of security for consumers.

Figure 12. Consumer Trend Canvas (Trendwatching.com, 2021). This table allows the analysis of current consumer trend drivers shaping the industry and concludes the external analysis section by uncovering how Molly Goddard could utilise these evaluations to discover innovation opportunities that would benefit the brand from entering the market.

This innovation will also appeal to the Gen Z conscious consumers that realise the carbon footprint left by the fashion industry, their endless physical runway, and industry events and believe in the benefits of digital fashion. This consumer group is educated about the benefits of technology and expects brands to engage interactively and creatively in the virtual world adopting new innovations, targeting the ‘early adopters’ market of the Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations curve.

CONSUMER TREND CANVAS

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STRATEGY SUMMARY | 35

PROPOSED STRATEGY This proposed strategy will cultivate a strategic marketing campaign that utilises a multichannel approach, combining the interactive technologies of VR, experiential marketing, community, and the virtual gaming world to appeal to the Gen Z and Early Millennial consumers and preposition the brand of Molly Goddard. The campaign will run over 16 weeks, slowly introducing the new innovations that will be used by the brand whilst building a stronger community experience. The brand will use both digital and physical experiences to create a more immersive and joyful experience that can help promote the brand to a younger audience and create an engaging environment for new and loyal consumers. Furthermore, it will be developing itself as a more technological brand, conscious of the new emerging consumer demands of community, the world of fashion, and gaming. The campaign will be in collaboration with CLO, a 3-d fashion software programming company, influencer in-game avatar collaborations, and the game Fortnite to offer a highly stimulating and captivating virtual showroom where consumers can interact with each other and the brand. The collaboration, with the most popular celebrity consumers of the brand, will release a weekly sneak-peek into the new season collection showcased in the game, providing a space of community, optimism, and escape from reality. The brands’ newsletter will be another educational space to narrate the story of the brand for consumers and create interaction before the launch. Consumers will be encouraged to join the mailing list for exclusive playtime with the designer herself in the virtual world and learn more about her story. The virtual showcase collaboration for Molly Goddard aims to promote the digital future of fashion, the value of experience, and the feel of community through alluring experiences that encourage brand awareness, consumer engagement, and customer relationships. Moreover, the campaign strives to reposition Molly Goddard as an innovative, visionary brand and expand its market reach by creating engaging brand associations for the Gen Z and Early Millennial consumer.

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NEW

EXISTING

Market Penetration Strategy

Product Development Strategy

Market Development Strategy

Diversification Strategy

MARKETS

EXISTING

NEW

PRODUCTS

ANSOFF MATRIX This strategic development proposal builds on market development and market penetration strategies that target potential and existing markets by initiating an experiential and immersive campaign.

Figure 13. Ansoff Matrix (Ansoff, 1957)

Through interactively heightening the brand experience with gaming and introducing more engaging brand communications, existing consumers will have increased interest in the brand, brand loyalty will be strengthened as will consumer-brand relationships through practicing the above strategies and emphasising differentiation. The move into adapting these immersive technology aspects will aid in market penetration and expand the target market into the younger generations, demonstrating Molly Goddard’s awareness of the importance of technology in connecting consumers and creating positive experiences for the loyal and new group of consumers.

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AIMS & SMART OBJECTIVES

STRATEGY

SMART OBJECTIVES

AIMS

Figure 14. Aims, SMART objectives & Strategy. The table showcases the aims of the campaign, along with the SMART objectives and strategies that the brand will utilise to achieve these goals.

To engage existing Molly Goddard consumers and potential gen Z and early millennial consumers through the newsletter series offering exclusive content, collaboration, and forming relationships with consumers by way of intimate narrative content.

Bring attention and awareness to the Gen Z and Early Millennial consumers about Molly Goddard by demonstrating innovative engagement on the social media channels through improved technological movements and interactive experiences.

Through developing an experiential showcase for the new products, the brand aims to entice virtually progressive consumers to purchase by establishing positive brand associations and utilising more immersive events in the virtual world.

20% increase in newsletter sign-ups through the prelaunch live event with the designer in the first quarter.

30% increase in customer engagement of 18 - 25-yearolds on Instagram and TikTok through shares and comments within the first year of launch.

For 15% of purchases taking place on the virtual gaming platform in the first 6 months after launch.

Molly Goddard will measure online social media consumer engagement through the number of comments per post and shares on Instagram gained after the engaging promotions for the innovation begin. Moreover, since the TikTok account will be created new before the innovation it will be easy to measure the popularity and engagement rates through comments by consumers and the number of shares. For both social sites, the number of UGC should increase and the hashtags used during the campaigns will assist in assessing if the brand is receiving increased engagement from consumers.

Molly Goddard when carrying out the month-end reports, will track the origin of the sale, assess the effects of the virtual gaming collaboration, and measure experiencedriven purchases through offering a discount code of 5% valid for 4 months after the campaign, available in the virtual event, found at the ‘get to know the designer’ section of the event.

The brand will utilise engaging email marketing to measure an increase in their loyalty scheme, promoted through their Instagram stories encouraging newsletter sign-ups for exclusive pre-launch face-time with the designer virtually. The engagement will, furthermore, be measured by the number of consumers ‘swiping up’ to the newsletter links and sign-ups placed after the pre-launch event.

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AMPAIGN UTLINE

THE TECHNOLOGY

THE EXPERIENCES

The new season launch for 2022 will be showcased on the game Fortnite in their Party Royale section in the brand’s personalised virtual world, starting with an exclusive live pre-launch event with the designer. The interactive pre-launch event will aim to encourage awareness about the narrative of the brand to potential Gen Z and Early Millennial consumers, along with strengthening engagement with current loyal consumers.

The campaign will offer mainly digital experiences leading up to the virtual launch, however, after the collaboration with Fortnite, there will be an introduction of physical experience through interactive retail experience at Dover Street Market.

The products at the pre-launch event will be on display on the popular celebrity consumers of the brand, such as Rihanna, Adwoa Aboah, and each item will be rendered in incredible detail through the collaboration with the 3D digital fashion rendering application, CLO3d. These incredibly intricately rendered designs will be available for try-on by players through VR headsets, during the visit to the virtual Molly Goddard world, the products will be free to try on. However, since the Party Royale island hosts other creative events that players can attend and can be extremely social, the players attending the event will have the option to purchase the product virtual skin for a small fee to be able to be worn anywhere or anytime on the island.

Similar to their previous physical retail strategy, Molly Goddard will imitate the aesthetics of the virtual world launch at their space at DSM, where consumers can interact with the products in person, and experience a glimpse into what the virtual world might feel like through the option to scan the QR code and see your virtual avatar wearing the new collection in the virtual island. The digital experiences will not only expand the reach of Molly Goddards’ market but also offer more engaging touchpoints in the consumer journey that are relevant for the rising digital times where fashion and technology are bridging the gap. These digital aspects include interactive gaming platforms, social media posts, and stories, focusing on TikTok and Instagram, that showcase the promotions for the virtual world and provide more engagement through email campaigns, the Molly Goddard website, and hashtags for the launch.

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AMPAIGN USTIFICATIO

Since the culture and desire of Molly Goddard is quite reliant on the products and the interactive runway shows, as mentioned in the TOWS analysis previously, it is beneficial to target the leading market of the younger generation and create USPs and engaging experiences that will take into consideration the demand drivers for these consumers and current market trends. External research findings revealed the importance of the Gen Z and Early Millennial consumer, there is potential in expanding the market through digital enhancement, as means to form stronger relationships and community with younger consumers (McKinsey & Co., 2020). With meaning and purpose behind consumer purchasing decisions, as analysed previously in the Future Consumer section, the exciting digital experience from the virtual world games and events will provide feel-good moments for consumers, allowing Molly Goddard to connect with their audience. Furthermore, primary research of the Gen Z and Early Millennial market revealed the gravity of brand interactions with this consumer group, with most participants mentioning engagement and experience with luxury brands as a pivotal influencing factor in the purchasing journey (see Appendix 2). The relevance of digital experiences is evident, in the fashion industry in order to replace the physical runways that were hindered due to the pandemic, especially those driven by social media, VR, and AR. Creating a virtual 360 lookbook for a collection saw the collection generating half of the total orders placed for the London-based designer Steven Tai (Shin, 2020), further reiterating the heightening influence of virtual showrooms and digital presentations on the consumer buying journey. As discussed in the Strengths/Threats section of the TOWS analysis, utilising VR within the digital world to allow consumers to interact and try on products online, will also provide an opportunity for them to improve the customer journey. Further supported through surveying consumers aged 18 - 35, and 86.2% of them saying they would be more likely to purchase products online if a try-on option was available (see Appendix 2), along with focus group participants reiterating the most annoying part of online shopping being the inability to try on products (see Appendix 1).

WGSN (2020) also states how the move into the digital and real-world collaborating to create a mixed reality environment will transform the ways that consumers shop, communicate, play and work - encouraging brands to adapt to the new creative reality. Emerging consumer expectations have seen gaming taking up a very big space in the pop culture movement in the current digital world, turning into a ‘mass media’ (WGSN, 2020), seen through the external analysis discussion on gaming previously. Additionally, the virtual worlds of gaming offer interactive modes with a different form of engagement and experience than traditional media that appeal to the Gen Z (87%), and Millennial market (83%) (Fortune, 2021). With 62.1% of younger consumers, between the ages of 18 - 25, surveyed admitted interest in the virtual engagement of brands in the gaming world (see Appendix 2). In 2020, consumers have an estimated £115 billion purchasing power on video games, where the Gen Z market uses the gaming digital landscape as means to interact with multiple virtual experiences whilst building communities and socialising (LSN Global, 2021). The link between both industries of fashion and gaming has been utilised already by many luxury brands (see Gucci Case Study) with fashion expanding gaming popularity and the in-game items adding pop culture to the digital industry. Although physical spaces are slowly opening, digital screens are described as ‘ubiquitous’ (Financial Times, 2021), extremely accessible, and can exponentially expand market reach for Molly Goddard.

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COMMUNICATION: DRIP Figure 15. DRIP Communication Model (Copley, 2007). With communications, this campaign aims to attract new Gen Z and Early Millennial consumers, strengthen existing consumer relationships, and portray Molly Goddard as an innovative high-tech fashion brand. Molly Goddard will apply the DRIP model marketing within their integrated multi-channel marketing strategies, to differentiate them in the competitive environment and convey their new ideals effectively to their consumers.

D IFFERENTIATE This campaign will help Molly Goddard differentiate from other independent luxury brands by stepping into the virtual world in an engaging and futuristic manner that encourages communication, and convenience, through try-on, rather than to simply showcase products. This campaign will initially be introduced on the social media platforms of Instagram and TikTok (which will be created before the campaign launch) to bring awareness to the Gen Z and Early Millennial market, however, there will also be a Facebook post announcing the virtual world launch, along with an email campaign to target current older millennial loyal consumers. These promotions should highlight the launch of the virtual MG world campaign to consumers and aims to spark excitement amongst the current Molly Goddard community and new audiences.

R EINFORCE To reinforce the promotions for the campaign and enlighten consumers about the advanced technology behind the 3D rendered clothes and VR aspects, Molly Goddard will partner with CLO3d to provide these hyper-realistic product designs on the virtual island in the game. The brand will utilise the software companys’ Instagram, where they will explain the features used in the collaboration and how the products can appear so surrealistic. Molly Goddard will communicate the different aspects of the virtual world and details on all immersive experiences weekly through their Instagram posts and live stories on their account as well as on the Facebook page for the brand and their TikTok page. Exclusive information about the virtual world x Fortnite collaboration release will be communicated via the email campaign, further demonstrating how the brand intends to build a stronger community and elevate experiences.

I NFORM To inform potential consumers about the brand and the virtual MG world launch and the promotion, Molly Goddard will feature the promotions on major retailer sites, such as MatchesFashion, as well as on their website. The brand will encourage social conversions through releasing a hashtag that promotes an exclusive launch event with the designer. The TikTok account will be a new feature of promotion, however, there will also be videos about the campaign on the Fortnite account, to raise awareness to their younger Gen Z consumer base. Furthermore, through Instagram stories, filters, and posts on the Molly Goddard and CLO3d accounts to release the ‘behind the scenes’ into the technology and design process which will act as a way for the brand to display their narrative. The email campaign promotes the pre-launch event with a direct link to the Molly Goddard landing page showcasing the launch and links to early sign-ups and exclusive content. Molly Goddard will also use their current earned marketing strategy and promote exclusive designer interviews released in popular gaming and fashion magazines to inform the audience about the campaign details and gain positive brand associations.

P ERSUADE Finally, towards the last few steps in the strategy, consumers will be encouraged to participate within the campaign by using the Instagram filters portraying the virtual MG world aesthetic and through the use of the hashtag #virtualMGworld. The brand will also host live Instagram and TikTok collaborations between Fortnite and Molly Goddard where gamers could take the audience on a live time walkthrough of the virtual world and sneak-peek the garments. This also provides the opportunity for the consumers to ask any queries they may have about the launch of products and encourage communication with the brand. The live Instagrams will also have a ‘swipe up’ feature included that will prompt links to join the virtual world in the game and the email newsletter sign-up. Furthermore, on the Molly Goddard Instagram account, the brand will make use of sponsored advertisements combining the email campaign, that contains all the information about the launch, along with exclusive discount codes for online and offline purchases and links to the website landing page.

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Figure 16. Future Molly Goddard Positioning Map

FUTURE COMPETITIVE POSITION

The virtual Molly Goddard world campaign’s main unique selling point is because of the surreal nature of the digital experience, the community merged to create a personalised unforgettable brand relationship and the exclusivity in products and offers. This strategy positions the campaign at a competitive advantage over the competitor luxury brands offering digital experiential services.

The positioning map portrays the global competitive position of Molly Goddard, against their competitors in the awareness and technological innovativeness markets. The arrow represents the repositioning of Molly Goddard after the #virtualMGworld campaign from their current to the future position.

The interactive experiences provided within the virtual world will allow the brand to gain a competitive advantage over the indirect competitors that have previously created knock-off, cheaper dresses mimicking the designer’s work. Consumers will have the opportunity to connect with the brand on a more personal level, encouraging brand relationships and loyalty that will justify the price, lessening the threat of substitutes at the same time. Furthermore, by evolving digitally towards the influential world of gaming, the virtual MG world campaign becomes more accessible to a wider, more culturally relevant, and younger audience. Especially with most Gen Z and Early Millennials’ social lives predominantly existing online, they want subtly marketed experiential events that they can seek out instead of being thrown at them (Nylon, 2020). By targeting these demand drivers, Molly Goddard can differentiate and establish itself within the predicted-to-oversaturate market.

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ANVI MILLER

Figure 17. This figure takes into account the demographics of the future campaign consumers and presents a concise profile.

Age: 22 Occupation: Freelance Marketer Income: 24,000 - £34,000 Preferences/Lifestyle: Working a freelance job, allows Andrea to channel her time well in a way that allows time for work, socialisation, play, and self-care. Due to her job, she is required to be present in the digital world and therefore does spend time outside of work time on photography and creating art to give herself a break from the online life. Along with enjoying more interactive experiences such as visiting galleries, art workshops, and even yoga sessions. Andrea has her Instagram page dedicated to her freelance work where she has a couple of thousand followers that follow her platform for the education, advice, and creativity provided. She enjoys socialising through her online platforms and loves communicating with new people through mutual interests. Due to lockdown, what used to be a random games evening on the computer, Andrea got interested in the evolving world of gaming through Animal Crossing and Fortnite once seeing it go viral on TikTok. Although the main form of gaming for Andrea now is mobile games, she has found a new appreciation for video games and their ability to allow socialisation and promote self creativity online in a time when loneliness was so prevalent. Her friends would describe her as confident, open-minded, social, and driven, portrayed evidently through her vibrant, bold, and adventurous dress sense - another way she gets to express her personality.

CAM PAIG N TAR GET CON SUM ER

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CONSUMER RESPONSE

Figure 18. Rogers Diffusion of Innovation Curve (Rogers, 2003) . The figure highlights the sections the campaign target consumers will represent, along with the population of each consumer group

Whilst the category of ‘Early Adopters’ mainly represents the brand Molly Goddard with a recent developing interest in the ‘Early Majority’ category of the Everett M.Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations Curve (see figure 18). The Gen Z and Early Millennial market, however, also typically fit into the ‘Early Adopter’ name and similar to the Molly Goddard consumer, these consumers embody new innovations and further yet, through their confidence, influences other groups - described by Rogers as ‘active information-seekers about new ideas’ (Rogers, p.22, 2010). This social group is often classed as opinion leaders and are trusted by the majority, they help ‘trigger the critical mass’ (Orr, 2003) when they embrace innovation, thus encouraging the rising ‘Early Majority’ consumers of the brand, to adopt the new innovation of the virtual gaming world campaign.

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ARTEFACT The 7P’s of the Marketing Mix will be utilised in order to break down the artefact development and justify the various factors of the campaign. The framework defines the tools and strategies needed to be able to successfully launch a campaign (Pantano, Priporas, and Migliano, 2019), along with the combination of marketing strategies. The model will be broken down into sections that best evaluate each component with the illustrative artefact highlighted alongside it.

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RODUC

MULTI-CHANNEL APPROACH Through prioritising a multi-channel approach, the campaign collaborates both physical and digital worlds to create a ‘phygital’ experience, defined as a connection of different channels that utilising the innovation of technology into the physical environment and creates a more ‘dynamic’ and ‘seamless’ customer experience (Moravcikova and Kliestikova, p149, 2017). This proves to be an effective method in engaging consumers, through the use of experiences encouraging interactions with the brand, as consumer demand for more ‘entertaining digital propositions’ and ‘moments of joy’ created by brands is exponentially rising (Marian, 2021). To create a more engaging consumer journey, the campaign uses the hashtag #MGworld to encourage consumer participation and utilise the creation of user-generated content. While this has previously not been used by the brand for launch events, netnographic research shows the universal community hashtag (#MollyGoddard) of the brand consisting of 15,000 posts on Instagram (see Appendix 3), suggesting that the adoption of another hashtag to promote the campaign will be successful amongst consumers. To fulfill the physical aspect of the phygital experience, the Molly Goddard space in Dover Street Market will be launched with the aesthetics imitating the virtual MG world on Fortnite. Furthermore, there will be a screen playing a walk-through video of the world being live-streamed and a QR code that leads the consumer to a page where they can create their digital avatar and virtually see the collection on themselves. This will also serve as a channel through which consumers can learn more about the designer and will open the audience to other luxury consumers browsing through a concept store (Dover Street Market). This strategy of interactive experience and live streams at a store will help generate excitement for the consumers that prefer physical experiences and encourage creative collaborations with the community, further building the connected social environment (Chen, 2020).

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PRODUCT: MOLLY GODDARD VIRTUAL WORLD + EVENTS

The virtual event held on the gaming platform Fortnite will run for a total of 16 weeks, over which every two weeks there will be an exclusive event where consumers can virtually interact with the designer of Molly Goddard and a different influencer each event. Each influencer will encourage engagement through interaction and answering player questions and prompting the new Molly Goddard SS22 line by wearing their favourite piece from the collection. The virtual MG world will be presented as a small island, where each event will be held, it will be divided into different ambiences for each separate piece in the collection with opportunities for the players to participate in entertaining mini-games on the island socially or individually and earn mini rewards. There will also be a section specifically laid out to replicate the ambience of the Molly Goddard studios, to incorporate some personalisation with existing and new consumers - this is where the exclusive interaction events will take place. This game will allow Molly Goddard to broaden their consumer reach and move forward technologically, whilst opening communications between brand and consumer.

JUSTIFICATION This move into a gaming collaboration opens the brand awareness to the Gen Z audience, especially with a Forbes study showing that 90% of this consumer market is in the video gaming realm (Forbes, 2020). Fortnite specifically has previously been extremely successful with collaborative events, with the Travis Scott exclusive virtual event on the gaming platform saw the involvement of 12.3 million players, breaking ‘an all-time record’ (Webster, 2020) for the game and the singer himself grossing roughly $20 million from the event. The adoption of collaborating with a gaming platform and interactive play by luxury brands allows them to appear more ‘relatable’ (TrendHunter, 2019) to the younger consumers and allows Molly Goddard to build a sophisticated aesthetic, become more accessible, and provide joyful experiences virtually. Periodically spacing out these exclusive events and swapping influencers will help maintain excitement and anticipation over the 16 weeks and gradually increase the consumer reach for the brand. Additionally, primary research revealed that 55.2% of consumers have bought products based on a brand interaction (see Appendix 2), highlighting the demand for experiential interaction and how that can translate as revenue and engagement for the brand. Likewise, consumers can utilise this gaming space as a form of a social community channel, forming connections, where they can interact with other players and not just the influencers/brand.

Figure 19. Experimental player in the Virtual World

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PRODUCT: VIRTUAL 3D SKINS + VIRTUAL REALITY

To create the detailed digital versions of the new SS22 Molly Goddard collection on the gaming platform, the brand will partner with the fashion software technology that CLO3d provides. The software enables true-to-life garment simulation and creates digital renderings that almost exactly replicate the movements and behaviours of the actual product itself. The use of this technology will lead seamlessly into the brand being able to utilise VR technology and allow players, with a VR headset, to try on each piece virtually. For other players, however, there will be the option of trying on the garment on their virtual avatar within the game and being able to purchase the digital skin for the product in the game for a small price. This will appeal to not just existing consumers of Molly Goddard, but players that enjoy buying skins for their digital avatar for other virtual events within the game.

JUSTIFICATION Working with such sophisticated software will create details on the virtual outfit that will make virtual try-on incredibly immersive and life-like for consumers. These immersive experiences remain vital in the current consumer journey, with 70% of human sensory perception being visual, the brand needs to create memorable experiences that positively affect consumers (Vntana, n.d). Research also reveals that online retail, compared to physical stores, has a 20% higher return rate, and thus virtual try-ons would be the ideal solution to allow consumers to try on clothes from the comfort of their own home (Forbes, 2020). Through conducting a focus group, participants revealed that the most ‘annoying’ aspect about online shopping is the return process (see Appendix 1), therefore, by adopting VR into the campaign elements, Molly Goddard can remain innovative while making their consumer journey more efficient, personalised and engaging. Additionally, virtual fashion is increasingly being adopted by the fashion industry, generating a lower carbon impact and offering a less damaging form of creative expression for brands (Buller, 2021). Thus, aligning with certain intents and values of the brand being mindful of waste, as mentioned previously in the internal analysis of Molly Goddard.

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PRODUCT: Twitch Live Stream of the Virtual Molly Goddard World

To enhance the phygital experience for consumers and make the experience more engaging, portraying the virtual MG world, will be a live stream video walk-through of the surreal atmosphere of the space. The live stream will be hosted by a popular female Fortnite streamer, Loserfruit, reigning 2.6 million followers on Twitch (Hore, 2021) and 1.4 million on Instagram (2021), after the launch of the live stream it will be showcased in Dover Street Market. Gaming live streams have been an effective way to provide a ‘sense of authenticity’ (Poile, 2020) and increasing trust for consumers while also serving as community-oriented content, allowing consumers to connect remotely to the streams and encourage dialogue between the brand and consumers (Chen, 2020).

Figure 20. Previous Loserfruit Twitch Live Stream (Twitch, 2021)

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FORNITE

LAC

With Molly Goddard already gaining popularity through the ‘pop culture’ moment of cameoing on Killing Eve, Fortnite seemed an appropriate fit for a collaboration with the brand, described as one of the most popular ‘pop culture games’ at the moment with the reach of a broader audience and with a major presence of the Gen Z and Early Millennial market (Wired, 2020).

After the launch of the Party Royale space within Fortnite, the game became an ‘evolving space’ and a new relaxed environment was created where players would be encouraged to interact and socialise more, instead of the focus on competitiveness (Webster, 2020). Thus, this space is an appropriate channel through which brand partnerships could utilise the product placement opportunities and community space that gaming offers (Humphrey, 2020).

Figure 21. Fortnite Poster & Party Royale platform

DOVER STREET MARKET

To maximise the multichannel phygital experience, the physical brand presence will be showcased at the locations of Dover Street Market London. Molly Goddard has previously utilised Dover Street Market London as a space to sell and launch promotions at the same time, where the brand has transformed the window displayed to artistically represent themselves (ID, 2021). For the campaign, the brand will visually coordinate the product display to represent the aesthetic of the virtual world in Fortnite, along with decorating the window display to target a wider range of consumers that may be walking past the storefront.

Figure 22. Dover Street Market London layout

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PRICE

Previously, the Molly Goddard events offered both free and cost, with live interviews at the V&A costing around £8 - £12 (V&A, 2018). The live runway shows, however, have mainly remained free of cost, allowing more accessibility to the public - available to attend physically (at places such as V&A/LFW) or through their youtube platform (such as the SS21 and AW21 collections). With these costings in mind, alongside the strategic aims of each product and event, the in-game purchases have been prices accordingly (see fig 23)

FREE VIRTUALMGWORLD / FORTNITE PLATFORM

The campaign focuses on awareness and engagement for the younger audience, thus a free platform (Fortnite) that can create a social environment and provide immersive experiences that will appeal to the target audience. This launch of the virtual world will be free of cost and so is the membership to Fortnite (Playstation, 2021); thus, allowing consumers to trial the world without any risk, it creates a trustworthy environment for the new and existing consumer that may be unfamiliar to the world of gaming and Fortnite but open to unique, immersive experiences. Fortnite is also the most popular amongst the younger generation with the user demographics of 62.7% being between the ages of 18-24 years old (Business of Apps, 2021).

Figure 23. Calculated purchases in-game for consumers

FREE EXCLUSIVE DESIGNER EVENT The live designer and influencer meet-up events essentially round up the campaign and aim to provide a personal narrative to the strategy and an opportunity for consumers to directly engage with the brand. This strategy is also essential in attracting new audiences, specific to each influencer, to broaden the brand awareness, whilst demonstrating the creativity and innovative aspects of Molly Goddard. Furthermore, these events, along with other live streaming events, will focus on promoting the new competitive position of the brand, showcasing the free unique experiences being offered to their audience. Similar to the previous Molly Goddard events, the aim of these virtual skin purchases is not to increase revenue, but to strengthen the brand-consumer relationship and earn the trust of their consumers.

£6.50-£20 IN-GAME MOLLY GODDARD SKINS Fortnite does not charge for membership, however, to carry out in-game purchases (such as virtual skins) the players can buy V-bucks that give access to existing and exclusive skins (PCGamesN, 2021). V-bucks are sold in bundles, therefore to purchase singular items in the game, the player will have to collect the bundle and use this currency to possess any Molly Goddard skins to wear throughout the exclusive events, the virtual world, and the rest of the Fortnite platform. The virtual skins will be priced reasonably and considerably less than the physical products, in order to appeal to all markets with varying incomes and spending power. Molly Goddard products’ bright, bold nature will engage consumers and other potential players looking to elaborate their look and showcase their individuality.

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ROMOTIO

PAID: INSTAGRAM SPONSORED POSTS & STORIES Referring to the GANTT chart (figure __), the initial campaign detail posts and interactive stories will be sporadically uploaded as sponsored ads to the specific target market of Gen Z and Early Millennial consumer ages and the demand driver consumers groups specific to the technological innovation. The screens (figure 23) represent the style of the first few posts of the campaign, raising awareness towards the new virtual world and the different aspects of each event. Along with the Instagram stories that encourage engagement for existing and potential consumers, when consumers click on the posts and stories they will be taken to the Molly Goddard Instagram page where there will be access for consumers to learn more about the campaign and be able to sign up their email newsletters.

INFLUENCER PROMOTED POSTS Some of these posts will also be uploaded as sponsored adverts promoted on influencer pages that are considered to be ambassadors of the brand due to their affiliations with Molly Goddard. They will also be the influencers present during the exclusive events in the virtual world and will be utilizing the full potential of influencer marketing. The Influencer Marketing Hub sets the influencer marketing industry to be a $13.8 billion industry by 2021, enforcing authenticity for consumers and allowing utilising these influencers as visual storytellers for the brand (Influencer Marketing Hub, 2021)

Figure 24. Introductory Instagram Post and Interactive Story Mock-ups

Rihanna was one of the first celebrities to popularise Molly Goddard’s dresses to her mass audience, with appearing in the brand’s bold dresses in street style since 2016 (Newbold, 2017). As seen through Rihanna’s Instagram profile, she has previously shared images of her dressed in Molly Goddard multiple times to the 95.9 million followers without being paid for it (Badgalriri | Instagram, 2021). Adwoa Aboah is also one of the influencers associated with Molly Goddard and with a personal relationship with the brand and designer and has previously been featured on the brand’s Instagram page and live runways show. With being the founder of GurlsTalk, a supportive community for girls globally, and an audience reach of 1 million followers, the model is an influential icon for the younger generation (Adwoaaboah | Instagram, 2021). Thus, further increasing the brand reach through promotions on her Instagram. Finally, taking advantage of the pop-culture moment for Molly Goddard, the actress Jody Comer will promote her event with the brand in their virtual world, similar to Rihanna and Adwoa Aboah’s promoted posts. The Molly Goddard debut on the tv-show resulted in the dress being sold out soon after the episode aired and a whole Instagram account being created for the show’s costumes and 30k followers, showcasing the move of the brand into the cultural space (You, 2020). The actress (Jodie Comer) also has a young following and a broad one of 1.8 million followers on Instagram, situated through her presence in recent tv-shows and popular fashion magazines (Vogue) (Jodiecomer | Instagram, 2021).

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ROMOTIO

OWNED: INSTAGRAM POSTS, REELS, AND STORIES TWITCH LIVESTREAM COLLABORATION YOUTUBE VIDEO RELEASE OF VIRTUAL WORLD COLLECTION ON FORTNITE EXCLUSIVE INFLUENCER EVENTS EMAIL NEWSLETTER CAMPAIGN Consumers subscribed to the Molly Goddard newsletter will receive an initial email about the details of the virtual world campaign pre-launch, and later occasional emails keeping them up to date with the insights of the events and the virtual world (see figure 24). As an incentive for consumers to join the newsletter community, subscribers will be offered discount codes and exclusive content about the products and influencer events. With the uniqueness and creativity of Molly Goddard, email marketing should be centralised as means to integrate both online and offline channels and communicate effectively to consumers, improving the consumer experience. Email marketing is a free and creative yet simple way through which brands can engage with consumers and build connections through cultivating a community with their subscribers. BoF (2020) describes how consumers are treating their email inboxes like ‘news feeds’, allowing them to remain up to date about the changes in the industry and engage with the brands’ narrative. In 2020, DMA estimated the ROI for email marketing was £35.41 for every £1 spent, strengthening sales as well as engagement for brands (DMA, 2020). TIKTOK ACCOUNT & POSTS Towards the beginning steps of the virtual world launch, Molly Goddard will collaborate on the platform of Fortnite TikTok and release campaign details and enticing videos to the 4.3 million followers of Fortnite (TikTok, 2021). With an estimated 689 million users internationally and 95% of users engaging weekly on the platform, it is an essential marketing tool to be utilised by brands targeting the Gen Z and Early Millennial market (Business of Apps, 2021). By posting TikToks about the campaign and exclusive footage about the virtual world, Molly Goddard will utilise the platform as a digital marketing tool, while building brand awareness and encouraging collaborations with other influencers, consumers, and brands.

Figure 25. Introductory Email Newsletter Mock-up for the campaign

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ROMOTIO

EARNED: INFLUENCER ATTENTION USER GENERATED CONTENT (USING #VIRTUALMGWORLD) With 39% of internet users sharing posts and hashtags by other users on social media (Statista, 2021), through employing the hashtag #virtualMGworld and integrating it across multiple social platforms, the campaign will encourage consumer participation within the campaign, increasing interaction with the brand and raising brand awareness. Research estimates 90% of consumers’ buying decisions are influenced by user-generated content (Forbes, 2021), therefore this form of earned media will be extremely beneficial for measuring brand engagement and brand reach for Molly Goddard. ARTICLES IN FASHION & GAMING PUBLICATIONS Molly Goddard has been featured many times in the pages of Vogue so it is expected to see the publication launch multiple articles for the virtual world campaign and commenting on the innovations being adopted by the brand. YouGov (2021) rates Vogue with 92% fame amongst the general public and the fourth most popular lifestyle and fashion magazine amongst Millennials. Furthermore, it will also be appropriate to reach an audience in the gaming population as Vogue has previously released articles on the move of luxury fashion into gaming.

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ROMOTIO

Figure 26. For these promotions to be implemented proficiently, a GANTT chart has been laid out to successfully manage the campaign along the proposed timeline (see fig 25). This will assist the Molly Goddard team to manage all the communication activities and their durations to track the progression of the campaign.

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EOPL

Who are they? CLO is a 3D technology software company that offers virtual simulations of products through their technology, with the ability to emulate detailed fabric movements, and remains extremely efficient for designers (Clo3d, 2021). When purchasing the software, for businesses, the company provides expert trainers from their range of 70 3D designers with experience in fashion design (BoF, 2020). These designers assist in the development process of digital clothing, whilst also educating employees in the brand about operating the software themselves to optimise their design process.

What do they provide? While providing incredible imitations of fabrics and products virtually, the use of the company designers reduces the lead time of the product design process and utilises designers that are immensely creative and innovative. These designers will assist in creating immersive experiences with consumers. Their skills will develop the virtual clothing that players will be able to try on digitally by using virtual reality, helping build a direct connection between the brand (Molly Goddard) and the audience (BoF, 2020). The focus group research proved that the lack of try-on features in the online shopping process affects the buying decisions for many younger consumers, however, if the online shopping experience also allowed for a virtual try-on option, the overall consumer journey would be much more efficient.

Who are they? The specific Fortnite Twitch gamer collaboration will be with ‘LoserFruit’ (Kathleen Belsten), an Australian Twitch live streamer who creates a diverse variety of live streams for multiple gaming platforms but is famously known for her association with Fortnite. With a total of 2.54 million followers, consisting mainly of the Gen Z demographic, and approximately 22,000 viewers per stream, LoserFruit has a wide audience reach and is continuing to gain popularity among the Fortnite market (TwitchTracker, 2021). She has also previously collaborated with the fashion (Gymshark) and beauty (e.l.f) industry, to connect further to the female audience (Fudge, 2020).

What do they provide? Collaborating with popular twitch gamers allows Molly Goddard to widen the brand reach and provide an immersive experience and brand participation through live streams for the audiences that prefer not to play games, but enjoy virtual experiences. This increasing popularity of live streams is seen through the Travis Scott virtual concert held on Fornite in 2020, which culminated in 8.1 million hours on Twitch and Youtube views; along with a general viewer count of 118.6 thousand in 2020 for Fortnite Twitch streams (Business of Apps, 2021). The Livestream commerce experience is valued by the Gen Z market that looks for a sense of community and common interests that the real-time, interactive live-stream entertainment provides (Forbes, 2021). The combination of utilising gaming influencers and live streams creates a co-creational experience and provides consumers a space through which they could start a conversation, increasing the efficiency of brand interactions.

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PROCESS : AIDA MODEL Figure 27. AIDA Model (Strong, 1925). This table will showcase how the campaign delivers an efficient consumer journey and how they may communicate effectively with consumers across different platforms. It will assist in strategically evaluating the effectiveness of the campaign while identifying how consumers interact with the brand at each stage of the process of purchasing and evaluating their point of view (Ur Rehman et al. 2014).

A TTENTION Introductory Instagram and Facebook post, teasing further information (on the main account and sponsored for Instagram) Newsletter campaign for #virtualMGworld Teaser Influencer Instagram posts Website (Molly Goddard and fashion retailers stocking Molly Goddard, such as MatchesFashion) Tiktok posts, on the Molly Goddard and Fornite account, as well as being sponsored Vibrant display window design at Dover Street market

D ESIRE

A CTION

Instagram and Facebook Posts (Molly Goddard, CLO 3D, and Fortnite accounts) with links to joining newsletter and events, along with showing information about the entire multichannel campaign

The exclusive pre-launch event in-game with the designer (after which other exclusive influencer events periodically occur) enticing existing consumer excitement for exclusive live virtual interactions

Watching the live streams and engaging with the brand through commenting and asking questions to the gamers

Instagram story promotions of virtual MG world website page and engaging stories promoting elements within the gaming world

Release of Twitch live streams on Twitch and Youtube showcasing a walkthrough of the virtual world and all the innovative features and products available

I NTEREST

Sponsored Tiktok videos and Instagram posts advertising Email newsletter with links to the Molly Goddard website showcasing the campaign and the pre-launch event with designer Articles in fashion publications highlighting the creative move of Molly Goddard into the world of virtual fashion and gaming

Promotions of live streams on Instagram and Tiktok (sponsored and unsponsored) with the hashtag #virtualMGworld trending DSM physical space with interactive QR code leading to virtual Fortnite character try-on encouraging consumers to get involved Subscriber discount and promotions for ingame purchases through email newsletter building desire for consumers Collaborating with influencers and live stream gamers to gain trust and increase authenticity in brand-consumer relationships

Exclusive events also offer engagement for consumers to interact with the brand, the designer, and the influencers Utilising the hashtag #virtualMGworld to continue the conversation about the innovative campaign and encourage the creation of content by users Molly Goddard Instagram and Tiktok becoming a community space for consumers interacting about the campaign Attending the exclusive events and live stories with CLO 3d, influencers, and LoserFruit Utilising deals and promotions from the email newsletter and learning more about the narrative of the brand through consistent, relevant updates

Offering insight into the digital process through collaborating on CLO 3d platforms

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HYSICAL VIDENCE

Figure 28. DSM Event Moodboard. This mood board represents the colour scheme and visual aesthetic of the physical Molly Goddard space at Dover Street Market. There will be a mixture of bold colours capturing the brand aesthetic, with virtual screens, vibrant signs, and an innovative tone that will reflect the visual merchandising of the space interactively and engagingly.

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COSTINGS | 59

Figure 29. Campaign Costings Table . This campaign costing table calculates the predicted budget of £100,000 needed for the ‘virtual Molly Goddard world’ campaign, registering the digital marketing, game development, and in-store display costs. These figures have been collected through research regarding virtual fashion creation, game development, and paid digital marketing. While the research has been conducted to get an accurate representation of costs, due to accessibility, some expenditure has been estimated.

CAM PAIG N COS TING TAB LE

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BUDGET EXPLANATION The highest cost in the campaign stems from the virtual space development aspect, however, the VR gaming industry is booming at the moment and with an estimated market share being $92.31 billion, it is an investment to amaze consumers and gain increased engagement through another platform (OTR, 2020). Furthermore, according to the primary research, consumers are more likely to connect with brands and invest in them through immersive experiences; external source research reveals that 62% of consumers’ AR experiences drive the ROI (return on investment) (CMSwire, 2019). The second highest costs come through influencer collaborations and marketing, which is based on the popularity and calculated audience reach of each influencer, for which the average price of a promoted post on Instagram would be £10 per 1000 followers (Webfx, 2021). Although this is a big expense, these paid promotions will be essential in increasing the brand exposure and gaining consumer trust, especially with a research survey revealing that brands are, approximately, making $5.20 for every $1 spent on influencer marketing (Influencer Marketing Hub, 2021). Molly Goddard can invest a larger portion of money towards this new innovative campaign due to a portion of the paid marketing (SEO) being handled by the brands’ stockists (MatchesFashion, Net-A-Porter), as well as the increased revenue from their e-commerce market due to their developing popularity and move into the bridal market. Although, due to the pandemic, for 2020 the brand did not see a doubling in their annual turnover so it is important for the campaign budget to not exceed their turnover figures to ensure a reasonable ROI will be made. Molly Goddard is a privately owned company and therefore their budgeting costs are not displayed to the public, however, Financial Times (2020) states the annual turnover for the year ending April 2020 came to £1.4 million. Web Strategies (2020) shows the results of a CMO survey that revealed the average spend of 5%-12% of a B2C company’s annual turnover is spent on marketing. This research would place the total marketing budget for the Molly Goddard #virtualMGworld campaign between £70,000 - 168,000, placing the predicted costs presented in the table, well within the company budget.

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RISK, OPPORTUNITY AND SENSITIVITY

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Fig 30 The Suns and Clouds Risk Matrix (Vaughan Evans & Partners, 2021). This matrix states the strategic risks and opportunities and the likelihood and impact of each for the campaign.

RISKS, OPPORTUNITY & SENSITIVITY While certain risks have a potential for high impact, their likelihood is considerably low. The risk most likely to occur would be a divide in the Molly Goddard community between existing and new consumers. However, due to the strong relationship that Molly Goddard has with their existing consumers and the multiple strategic engagement opportunities offered by the campaign, the brand will be able to better understand both consumer markets and join them with a sense of community. The brand will have to utilise consumer interactions to the best of the campaign’s ability and create an open dialogue linking consumers, such as with the use of the hashtag #virtualMGworld used across all online and offline platforms. Another possible high impact risk includes issues with virtual game development. Be that as it may, the collaboration with Fortnite ensures that some of the best game developers would work on the virtual world, ensuring high technological capabilities and the wide range of resources available to deal with such situations. DMA (2020) states that 85% of consumers believe they have received content irrelevant to them, to avoid this while developing the email marketing strategy for Molly Goddard, the brand will remain relevant with their content, prioritising quality over quantity and avoiding spamming consumers. Furthermore, the brand will need to ensure authenticity and remain accurate to their brand values, and thus, make sure their communications and advertising are sensitive towards the needs of consumers, as well as towards the current cultural and political matters.

1 Divide in the Molly Goddard community between existing and new consumers 2 Accused of irrelevant content with an increase in their email marketing 3 Gaming and fashion collaboration trend fades 4 Lack of consumers joining the virtual world 5 Game development issues 6 Existing Consumers not recognising or resonating with new brand identity A New Gen Z and Early Millennial consumers have a stronger relationship with the brand B Increase in Brand Awareness C Market demand in gaming and VR technology continues to grow D Rise in sales and ROI as a result of diversified virtual and offline products E Continued technological development of Molly Goddard F Diverse consumer base G Stronger Molly Goddard community with better

ONCLUSIO

Through conducting an internal analysis of the current brand strategies and the external retail landscape analysis, it is evident that there is an opportunity in the market for Molly Goddard to initiate a campaign that repositions the brand, in the luxury fashion market, as dynamic and innovative. The trend of positive immersive experiences, community, and escapism has been an evident rising demand driver for consumers due to the effects of the pandemic and the developing online world. As the retail landscape shifts online, there is clear consumer demand for more advanced and engaging experiences due to the potential of technological movements in the industry. The targeted generations for the Virtual Molly Goddard World will be Gen Z and Early Millennials, since these are the groups that spend most of their time online with increased content and advertising consumption completely saturating their feeds, they seek joyful experiences from brands. Leading off online lives, these generations also look to inclusivity and community virtually, wanting to spend time with others that have the same interests and values. This younger demographic is influential towards the demand drivers of the fashion industry, with rising spending power and a developing interest towards the creative possibilities of what digital platforms offer. The virtual Molly Goddard world aims to target this younger demographic through creating an immersive digital experience within a virtual world that creates an interactive, surreal environment where consumers can connect. Therefore, Molly Goddard would need to collaborate with Fortnite, a gaming platform popular with both Gen Z and Early Millennial demographics and both genders, and CLO, a 3D fashion design software, to create such an immersive virtual environment and digital products. This campaign provides Molly Goddard with the opportunity to widen their audience reach while creating stronger positive brand relationships between new and existing consumers. While the virtual world campaign offers the purchase of products, the campaign will mainly focus on increasing brand awareness and engagement, since gaining the loyalty of such a big consumer group will be considered a future investment for the brand. Consumers will be able to experience the brand’s world from their perspective, playfully and engagingly, allowing the brand to deliver a heightened consumer experience. Furthermore, through utilising live stream strategies, influencer collaborations, and email marketing in an improved manner to their current strategy, Molly Goddard can gain consumer trust, educate consumers about the brand narrative in an authentic manner and create positive brand associations. Overall, this campaign will provide a wide range of likely opportunities with high impacts and positive outcomes. This will allow Molly Goddard to reposition themselves in the current competitive luxury market as a more recognisable technologically innovative brand. This would ensure increased positive brand associations and an increase in brand awareness globally.

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FOCUS GROUP TRANSCRIPT EXTRACTS

APPENDIX 1

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PRIMARY RESEARCH SURVEY RESULTS

APPENDIX 2

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NETNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH

APPENDIX 3

REDUCED SALE PRICES SEEN ON SITES SUCH AS FARFETCH, APPEALING TO THE YOUNGER DEMOGRAPHIC

MOLLY GODDARD HASTAG #MOLLYGODDARD TAGGED POSTS

GOOGLE SEO SEARCH RESULTS OF ‘TULLE DRESSES’

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MOLLY GODDARD DOVER STREET MARKET PROMOTIONAL POST: The brand utilises their Instagram to encourage experiencing their physical retail strategy.

ALICE GODDARD TAGGED AS STYLIST FOR 2020 COLLECTION: Multiple posts recognising the designers’ sister (Alice Goddard) as part of the Molly goddard team, reiterating the value of strong relationships and trust that the brand portrays.

MATCHESFASHION MOLLY GODDARD NEWSLETTER SIGN-UP BOX: While Molly Goddard’s current email marketing strategy is lacking, retailers such as Matches are providing consumers with the option of signing up to the latest updates for Molly Goddard.

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OCUS GROUP PARTICIPANT CONSENT FORM

APPENDIX 4

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DIGITISATION FORM

APPENDIX 5

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ETHICS FORM

APPENDIX 6

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