Fashion Marketing of the Brand Sovereign in the UK - Essay Example

Fashion Marketing of the Brand ‘Sovereign’ in the UK 2. Market Since the brand ‘Sovereign’ is based in the UK market, it is necessary to conduct an in-depth research to gain knowledge about the apparel market of the UK. The apparel market of UK has always garnered a lot of attention from audience comprising of fashion designers, store retailers as well as consumers. Over the past few years, because of continuous negative influence from various global macro economic variables, the apparel market of the UK has suffered a series of setbacks. The movement of the UK economy to a recession phase because of the global credit crisis of 2008 created a major negative impact for the apparel industry. In the following years, the clothing industry of the UK region continued to witness a decline in revenue on a steady basis, despite multiple short term growth periods. The dip in revenue can be directly associated with the fall in consumer spending as the prolonged recessionary phase of the UK economy triggered a shortage of jobs, non availability of consumer credit and decline in disposable income of the consumers (ibisworld.co.uk, 2013). A trend that was noticed in the UK apparel market in the year 2012 is that a large majority of the consumers are opting for either economy apparel or premium apparel. The focus of the consumers was mostly on buying apparels that can be worn in multiple occasions (Euromonitor.com, 2013). However, during this period of slow domestic growth, the UK apparel market witnessed an increase in product demand from foreign buyers, who were looking forward to capitalize on a weak currency. Also, as many retailers set up their online presence, the sales through online stores and platforms helped in boosting of sales on a temporary basis. As of the year 2013, the total valuation of the UK apparel market stood at around 3.2 billion pounds. Now, currently, with positive developments happening in most of the global economies, the levels of disposable income of the consumers are expected to rise again. This will again trigger a period of strong growth for the UK apparel market, thereby putting it back on the growing revenue trajectory. It is being currently forecasted by market experts that by the year 2018, the UK apparel market will have a cumulative annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 0.7% and will attain a valuation of around 3.3 billion pounds (King, 2013). 3. Competitor While trying to analyze the level of competition that currently exists in the apparel market of UK, it is important to classify the customer profile that is being targeted by the brand “Sovereign”. The desired target audience for the brand is mainly affluent and high profile male consumers who fall in the age group of 30 - 40 years and have an income range of over 40,000 pounds on an annual basis. In elaborating more about the lifestyle of the target audience, it has to be mentioned that they are highly fashion conscious in nature and often projects a rough but well presented look. The visuals for the desired target audience for the brand are presented below: While discussing the level of competition, it is important to highlight that the UK apparel market has become more and more competitive over the recent years, as online retail has helped in generating attention towards the lesser known high streets and apparel brands. The setting up of online presence aggressively enhanced the market competition between the multiple apparel brands, that are targeting the same consumer segment (Thomson, 2012). In focusing on the competitors of the brand ‘Sovereign’, it has to be said that the competitors can be categorized into two categories. The first category comprises of classical British fashion designer brands Barbour, Burberry Prorsum and Pringle of Scotland. The other category comprises of new and innovative fashion designer brands like Astrid Andersen, Bobby Abley and Meadham Kirchhoff. A large majority of the competitors are positioned in the market as fashionable and expensive. [Word Count: 264] 4. Product and design proposal While discussing about the product and design proposal for the brand ‘Sovereign’, the focus has to be given on the factor of brand identity and brand values. From the theoretical aspect, it can be said that the brand identity is comprised of the visible elements of the brand like color, design, logo type, name and symbol which help the customer to identify and distinguish the brand in the market. The brand identity is often a strong and intangible aspect of a brand that helps in generating awareness and interest in the minds of the consumers (snap.ie, 2014). For the brand ‘Sovereign’, it is the image of a brown skinned animal with white dots that will promote the brand identity. In explaining the brand identity for ‘Sovereign’, it can be said that this image of an animal will help to communicate the brand values besides helping in positioning the brand as a rough and highly fashionable one in the minds of the consumers. While discussing about the brand values for the brand, the focus can be given on the classic and eclectic style as well as the concept craft technique that is used in the organic manufacturing process. A strong brand value for sovereign is the ‘Made in Britain’ tag, which will help in symbolizing the national sentiment among the high profile and fashion conscious male consumers. The favorable brand identity will also help in a great way in communicating the brand values to the desired target audience, who are rich, rough and yet highly conscious in terms of fashion and presentation. The brand will be promoted in the UK market by the help of popular celebrities, who is known for their rough and rich image among the consumers. This style of promotion of the brand will help in generating a distinguishing factor as compared to the other brands, which are targeting the same consumer segment. Reference ibisworld.co.uk, 2013. Clothing Retailing in the UK: Market Research Report. [Online] Available at: http://www.ibisworld.co.uk/market-research/clothing-retailing.html [Accessed 20 Feb 2014] Euromonitor.com, 2013. Apparel in the United Kingdom. [Online] Available at: http://www.euromonitor.com/apparel-in-the-united-kingdom/report [Accessed 20 Feb 2014] King, M., 2013. UK Clothing Manufacturing Market to start revenue growth from 2015. [Online] Available at: http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/uk-clothing-manufacturing-market-start-000000268.html [Accessed 20 Feb 2014] snap.ie, 2014. What Is Brand Identity? [Online] Available at: http://www.snap.ie/what-is-brand-identity.asp [Accessed 20 Feb 2014] Thomson, R., 2012. The changing face of fashion retail [Online] Available at: http://www.retail-week.com/the-changing-face-of-fashion-retail/5037465.article [Accessed 20 Feb 2014] Bibliography Bocock, R., 1993. Consumption and Identity. UK: Routledge. Easey, M., 2002. Fashion Marketing. 3rd Ed. UK: John Wiley and Sons. Kotler, P., 2008. Principles of Marketing. 12th Ed. India: Dorling Kindersley Pvt Ltd. Read More