Paul & Shark is offering a personalisation service at the TFWA World Exhibition in Cannes, with the help of a compact tooling machine to embroider a name or message of choice
“We wanted to be able to show customers how we can create a point of difference for travel retail and to emphasise the quality of fabrics that we use for all our lines”Catherine Bonelli
Travel Retail Director
Paul & SharkItalian sportswear specialist Paul & Shark will be personalising popular lines for men and women during this month’s TFWA World Exhibition in Cannes (stand number: Riviera Village RH16).
As reported Paul & Shark will highlight its latest collections for men and women during the exhibition. With an increased new focus on travel retail the company is also intent on showing its flexibility and ability to customise by offering instant personalisation of Polo shirts for men and pouches containing silk scarves for women.
Paul & Shark Travel Retail Director Catherine Bonelli believes this is the first time a textile company has offered such a service to customers in Cannes. A compact tooling machine will enable Paul & Shark to embroider a name or message of choice in just a few minutes. “We wanted to be able to show customers how we can create a point of difference for travel retail and to emphasise the quality of fabrics that we use for all our lines,” Bonelli said.
Since its formation in the mid 1970s when the Dini family’s passion for yachting and the Royal Navy inspired a sportswear collection for men where the key was water-repellent materials, Paul & Shark has emphasised the importance of travel retail and the packaging of its products. Paolo Dinin (son of founder Gian Ludovico) created premium tin gift packaging for each item after purchasing a whisky at Heathrow based on its gift tin.
“From the start, each Paul & Shark item has been presented in a really high quality tin packaging or bag which can be reused,” Bonelli noted. “For example jackets are presented in a computer-sized bag which is perfect for carrying a laptop, or as a kid’s school bag. The Dini family is very ‘green’ and has always been very keen to not waste money on wasteful packaging.”
The Paul & Shark style, Bonelli added, has evolved collection by collection, reacting quickly to customer demand. “We know perfectly well that the term ‘Made In Italy’ does not mean anything if the quality is not good so we are very careful to use only the best quality and robust yarns, cotton and wool to not only ensure water repellency, but less and equal shrinkage, hard-wearing elbows, cuffs etc.” Over the years new materials such as silk have been introduced with the company investing in research to ensure that these are also water repellent and hard-wearing.
The company’s international business has been developed over the past decade, representing some 82% of business with presence through monobrand stores, shop-in-shops and generic listings in 73 countries.
Paul & Shark’s international business comprises monobrand stores, shop-in-shops and generic listings in 73 countries“Paul & Shark is very much a global brand, appealing to many different nationalities, which makes it perfect for travel retail,” Bonelli said. “Outside its home country of Italy, the brand has a strong consumer base in China, where we have some 70 monobrand stores; Russia; the UAE and throughout Europe. We are also well positioned in the Americas and see the USA as offering great room for growth.”
Bonelli emphasised Paul & Shark’s positioning in the world’s most prestigious and exclusive designer shopping addresses from Milan and Paris, to New York and Hong Kong. This domestic growth is now reflected in travel retail where she said Paul & Shark is building distribution on a daily basis, with boutiques, shop-in-shops and corners in airports worldwide.
“Paolo Dini saw the importance of travel retail immediately and the brand has been present in airports for more than 25 years. At that time it was a fabulous way to introduce Paul & Shark to fashion buyers coming into Italy. They saw this new brand and – by including our phone number on the gift tins – were soon contacting the company for more information.”
With the appointment of Bonelli as Travel Retail Director earlier this year and a clear strategy in place, Paul & Shark has announced plans for new openings in 2015: at Haitang Bay with China Duty Free, Cyprus with CTC and Brussel-Zaventem (new luxury concourse) with Belgian Sky Shops.
“We have an excellent design for own brand stores and shop-in-shops…with the ability to use space in a very good and efficient way,” Bonelli added. “Crucial for us is to secure the locations with the right brand adjacencies.”
The TFWA Cannes show is regarded as critical for further developing Paul & Shark’s travel retail business and Bonelli is clear that the right partnerships are more important than quantity. “The most fantastic thing about working for a family company is that there is a long-term vision and unique ability to take fast decisions. There is no pressure to open a certain number of doors by next week, but to work with retailers to create the right locations in the right airports.
“The current CEO, Andrea Dini, strongly believes in the value to travel retail and airports as a destination in their own right; this means that we can offer the right business model and the right collection depending on the passenger profile. The key is to develop very personal relationships with our customers based on our passion, agility, flexibility, and strong customer focus.”
As a family company in a market dominated by major brand groups, Paul & Shark believes the key to its survival and growth is its relationships with partners. “It is not always easy, particularly to compete for good locations against the big fashion groups – and that is true both of domestic and travel retail markets. However, we have a vision and a passion that is hard to find elsewhere…innovative lines and a total dedication to quality. And we are in no hurry. We are in it for the long term,” Bonelli concluded.
