Two of our fashion superpowers, Burberry and Mulberry are both currently languishing in the sub-prime doldrums. Given there are so few labels that command their global might and recognition of our fair homegrown industry, it’s a worry.
For Burberry it’s fourth profit warning in nine months, and 21 per cent sales slump in the first quarter of this year prompted a beheading: on July 15, Jonathan Akeroyd, its CEO who was jetted in from Versace (reportedly with a £6 million golden hello) only two years ago was given his marching orders, immediately replaced by Joshua Schulman (formerly of Coach and Michael Kors). Questions abound over the potential for Daniel Lee, incumbent chief creative officer, to retain his position in the new order of the brand. His reset has not been the moon shot that Burberry’s shareholders were hoping for. 500 jobs at the house are reportedly under consultation for redundancy.
Lee’s collections have been launched with much (expensive) fanfare, signing everyone from Rachel Weisz and Mary Berry to Bukayo Saka and Phil Foden to star in its campaigns; Brad Pitt, filming at Silverstone a couple of weekends ago, was spotted wearing the label head to toe. But even with all the celebrity might in the world his bold cheques and ugly-chic aesthetic haven’t tempted shoppers to buy into his new look. His autumn winter collection was widely seen as a positive step forward, in that it hit better than his two previous shows, but in that he’d set himself a fairly low bar. That collection however won’t be seen in shops until September. It’s still a long wait to see if those pieces will tempt customers back.
Mulberry has had a similar CEO musical chairs, jetting in Andrea Baldo, former head of Ganni to replace Thierry Andretta, incumbent since 2015. Since Johnny Coca left for Louis Vuitton in 2020 the brand has been without a public facing creative director; the once razzy London Fashion Week regular has taken up a quieter space in the fashion firmament. Although its recent (incredibly limited) buzzy collaboration with Stefan Cooke reminded how magical this brand can be in the right hands.
I’ve written before about the reality that the men who run fashion houses these days concentrate far more on chasing rampant financial growth than the women who might want to wear their designs or pick up a handbag. That rings true for both ‘berrys here.
Creating chic modern trench coats should be a no brainer for Burberry. For the past nine months, most people have worn nothing but (thank you, ‘summer’). Except the only Burberry ones they’re in are those found on Vinted or eBay. Burberry hiked up its prices, simultaneously turning out odd designs that demonstrably no one, apart from the celebrities they’ve paid, is wearing.
Mulberry faces a similar fork in the road, its vintage bags are having a heyday moment, but nobody could care two-hoots about the new ones being churned out.
There’s a pretty straightforward lesson there I’d have thought. Forget the brand strategy decks and look at the streets, the answers are literally walking straight past you. Give people what they want, not what you want them to need, then maybe you’ll make some money.
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