FRANCE. Lacoste is introducing an updated look for its concept stores, a new advertising campaign titled “˜Unconventional Chic’ and fresh product lines with a focus on women and children.
Visitors to the Lacoste stand at the TFWA World Exhibition (Stand number: Riviera Village RH15) can see elements of the rebranding, including a new polo bar which allows a much wider range of colours to be displayed.
The rebranding follows the appointment of José Luis Duran as the CEO of Lacoste’s fashion and accessories partner Devanlay. Since then his mission has been “to bring Lacoste into the modern world”, rejuvenating the brand to better meet the desires of its customers.
In addition to modernizing the brand, Duran’s also aimed to expand the Lacoste clothing line, refresh the range and make it more feminine. To this aim, designer Felipe Oliveira Baptista – who has experience with brands such as Max Mara, Cerruti and Nike – was brought into the company.
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Lacoste is introducing a new look for its concept stores, including a polo bar which more colours to be displayed |
The influence of Baptista can be seen on the Lacoste stand in the new Spring Summer 2012 collection, which includes seasonal Tennis, Golf and Active lines for men, women and kids. Lacoste’s partnerships with French Open tennis stadium Roland Garros and US tennis star Andy Roddick see exclusive technical lines in every collection, with mini versions also available for children.
The importance of the children’s segment – a growing element of the brand’s business on domestic markets and in travel retail – has led to the creation of a new marketing team devoted to the category. New lines and a dedicated boutique in Paris – the first in the world – have been launched, and more boutiques will open worldwide as well as in airports. The new range can already be found in France, Morocco, Cyprus, and the Czech Republic.
For the next year, Lacoste is looking to expand its business globally – all regions have growth objectives in place within an aggressive development plan. For example, before Duran’s arrival, China was opening 40 points of sale per year; since 2009 the company has been opening 75 year. The next objective for China is to have more than 400 points of sale at the end of 2011.
That expansion plan also applies to travel retail. Lacoste International Travel Retail Director Catherine Bonelli said: “We aim to increase our travel retail points of sale to near 300 by 2014 (around 200 as of today). With our new designer and greater commitment to women’s wear and children’s, we are looking forward to a really dynamic 2012 with many new growth prospects in the pipeline.”
With the aim of travel retail development, Lacoste is now keen to build its inflight distribution. It is currently in the process of developing a new collection for inflight worldwide which will be presented at the TFWA World Exhibition.
For details, e-mail Catherine Bonelli at cbonelli@devanlay.fr.
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