Although Lands’ End’s fiscal performance in 2015 was disappointing, corporate officials believe they installed the necessary building blocks to attract more brand loyalty in 2016.
Lands’ End CEO Federica Marchionni offered a strategic recap of 2015 and perspective on 2016 during the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call last month
“We are working together to invigorate and innovate Lands’ End,” Marchionni said, according to Seeking Alpha. “We are focused on continuing our strong engagement with our core customer, while taking steps to grow and expand global awareness for the Lands’ End brand. While I believe that we made meaningful progress in 2015, it is not reflected in our financial performance for this year. While we were disappointed with the financial results, we believe that the step that we took throughout the 2015 were important building blocks for our future. I have said from the start everything begins with the product and this was and is my No. 1 priority.”
During the past year, Marchionni noted, Lands’ End management spent time evaluating the front line, analyzing customer data and developing an assortment that embodies timeless, yet, updated styling to improve sales and maintain the strong value proposition that is true to Lands’ End.
“We tested some items that reflect new styles over the holiday season and we were pleased with the response,” she said. “A good example of this is our sweater category, where we had product ranging from our opening price point under $50 for our classic sweaters to higher end product including our new customer offering at over $300. We were pleased to see strong sell-through across the price spectrum, which was a far and better than our company average. This illustrates to us that our customers have an appetite for a broader product assortment that is relevant to their lifestyle. Importantly, this highlights our ability to deliver quality value to the customer and a wide range of price points.”
What’s more, Lands’ End developed a strategic marketing plan to communicate a Lands’ End message and build brand awareness.
“This includes an engaging campaign center on great imagery and storytelling that reflects the Lands’ End value of timeless, high quality, and honest value,” Marchionni said. “We launched two pop-up stores one on Fifth Avenue in New York City and another in Boston. We were pleasantly surprised by the significant media exposure from this pop-up, especially in New York City and delighted with the positive customer reception on our product offerings and service in both locations. In addition, we received excellent feedback from our multi-media holiday campaign. Unfortunately, this initiative was muted by the difficult retail environment and the record warm temperature. We have supported this marketing investment with slightly lower marketing spend.”
Lands’ End officials are wary of balancing promotional campaigns to trigger customer engagement.
“We have also been practicing value friendly strategies and balancing this against level of promotion we offer, making adjustments in an effort to increase the productivity of our marketing investment,” Marchionni said. “We are operating in a highly competitive environment and consumers have become increasingly value-conscious. Therefore, we need to remain flexible and adaptable in our promotional strategy.”