Burberry hopes its new logo will add cachet – and boost sales among young Asian shoppers
Brand’s makeover by chief creative officer Riccardo Tisci features monogram design of interlocking ‘Ts’ and ‘Bs’ on everything from hoodies to high heels
It has a hotshot new designer known for dressing American superstar Beyoncé and is experimenting with monthly product launches on social media.
Burberry is banking on the patterned print to improve its performance in high-margin leather goods, which make up 38 per cent of its sales – less than the 60 per cent and 75 per cent at Gucci and Vuitton
Now Burberry is moving past its famed camel check prints with new logo-style branding meant to give its handbags and other wares the kind of covetable cachet that top luxury rivals such as LVMH’s Louis Vuitton have long enjoyed.
It is a gamble as fans of the British label digest the unfamiliar monogram – a motif of interlocking “Ts” and “Bs” in a nod to founder Thomas Burberry – splashed onto everything from hoodies to high heels.
Yet the makeover, part of an attempt to revive stagnant sales, also reflects a growing battle among high-end brands to lure young shoppers in markets such as Asia, with instantly recognisable items they can flaunt – leading to a recent proliferation of logo-driven launches by Burberry rivals, too.
Customers [are] responding well to brands who have started to use logos as a design feature, incorporating them into prints
Burberry’s revamped image is set to get its first real test on Tuesday, with first-quarter sales that should reflect the higher proportion of designs by former Givenchy star Riccardo Tisci gradually making their way into stores.
After the chief creative officer unveiled his first take on the label last September – including twists on Burberry classics, such as trench coats lined with punky rings, more than a third of items available in stores should now carry Tisci’s stamp, analysts estimate.
Some are optimistic that comparable revenue growth will improve as a result, from an underwhelming 1 per cent in the previous three months to 3 per cent, according to JP Morgan.
Burberry’s new monogram products, which it began pushing in May in a special collection that included US$690 bum bags and US$400 baseball caps, are likely only account for a tiny part of that.
However, the bet is that heightened buzz around the brand linked to the launch – with campaigns featuring model-of-the-moment Gigi Hadid – should have helped spur demand for other items, too.