Macarena Araya
MBA 240
Individual Case Study: Burberry

I. Statement and Causes of the Problem
Burberry is a brand that has been around for over 150 and years, and much of its popularity has been a result of its legendary check pattern, which can be found in a plethora of its products. When individuals think of the brand there are always two words to describe it, luxury and durability.
However, the success of Burberry was not always constant. By the mid 1990s, the company was facing multiple issues due to several reasons, such as a narrow base of core products, an older customer base, inconsistent retail environments around the world, and a limited control over Burberry’s licensees. As a result, in 1997 the company brought Rose Marie Bravo to reinvent Burberry, she had all the necessary skills to change Burberry from being a tired outerwear company into “a luxury lifestyle brand that was inspirational, stylish, and innovative” (Moon, 2). By 2003 and after many changes done by Bravo, Burberry was considered to be a hip brand and was now popular among a much younger generation; therefore, it was obvious that Rose Marie Bravo and her team did nothing but an exceptional job by reinventing the luxury brand.
Although Burberry has continued to be categorized as a well-known respectable luxury brand for many years after its reinvention, Bravo believes that the following years are critical for the future of the company since she believes it has not yet reached its full potential of market share and profitability. Some of the problems still needed to solve are what new product categories should the brand be entering, and how to stay away from non-target consumers such as rappers and urban youth that might damage the brand’s image. II. Decision Criteria and Alternative Solutions
In order to come out with feasible solutions for the problems presented by Burberry, it is essential to recognize the decision criteria to be taken into consideration when analyzing these alternatives. First, a criterion that must be taken into consideration is the importance of the brand’s image, that means, when analyzing the possible solutions it is important to consider how each one would affect the image of Burberry. Secondly, it is important to come out with solutions that would increase market share, since that is the ultimate purpose of the solutions provided. Lastly, it is necessary analyze every alternative keeping in mind that the company does not only wants to expand to a much younger customer segment, but it also wants to find alternative solutions that would retain its current customer base. a) Alternative I
The first alternative solution is to come out with a brand extension called Burberry Intimate. This high quality lingerie product line would target upper class females between 30 to 40 years old. Well-known designer brands such as Kenzo and Stella McCartney have already entered the designer luxury lingerie market and it has proven to be a big success among women. The lingerie line would focus on the sophistication that Burberry offers while giving women the sense that females can be traditional and sexy at the same time. Burberry Intimate would give potential customers the idea that Burberry is a fun and young brand that pays attention to women’s needs. On a different side, a high quality lingerie line would make Burberry stand out from it mains competitors such as Louis Vuitton and Gucci. Moreover, a lingerie product line would attract a new target segment and as it was mentioned in the case study “the spring/summer 2000 collection had even featured Burberry check bikinis, which had proven to be enormously popular” (Moon, 3), which is a sign that women want to wear more modern items. From an opposite point of view, Burberry Intimates may create several risks for the company since there is a fine line from sexiness and vulgarity, and in order to keep a constant brand’s image it is important to not being associated with the latter. Furthermore, a lingerie product line would be difficult to market since it would be complicated to create a successful marketing campaign that would attract upper class women while retaining traditional and more conservative individuals. b) Alternative II
A second alternative would be to expand the current make-up line that Burberry already has. While analyzing the products that Burberry currently offers in the cosmetic market, it is evident that it only offers nude colors in lipsticks, foundation, eye shadows, and eyeliners. Therefore, a feasible and easy to implement solution would be to expand to bolder colors, especially in eye shadows and lipsticks. By offering more colors, Burberry would target a much younger audience that likes to express their personality and emotions through colors. The luxury make-up market has been around for many years with designer brands such as Chanel, Givenchy, and Christian Dior offering a large range of options for make-up; while other designers such as Michael Kors, Marc Jacobs, and Tory Burch have entered the make-up market during the past year and have already proven to be a huge success by offering a wide variety of options and colors in every make-up format. As it was mentioned before, bolder colors would not only target a younger audience, but it would also target middle class individuals. Since the people targeted cannot afford the price tag of a Burberry coat, purse, or scarf; being able to afford Burberry make-up would give them the chance to feel like they belong to a higher social class. From a different perspective, offering bolder colors such as bright red, yellow, and blue could mean that Burberry wants to shift from being a traditional brand to a more trendy one; and as a result to change its popular brand image. Furthermore, Burberry could risk losing some of its current customer base since they could feel like Burberry no longer represents exclusivity. Another important factor that needs to be taken into consideration is that most women purchase the make-up that fits them well no matter the brand or designer; therefore, it is difficult to attract potential consumers. c) Alternative III
A third alternative solution would be to introduce a brand extension called BBR by Burberry that would target a younger audience. BBR by Burberry would focus on offering more affordable clothing for younger individuals. Many designers have already come out with a brand extension targeted to younger consumers and it has proven to be successful; some of them are DKNY by Donna Karan, Armani Exchange, and MK by Michael Kors. The key aspect that could make BBR by Burberry successful is that it needs to differentiate from the products offered by Burberry’s original clothing line, doing so would mean that new stores would have to open where only BBR by Burberry clothing is offered. The new target segment would be individuals between 20 and 30 years old who care about quality and modern looks. Also, BBR by Burberry would include the famous check pattern but in a much different way, it would be present in clothes minimally and in bold and/or pastel colors such as blue, red, purple and orange; therefore, individuals would know that the product wearing is BBR by Burberry and not a high-end Burberry product. This product line could create long-term growth because it would attract a younger audience, which means that the brand awareness and brand loyalty would be much greater when it comes from this audience. From a negative perspective, creating a brand extension such as BBR by Burberry would require a large investment in marketing and implementation. Moreover, since a much larger audience would afford BBR by Burberry, it could result in a change of brand image from being exclusive to generic, and this shift could result in losing market share against other high-end competitors. III. Recommended Solution, Implementation, and Justification
I highly believe that if Burberry wants to continue being a successful brand, it is necessary to target younger generations by introducing the BBR by Burberry brand extension. This solution is consistent with the decision criteria of brand image, market share, and customer base. Even though Burberry already has a prestigious brand image, BBR by Burberry would change it from being a traditional brand to being both, modern and traditional. Also, BBR by Burberry would increase the market share of the company given that it would increase profits, and since differentiation would be essential between BBR by Burberry and traditional Burberry, its customer base would remain loyal to the brand while expanding to a much younger generation. Nonetheless, by attracting younger generations, Burberry would be able to create a strong brand loyalty that could continue for many years, since as consumers grow older and their personal incomes increase, they would shift from BBR by Burberry to the traditional Burberry products.
In order for BBR by Burberry to be successful it needs to develop a new clothing campaign for spring/summer of 2015 that focuses on fashion, pastel colors, the check pattern, and the attributes of summer. The clothes should be available at its own BBR by Burberry stores, online at its own website, and in outlet malls. For the marketing campaign, it is fundamental to emphasize youth over affordability, because BBR by Burberry wants to position as a luxury brand for younger generations. The best way to emphasize that would be by creating a marketing campaign through social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter. Moreover, the marketing campaign should include well-known models and celebrities among the generation trying to target between 20 and 30 years old. The price for the products found in BBR by Burberry should be 40 to 50 percent lower than the ones found at the Burberry stores. Its main competitors would be Armani Exchange and DKNY by Donna Karan; however, using the check pattern minimally and in different colors would make BBR by Burberry stand out from them.
In conclusion, I believe that if Burberry wants to solve all its problems and continue to be successful, it needs to come out with a BBR by Burberry brand extension directed towards a younger generation that considers aspects such as luxury, durability, and functionality main priorities in their lives.

Resources
"Burberry and Globalisation: A Checkered Story." Economist 20 Jan. 2011. http://www.economist.com/node/17963363
Liam, O'Brien. "Fashion World in Shock as British Clothing Giant Burberry Issues Profit Warning amid Difficult Conditions for 'middle Market' Brands." The Independent 11 Sept. 2012, Business News sec. Web. 26 Oct. 2014. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/fashion-world-in-shock-as-british-clothing-giant-burberry-issues-profit-warning-amid-difficult-conditions-for-middle-market-brands-8125831.html
Galvin, Paul. "Romeo Beckham Confirmed as Face of Burberry's Upcoming Christmas Campaign." JOE 16 Oct. 2014. Print.
Moon, Youngme. "Burberry." Harvard Business Review (2003): 1-20. Print.
Tomlinson, Heather. "Burberry Recruits Head of DKNY Jeans to Replace Rose Marie Bravo." The Guardian 12 Oct. 2005, Business sec. Web. 25 Oct. 2014. http://www.theguardian.com/business/2005/oct/12/retail