Branding the man: why men are the next frontier in fashion retail

Founded in 1951, Finnish brand Marrimekko was an almost instant hit when it landed in the United States. The boldly colored fabrics were first sold at the iconic (and long gone) Design Research stores. Jackie Kennedy wore Marimekko dresses on the campaign trail and at the Kennedy compound.

Crate and Barrel has had a relationship with Marrimekko since the 1960’s and just this week opened a dedicated shop in shop in San Francisco, the fifth such shop after New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.

 

The San Francisco store was ablaze with color and well-stocked with virtually every item possible from paper napkins to notebooks, cups and saucers to mousepads.

Even for those of us who were around when the brand was relatively new (I’m not naming any names), it’s hard not to love a healthy dose of color and jaunty graphics.  Along with its classic line of linens, the brand has also launched a line of table wear including plates, glasses, and porcelain, many in one of the 3,500 patterns in the brand’s archives.

Most stores also feature a station where fabric can be purchased by the yard. In the old days, some might recall their mother’s hippie friends with squares of the fabric stretched on frames.

Somehow that seems so right for right now, the perfect way to beckon summer and chase the last of winter from our door.

Marrimekko is available at all Crate and Barrel stores. Shop in shops are located in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. To shop the Marrimekko collection, click here.

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Founded in 1951, Finnish brand Marrimekko was an almost instant hit when it landed in the United States. The boldly colored fabrics were first sold at the iconic (and long gone) Design Research stores. Jackie Kennedy wore Marimekko dresses on the campaign trail and at the Kennedy compound.

Crate and Barrel has had a relationship with Marrimekko since the 1960’s and just this week opened a dedicated shop in shop in San Francisco, the fifth such shop after New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.

 

The San Francisco store was ablaze with color and well-stocked with virtually every item possible from paper napkins to notebooks, cups and saucers to mousepads.

Even for those of us who were around when the brand was relatively new (I’m not naming any names), it’s hard not to love a healthy dose of color and jaunty graphics.  Along with its classic line of linens, the brand has also launched a line of table wear including plates, glasses, and porcelain, many in one of the 3,500 patterns in the brand’s archives.

Most stores also feature a station where fabric can be purchased by the yard. In the old days, some might recall their mother’s hippie friends with squares of the fabric stretched on frames.

Somehow that seems so right for right now, the perfect way to beckon summer and chase the last of winter from our door.

Marrimekko is available at all Crate and Barrel stores. Shop in shops are located in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. To shop the Marrimekko collection, click here.

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LVMH’s Bernard Arnault is doing all he can to close in on Hermès, one of the world’s most holy of luxury brands. The conglomerate currently owns a 20.2 percent stake in the Hermès and has made it very clear it wouldn’t mind owning all of it.

And it’s no wonder. Hermès has remained true to its roots of artisanal made by a stable of loyal craftspeople and this makes Arnault positively salivate at something so true to its heritage. After all, it’s what drew him to Dior and later Vuitton.

Hermès’ consistency and integrity has paid off, perhaps not in quite the same way as with Louis Vuitton, but then LV doesn’t have the same cachet. Last month Hermès reported that in-store sales went up 24.2 percent while wholesale revenues jumped to 32.1 percent.

What are they doing right? Well, a lot of things, but the critical factor is that they remain aggressively true to their brand and commitment to craftsmanship.

So we were impressed to see a recent window display that showcased not just their products, but the people who make those products — the artisans and craftspeople.

LV tried a similar marketing strategy back in 2010 with a campaign that was banned in Britain for being “misleading” about allegedly hand-sewn bags —- when in fact they are sewn by machine.

Perhaps if LVMH’s strategy with its own brands were more true to their origins, their struggle to own Hermès would not be been met with such distaste.

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