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Tag: capri

  • Australia’s Venroy opens its first store in Europe

    Australia’s Venroy opens its first store in Europe

    In 2011, Venroy launched from Bondi Beach in Sydney with an offering of European-length swim shorts. It quickly garnered a cult following and has grown in the last decade to boast a seasonal offering of resort and leisurewear with stores also found in Melbourne and Brisbane. The printed staples, luxury knitwear and buttery linen is uniform in the eastern suburbs of Sydney so it comes as no surprise that the natural next step for the brand was Europe.

    Situated on the Mediterranean island of Capri, within Italy’s iconic Bay of Naples, Venroy has opened a seasonal concept store and its first international outpost. The beige concrete walls of the label’s local stores in Australia have been reimagined by the in-house architect, Sarah l’Anson. The store embodies the spirit of the Venroy hotel concept, playfully realised from room to room through curated furniture and objets d’art – selected for both aesthetic and function – to dynamically display product.

    Interiors are underpinned by natural materials and an understated colour palette: warm honey hues, soft whites and bold orange accents, tempered by cool, polished steel. Coir, raw canvas and timber create a sense of ease and comfort; layered for a raw, al fresco feel, these tactile and enduring textures will age well and develop character throughout the store’s lifespan.

    Coloured-glass lighting and stainless steel metalwork contrast the natural materials and elevate the space, bringing to mind the italo-disco clubs found across Italy and wider Europe during the ’70s. Meanwhile, ornate terracotta pots are featured en masse – a playful reference to the artisanal heritage of the beloved island.

    “Nostalgia is a key component of our spaces. When you walk into our stores, we want you to feel transported, we want to evoke a fond memory of somewhere you visited once and will never forget. For just a moment, we want to take you back there,” says brand founder Sean Venturi

    The space comprises of three connecting rooms. The first is an intimate, curtained dressing room featuring a mid-century modern Italian triptych dressing mirror and a linen-upholstered mannequin, lit by a vintage Harvey Guzzini Meblo chandelier lamp. Room two services retail, displaying current collections within a mid-century wardrobe, alongside a vintage hotel desk and Goffredo Reggiani table lamp. Lastly, Room three features the iconic Capri Collection, displayed in a beautiful 19th-century Austrian Biedermeier walnut display cabinet.

    In keeping with the resort theme, the building also features a secluded, sun-drenched terrace where visitors are invited to relax on lounges and enjoy an aperitif. Cin cin!

  • Capri prospects ‘ugly’ as Michael Kors, Jimmy Choo underperform

    Capri prospects ‘ugly’ as Michael Kors, Jimmy Choo underperform

    US luxury group Capri has ended its fiscal year on an unsurprisingly gloomy note, largely due to the negative impact of the coronavirus.

    While the slip of 11.3 percent in total revenue does not look too bad compared to some other retailers, this is mostly because Capri’s quarter ends on March 28 and, therefore, does not include the massive disruption of April and May when the US and many other countries went into lockdown.

    These numbers are something of a prelude to a significantly uglier set of first-quarter results – indeed, Capri expects revenue for that period to be down by around 70 percent.

    On a brand basis, Jimmy Choo posted the worst performance with revenue down by 23 percent. On the bottom line, the division made an operating loss of US$23 million. While performance has been improving over the past couple of quarters, mainly thanks to enhanced collections of active footwear and accessories, the disruption of the pandemic badly affected the sale of more formal and fashionable footwear styles as consumers started to work from home and restricted socializing.

    Unfortunately, this is a trend that will continue for at least the next two quarters and it is hard to see Jimmy Choo regaining much momentum. That said, the year-old decision to transform Jimmy Choo into a more balanced luxury brand that sells high-end footwear for leisure, some fashionable sneakers for active occasions, and a wider range of accessories, now seems extremely prescient.

    This will not completely offset the challenges in other parts of the market but does give Jimmy Choo a lifeline that will stop it from completely sinking.

    Versace bucked the general trend with a 55.5-per-cent increase in sales. Some of this is due to softer comparatives from the prior year, when Capri had only just taken control of the business.

    However, the company also deserves credit for the various improvements it has made to the brand, particularly in terms of collections. A renewed focus on accessories, driven by a new Virtus range supported by strong marketing, has helped to boost sales. As GlobalData noted prior to the acquisition, the Versace brand was, admittedly by design, rather gaudy and off-putting for many consumers. Working with Donatella, Capri has begun to change this by creating a more understated, but still flamboyant, selection which has successfully improved both customer engagement and brought new shoppers to the brand.

    While there is no doubt that Versace will be disrupted by the pandemic in the near term, the brand appears to have a renewed sense of purpose which will help it to deliver next year and beyond. While Versace thrived, the Michael Kors division remains in distress. Revenue was down by 18.4 percent off the back of a very modest decline in the prior year. This caps a year when sales have fallen in every single quarter.

    Although some parts of the assortment, such as sneakers and accessories, have performed well, the rest of the business is lackluster. Michael Kors still suffers from an identity crisis: the brand spans far too many different styles, products, and price tiers. As a result, it lacks integrity and is unable to build a business or aesthetic around a clear, core customer. In a highly competitive marketplace of luxury brands, this position simply isn’t good enough to drive sustainable growth.

    Unfortunately, these trends are not new and have been in play for at least two years. Now that Versace and Jimmy Choo appear to have more sound underlying strategies our hope is that management will turn its attention to untangling the Gordian knot of Michael Kors’ brand image.

    Overall, like other retailers, Capri is in for a rough ride over the next six months. It has the liquidity to survive the storm. But it must work on making its core brand seaworthy for the calmer waters ahead.

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  • Versace adds gloss to Capri results

    Versace adds gloss to Capri results

    At headline level, the latest Capri results looks to have been a good quarter for the fashion retail owner, with revenues up by a solid 11.9 percent.

    However, the results are far from spectacular. The uplift in revenue is all a function of the inclusion of sales from Versace, which was not part of the group at this point last year. Revenue at the two other brand houses – Michael Kors and Jimmy Choo – both fell significantly.

    Moreover, margins at both divisions declined, contributing to a 70.2 percent dip in operating income. All the metrics are going in the wrong direction and run counter to Capri’s business plan for strengthening profitability as it advances to being an US$8 billion business.

    Michael Kors is the most problematic part of the business and the brand starts the new fiscal year in the same way as it ended the last one – with a decline in overall revenue. The difference from last year is that the pace of decline has accelerated, underpinned by a modest deterioration in comparable sales. As much as Capri blames the poor performance on its efforts to rebalance the brand, the weak numbers have more to do with a lack of underlying enthusiasm from some of the audiences it wants and needs to reach.

    Part of the issue is the baggage that Michael Kors still carries from the days when it expanded to the point of ubiquity: there are still lingering perceptions that the brand is unsophisticated and lacks the refinement of labels like Coach. None of this is aided by the fact that Michael Kors deliberately plays up its edgy nature with some bold and occasionally gaudy designs supported by marketing and promotion that can appear gauche. These things may differentiate the brand from more conservative rivals, but they do little to increase its appeal.

    To be fair, Michael Kors also has products that are elegant and its newer menswear ranges are designed to be fashionable and functional and so come across as more conservative. However, these get lost in the wider image of the company and make the offer look unfocused and schizophrenic. Michael Kors is still a brand that is unsure of its identity and this does not bode well for future growth.

    Jimmy Choo’s heritage is more conservative, and its backstory is one of the elegant products with interesting fashion twists. However, the influence of Michael Kors is starting to rub off and the brand is becoming more focused on the bling with a pinch of ostentatiousness thrown in for good measure – as is exemplified by the new logo and some of the new non-footwear product launches. Attempts to amplify the brand are not necessarily wrong, but the methods being used have the potential to alienate existing customers and drag the brand into territory where it cannot thrive.

    The integration of Versace represents an opportunity for Michael Kors and in terms of styling and brand attitude, the division is a good fit for the ethos of the whole group. The challenge is to bring discipline to a logo that is larger than life, but which often lacks focus and coherence. We are generally supportive of the vision to grow share in menswear and activewear and to expand the store footprint. However, a lot of work on the overall brand vision is still needed to create a compelling offer for the customer.

    Overall, Capri is fulfilling its vision to create a house of luxury brands. Unfortunately, it currently has a collection of brands that need a lot of work in order to reach their potential. We reserve judgement on whether current management can deliver the long-term growth plans they have set out.

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  • New Michael Kors to increase focus on Asia

    New Michael Kors to increase focus on Asia

    With the completion of its acquisition of Versace, global fashion group Michael Kors Holding has successfully transitioned into its new identity as Capri Holdings Limited. The group, which now owns Michael Kors, Jimmy Choo and Versace, hopes to leverage its brands to grow group revenue to US$8 billion, while increasing its exposure to the Asia pacific region from 11 per cent to 19 per cent.

    The group also notes an effort to reduce its exposure to the American market, from 66 per cent to 57 per cent, in the long term.

    “We have now created one of the leading global fashion luxury groups in the world,” Capri chairman John D. Idol said.

    However, considering the past performance of these brands, one cannot be certain whether this merged entity can turn them around says IBISWorld senior industry analyst Kim Do, though “Capri Holdings seem confident in their ability to do so.”

    “While many are concerned about the company diffusing its newly acquired brands, similar to that of its own, this is unlikely as, similar to Jimmy Choo’s agreement with Kors Holdings, Donatella Versace will continue to remain the creative director [of] her namesake brand, leading the brand’s creative vision,” Do said.

    “However, while it is likely that Versace will be pushed into new avenues of revenue (such as a stronger focus on Asian markets) it will likely not include mass-retailers – which is how Michael Kors expanded previously.”

    According to Do, IBISWorld expects Capri to hold off on further acquisitions for the time being, and will most likely focus on growing the three brands it now hold in its portfolio.

    In November 2018, the group saw total group revenue decline 32 per cent to $189.76 million (US$137.6 million), from $279.81 million (US$202.9 million) the year prior, which GlobalData Retail managing director Neil Saunders called “disappointing”.

    “Although overall revenue growth looks robust, it continues to be flattered by the acquisition of Jimmy Choo, which has yet to annualise out,” Saunders said.

    “In short, after slowly climbing the steep hill of recovery, Michael Kors now appears to be rolling back down in reverse.”

    Saunders also said the acquisition of Versace could prove to be a distraction that limits the group’s abilities to fix the core problems within it’s main brand.

    In November 2018, the group saw total group revenue decline 32 per cent to US$137.6 million, from US$202.9 million the year prior, which GlobalData Retail MD Neil Saunders called “disappointing”.

    “Given Michael Kors’ relative lack of success with its own label, we do not see the group being able to [easily] undertake the retooling required to generate superior results.”

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