Store Merchandise Analysis of Club Monaco and Banana Republic - Case Study Example

A comparative study of the skirt line of Club Monaco- an upscale clothing retailer in North America, with another American clothing boutique Banana Republic. Club Monaco concentrates on more less formal styles, while Banana Republic have used rather more conservative styles for their skirts. Such designs for Club Monaco were inspired by the classic “black and white” style from way back 1985. Merchandise Club Monaco Gia Brocade Skirt Milly Full Skirt Chiffon Mini Skirt WOMEN´S SIZE ALPHA SIZE NATURAL WAIST LOW WAIST HIP 00 XS 23" 27½" 33" 0 XS 24" 28½" 34" 2 XS 25" 29½" 35" 4 S 26" 30½" 36" 6 S 27" 31½" 37" 8 M 28" 32½" 38" 10 M 29" 33½" 39" 12 L 30½" 35" 40½" 14 L 32" 36½" 42" 16 XL 33½" 38" 43½" All stocks are available with a minimum of 12 per store, per size and availability within an hour from the nearest delivery factory. Some skirts are available in classic white and black and an alternative variation of the contemporary colors of brown, green and others. Fabrics range from the common wool to the modern silk depending on the cut and the occasion the skirt is intended for. The store has been consistent with its marketing strategy of smooth advertising, providing customers with the feel of elegance and grace. The store doesn’t have obvious problems in assortment because their production depends on a good marketing strategy and they strictly considers the newest trends and the capacity of people to buy so there is no surplus. Banana Republic Button Pencil Skirt Taffeta Full/ Tulip Skirt Lace Skirt Monogram Skirt WOMEN´S SIZE ALPHA SIZE NATURAL WAIST LOW WAIST BUST 00 XS 23" 27½" 31" 0 XS 24" 28½" 32" 2 XS 25" 29½" 33" 4 S 26" 30½" 34" 6 S 27" 31½" 35" 8 M 28" 32½" 36" 10 M 29" 33½" 37" 12 L 30½" 35" 38½" 14 L 32" 36½" 40" 16 XL 33½" 38" 41½" The store has over at least 15 stocks per size and per color. Being in the market for several years this marketing strategy has been found acceptable. However, they do not give too much emphasis on big advertisements and they have a large amount of production which gives them more surpluses at the end of the season. They give sales in most of their product line because customers find it hard to chose from although good quality but are too many. Merchandise Presentation Club Monaco The selling floor is laid out with the division of men’s and women’s clothing and also for accessories. In those sections, there are sub sections with includes the division of pants from shirts (divided into casual wear, office and others), and skirts for ladies. They have put into consideration also the color in which they have access to what’s good in the color chart. They have set up large mirror and fitting areas which you can be helped at for your size and other preferences. The colors are vibrating and coincide with the color of the season they are having. The store is located in the city, with access to public transport and valley parking for high end customers. This gives then rather good sales because it’s not hard to get too for the general public. In entering the store you will see that it is rather inviting to go in because they have used several fixture such as art deco chairs and funky table which thy have laid out some of their accessories. The mannequins are not as eye catching but the hangers they use are very much personalized. They have also set up the register at the left side of the room to separate it from the hall way witch goes through the store itself. Banana Republic The store is located in the city also, with good access for transport and the store is pretty big. However, there are other sever clothing lines that shares the space such as GAP and Abercrombie. This is consistent however from their advertisement. The bad ting with this is when the other clothing line offers new set of clothes they prefer it to what the store offers. The space laid out for Banana Republic is rather crowded because most of their stock are also in the racks and for people who doesn’t get it back the cloths pile up before the sales lady can get to it. The color coordination is good with access to a near fitting room but since the store have many patrons already, some of the sales person cannot accommodate anymore questions from where they would get the accessories and other types of cloths they can pair up with they have. Sale/ Customer Service Club Manaco Club Monaco employed 7 persons per shift, the first one keeps up with the cash machine, and the second serve as the guard. Four of them assist the customers, and one gets the stocks. Sometimes one of them also serves a valet. If there are many customers they call the store near them and someone will come to assist. The sale’s people are dress in the classic black and white with several prints as the stores logo, a name plate and a scarf. The men are in coat and a shirt that is the same design as the lady’s scarf. They greet you rightfully, and assisting you right away hoping to ask for your preferences. They have available tape measure so they can measure you up. Alterations are also available. The sales person are highly knowledgeable on their products, the number of stock and what color suit the occasion your using it for and your body type. They are also suggestive with add-on merchandise that actually serves you a better looking outfit later. The fitting rooms are wide, with full length mirrors and are supervised outside by the same sales person who assisted you. Fitting rooms are clean and also carpeted, with a table and chair to put your thing to. They have 3 registers, all with access to credit card machines and accepts most credit and debit cards. They are well staffed with surveillance cameras. They also offer free lollies to some buyers who have children. After you have purchased some items they give gift card if you purchased to some extent. They also allow customers to return it back if it wasn’t altered in the store itself. They will put your purchase in a nice looking box or a paper back with their own personal logo engraved. Banana Republic Banana Republic employs several sales person, however most of them due to the store’s many patron’s only assist then in fitting their cloths and getting stocks. Sometime the only person who will be able to greet you when you enter is the guard up front who is wearing a typical uniform from an agency. The uniform of most the employees of Banana Republic are wearing one of the stores signatured shirts in low colors and black pants. They have also employed variety of laborers from Asians to American and maybe some even countries. They are friendly, they always have a smile on their face however their hands are always so full you cannot see them after they have bumped into you. This is understandable due to many customers but for a serious criticism, you will see that the management lack organization. The store also accepts alterations, with a return policy of seven days. The register is located just before you leave the store and have 2 registers usable that also accept most of the major credit card for payment. The bag in which you will have after purchasing is same as the years advertisement color from Banana Republic. Conclusions and Recommendations Club Monaco as compared to Banana Republic provides better assistance from sale persons and gives more inviting look for the store. Although Banana Republic has been there for more years, it now proves that it caters to the general public rather than the high-end customers, except if some of them have requests of their own and those high end personnel’s will get a concierge to get clothes with them, you will not see them roaming around the shop. Club Monaco also is better with their advertisements; they pay a lot of money to provide customers the big picture on what’s coming for the next season and when to expect it. While Banana Republic, although they also use models, most of their models look more of the typical American you will see everyday. They don’t give you a look that will be as unique as what Club Monaco does. Stores are earning much, they have franchises all over the world and sometimes Club Monaco even has less profit. However, if we will see the business side of both store, we will see that the expense Club Monaco put on before every season is less also because of less production that as I have told earlier provide them with less or no surplus. Banana Republic is somehow overshadowed by the fact that they are an Internationally known brand, but in the high end fashion line, Club Monaco is there at it’s peak with good management, marketing and advertising strategies. Read More