Marks and Spencer 2009 Annual Report Download - page 31

27
125 YEARS OF INNOVATION
Below: Zandra Rhodes for M&S Notable fashion
designer Zandra Rhodes, created a number of
vibrant and iconic prints for an exclusive summer
2009 collection in womenswear, accessories,
holidaywear and lingerie. Key items include
jumpsuits in spiral and rose prints, a luminous
snakeskin print cut-out swimsuit and butterfly
print scarves.
125 YEARS OF INNOVATION
Right: ‘per una’ In November 2008, George
Davies – the innovative founder of ‘per una’– retired
as part-time Chairman of the brand. In his seven
years of working with M&S, George built ‘per una’
into a significant brand and encouraged younger
shoppers into our stores to buy the ‘per una’ label.
Our brands
We have edited our main range so that all
of our garments are now clearly identifiable
as one of the M&S branded ranges.
As we went through this process it was
clear that we were left with a gap in
casualwear. To address this, we will
launch the Indigo collection (see below).
‘Classic’ is aimed at our mature
customers who want co-ordinated designs
that are comfortable and feminine.
‘Portfolio’ is our new collection for our core
customer. Launched as a small collection in
January, sales have been encouraging. We are
confident we have the right product – with
smart tailoring, coordinated soft separates,
more sleeves, modest necklines and flattering
skirt lengths – and we will be putting greater
depth behind the collection, growing it to a
full lifestyle brand.
‘per una’ is our most feminine brand.
It is bold and colourful and features plenty
of detail. Now that it is under the direction of
our womenswear team we will be working
closely with our customers to better develop
the brand.
‘Indigo’ will be home to our remaining
casualwear ranges, including essentials
and denim.
‘Autograph’ includes Essentials, Weekend
and Occasions, and is our biggest category.
It is defined by luxurious fabrics and a high
level of detailing, but its signature pared-down
look means it remains contemporary and
smart, ideal for careerwear.
‘Limited Collection’ is our fashion-forward
brand. Fashion must-haves and newness is
the DNA, with new stock phased in weekly.
Value
Fashion and clothing is about affordability
as well as style. We strive to deliver on both
these aspects as illustrated by our ‘Dress for
Less’ campaign. Fronted by Myleene Klass,
the campaign shows our customers how to
achieve five different looks from five wardrobe
staples, costing just £15.00.
In all of our departments, and within all of
our brands, we offer a clear pricing hierarchy
so that shoppers can see whether they are
shopping from our ‘good’, ‘better’, or ‘best’
ranges. For example a basic cotton blend
white shirt from our Careerwear shop, which
would fall under our ‘good’ pricing point,
costs £7.50; a pure cotton shirt with pleating
detail, also from Careerwear, costs £15.00
and is an example of a ‘better’ pricing point;
while a long sleeved pure cotton shirt from
‘Autograph’ costs £29.50 and is an example
of a ‘best’ pricing point.
To achieve better pricing, but without
compromising on quality or design, we have
been focused on what we call ‘garment
engineering’, as a way of
working with our
suppliers to reduce the
cost of clothes
without reducing quality.
For instance by asking
our fabric suppliers to
increase the width of their
weave, we can get more
from a roll of fabric.
BRAND FOCUS: WOMENSWEAR
CLASSIC CO-ORDINATED AND FEMININE
PORTFOLIO CLEAN STYLE FOR THE OVER 40s
PER UNA FEMININE AND PRETTY
INDIGO CASUAL, SPORTS AND DENIM
AUTOGRAPH SIMPLE, HIGH-QUALITY LUXURY
LIMITED COLLECTION FAST FASHION
125 YEARS OF INNOVATION
Left: 1960s Our iconic red
boots encapsulated the style
of the swinging sixties.