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Wednesday, 11 August 2010

Gant, London


I find myself exhaling a huge sigh of boredom looking at some of these "multiple" brands. I know there is strength in this brand and I know that this brand have a core customer group and I know that this brand are sticking to their core brand values and so on, but would the presentation of their brand really alienate customers or make them veer away from this brand even though it wasn't dull visually? Now, I do appreciate that this kind of presentation may be cutting edge in their native Sweden but do we really have to see the same old stuff being re-presented time and time again here in London? At the end of the 1980's as a poor student I worked at the Burtons menswear flagship store along Oxford st. (now Tesco) peddling some very uncool leather trimmed knitwear (yes, well it was the 80's). I remember one of the schemes implemented at the store was a huge mound of bales of hay on which mannequins were placed on, stood next too and so on. Not that long ago (looking through my archives), Harvey Nichols produced coloured bales of hay for one of their concepts, followed by Mulberry earlier this year. Why no-one at this brand seems to know this is a mystery to me. Does no one ever look at what other brands are doing or have done? The merchandise is clearly good quality and you'll pay for what you get. However, on a positive note, if I ever feel the need or the desire to be part of the bland tribe, I know where to come shopping. Thankfully, I don't, so I wont.