Promotion promotion promotion....

Next feature in this months Cosmopolitan magazine, with a full page focus on thier accessories. To celebrate, Next have launched a competition to win the the products featured!


The competition was launched this morning on Facebook, an example of cross promotions!!!

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/photo.php?pid=3998262&id=94971738769&fbid=396773208769


I'll be entering :) I rather like these!!

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Customer ain't happy!!!!!---update as promised!!

This morning I returned to Facebook to find out what feedback the customer who complained about Next's summer reange had received

There were 7 responses in total, including 4 other women whose comments included:

"Gonna struggle for summer clothes this year, always rely on Next for outfits."

"I have never found it so difficult to buy my wardrobe in Next"

"I have ordered and sent back countless items from this catalogue as they only look good on the models and not on a size 12 who is 5ft 4 inchs tall. Try harder please next!"

Next's fisrt response was to point out their petite range, however the customer was also not satisfied with this. Next's next move was to reply with a personal message, so unfortunatly we do not get to find out the result!

"Hi Anne-Marie, thanks for coming back to us. We've sent you a PM, have a great day. :)"

Hmmm.... loosing their loyal customers and their focus which has worked for so many years in sight of chasing fast fashion???? Time will tell......

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Customer ain't happy!!!!!

In my journal I have discussed the matter that Next are currently unfolding a 4 year strategy market shift:

“The middle aged Sex and The City kinda gal” Next are trying to attract the River Island customer and the more fashion forward as you can see from our new ranges.

We are reducing our workwear range which has changed our customer. Next are working on a market shift over a 4 year plan to minimize our work and formal wear. Currently 2 years into this plan, and our stores show our increasing focus on fashion wear.”

-John Store Manager

However this morning, while catching up with Next’s Facebook page I read the following comment:

http://www.facebook.com/nextonline?v=wall&ref=ts

Text Reads:

I've just received my summer catalogue and must say it is entirely aimed at ladies who are 6 foot and have legs of at least 36 inch! After being a Next customer for over ten years this is the first time I have seen a Next catalogue that makes no effort to appeal to the curvier shorter average lady ..................
It ...'s very sad but i will save my money in the hopes that the Aut/Win one is better :-(

I found this comment very interesting as it shows the view of a current, and until now loyal customer of 10years. Are Next fascing the risk of loosing thier current customers from the changes they are making??? This customer is certainly not happy!

I await the feedback this comment receives and any views that other customers may add (it was only posted 40mintues ago)

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Style Update

Next have release their lates Style Update on their website. I feel that these trends relate well to my chosen bay area of denim, and if Next were to mix other products in the bay to create 'Stories' or outfit building, I think that these would worrk really well :)

-Style update at http://www.next.co.uk/shopping/editorial/may/1/
-Images taken from http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/nextonline?v=app_6009294086&ref=ts (images easier to take from their facebook than from the main website- you'll understand when you visit the website!)








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Next's new TV advertisement

Next have released thier new summer TV campaign :)

Next TV Advert - Summer 2010 (Internet Exclusive)

From: nextshopping | 23 April 2010 | 4,142 views

Shot by Ben Watts, the fashion editors photographer of choice, Next's latest TV advert offers an upbeat celebration of this summers key fashion themes: vibrant colour, floral print and denim revival.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIKVIqhAn6Q

I found this advert on youtube, and was suprised to find that Next have thier own Channel on YouTube for realeasing thier campaigns, including this short video interview with their front model EMANUELA DE PAULA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJ6Y2W2ljZk

"Next first quarter sales gwo 4.1%"-Drapers

This news bulletin I received through my email daily news updater to Drapers, yet as I am not a paying subsciber, I could unfortunatly not read the complete article.



I find it interesting that the point is stated that the company must "remain 'cautious' for the year ahead".

"Next's cheif secures £1m bonus"

I found this article about Next while doing my weekly newspaper reading for my fashion narrative newspaper file. I thought it would make interesting reading on my blog....however, I expecct the print to be a bit small, so i will summarise.....




key points:

• Chief exec Simon Wolfson has received a £1m bonus, more than doubling his pay, after a controversial decision to to reset the criteira it uses to award bonuses
• In September 2008, as the economy turned down, Next revamped its executive pay plans, including the criteira for paying bonuses, amid turmoin in the high street. This included abandoning a demanding growth target, as part of a plan to enable retaining staff in the tough economic conditions.

New Venture Further.....

Next have decided to take their e-business to the next level, with an aim to grow their online business internationally.

"According to Catalogue e-business Next is to concentrate on growing its international business with the NextDirect.com website as the core focus. The company will also begin an international marketing campaign, with concepts already being tested in the US."

-The Online Fashion Agency
http://www.theonlinefashionagency.com/business/views-news/03/30/news-international-focus-for-next-asos-co-founder-offers-tips/?utm_source=e-style&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=300310

Next have a separate website for their international online customers, Next Direct, with a focus on promoting Britsh Style. Next already have stores abroad, but this is the next step in becoming a truly international brand.

Revenues at the direct division of British apparel and decor retailer Next rose 7 percent to £873.2 million ($1.30 billion) in the year ended January 2010. Profits for the division are also up from £157.6 million ($234.6 million) last year, to £183.6 million ($273.3 million)—a rise of 16.5 percent. Overall pretax profit at the retailer was up 18 percent to £505 million ($751.5 million).

Next says one of its primary targets for 2010 is growing its international business. The retailer is moving away from overseas store openings to focus on its international website NextDirect.com. Having posted a profit of £800,000 ($1.2 million) via its international website last year, Next has set its sights on generating a profit of £1.4 million ($2.1 million) on sales of £7 million ($10.4 million) in 2010.

This year will also see Next embark on a fully fledged international marketing campaign; it has already started testing concepts in the US.

-Catalogue e-Business
http://catalog-biz.com/news/Next-plans-international-ecommerce-expansion_2129.asp

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New Look New Website....Ideas!!!

Last week New Look launched their new website:

"New Look has thrown down the gauntlet to Asos and Next with a target to become the number one online fashion retailer within three years, after launching a multimillion-pound second-generation website last week."

-Drapers


I took a look at the denim page, my area of focus, and I love how the page is laid out for customers. The jeans are dispayed on models, with a side view. This allows the customer to easily see how the jeans fit and hang, aiding the customers decision process.

The menu on the left of the page allows the customer to easily refine their search by jean type, colour, price and size.


When the customer clicks on an item, they are told everything about that product which they would find on a care label, the fabrix mix, washing guide as well as colours available, alternate views, the price and also "Perfect With" which suggests other products the jeans would look great with for outfit buidling.


All in all........a great improvement for New Look!!

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Marks and Spencer- Competitor

On Wednesday my competitor store Marks and Spencer have, after much anticipation, aired thier new TV ad campaign...



The campaign continues to be fronted by Twiggy, as in previous campaigns, but she is joined by new faces Danii Minogue, Lisa Snowdon, VV Brown and Ana Beatriz Barros.

I love the song- To Be Real by Cheryl Lynn- which as a fan I recognise as feature song from Sex and the City. When I interviewed the Next Southampton Store Manager and asked to describe his target customer, his answer was "the sex and the city kinda gal". Therefore I find the link quite interesting!

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The Next Shoe Room

Next have opened new Shop-In-Shops in key stores across the country, dedicated to shoes. I first read about this is in Elle magazine this week, and decided to look it up online.

I found the press release at http://www.next.co.uk/press/lookbooks/lookbook.asp?sn=ss10&bk=shoeroom&id=shoeroom



So why not a denim shop-in-shop? Women infamously find it hard work to find the perfect pair of jeans, a denim shop-in-shop could help solve this........

This issue I will explore in my journal

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BHS Store Manager

Yesterday, on the train home, I got talking to the woman who was sat beside me. It wasn't long before I found out that she is the Lancaster BHS Store Manger!

So, of course, I told her about my Store Management unit and she was more than happy to answer my questions, tell me about her daily job and she even looked through my work and the portfolio brief, giving me some tips and advice. A lot of what she told me I could relate to Next, and she also knew some things about Next. The advice she gave me helped me a lot in terms of seeing things from a store managers point of view, and helped me realise just how much work they do, and the value of the manuals they receive from Head Office- the manuals we have to produce for this unit.

She also advised me on how to say things so that store assistants can clearly understand what is being said in the manual, and the value of visual guides rather than written and long wordy guides. She said I must write an "idiots guide with lots of pictures"!

A issue we discussed at length was the market shift which Next is going through- moving away from work wear and more into fashion wear- and whether or not we think is it the right thing for them to do. As she herself falls into their target market, I found it interesting that she herself no longer shops there. She used to, especially for her work wear, and used to pick up other basics; but Next is moving away from this product segment she now rarely visits Next and doesn't care a lot for their new fashion ranges. I got to thinking, if this 30 year old successful professional no longer desires to shop at Next, how many are like her? Especially one who knows her stuff in the business!

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Too Long

Unfortunately it's been a while since my last post :( so I have decided to update with some images from my journal......


This page covers my reflection notes of the Next Carlisle store, over from this page I also produced a longer more in depth written reflection.


These images are from a Seminar activity where I looked at the trends in Next and how they relate to the denim's in my bay.



Here I have produced in images, how my bay is made up, with the denim on the main wall, and 3 rails of other products in front.


This is a more in depth build up of the main wall of my bay, with folding out images which beind hold my reflection notes, again over the page I wrote a more in depth reflection.

This is another seminar activity from when Helen Stock visited us from Ted Baker. The activity is a mock up of calculating the profits produced from the bay

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Next Images

Following my trip to Marks and Spencers, I returned to Next to attempt taking a photo of thier denim section. I was successful! :)

Section of the wall display of jeans

Edge of wall display with style guide panel

Image of free standing rail with the main wall display, which holds other denim products.

Since it has been a week since my first visit to the store, I expected there may have been a change in the display, but the only difference I noticed was the new stand holding the shirts (above), previously this stand had held non-denim shirts.

Now I have uploaded these images, I realise that it may have been more worth while to have taken images of all the denim wear products, to allow comment on the section as a whole, as the section is bigger than the images above show. I did take two other photos, but due to moving they are very blury! This could been improved upon!

French Connection No More...

Today I went shopping!

Firstly I took a trip to French Connection, as planned in my previous post, and was expecting great things as I've never visited the Southampton store, but I have previously shopped in the Newcastle Metro Centre store. In Southampton I was disappointed.

The store was tiny and even in the small space was split equally between Women's and Men's wear. I didn't feel inspired in the store. There was only 2 different pairs of women's jeans, and no other denim products. I felt that for the success of my coursework, I needed to choose another store to be the competitor for my main store- Next.

So I took a walk around West Quay shopping centre and my attention was attracted into Marks and Spencers by a seemingly new (and quite good) display. Walking around I soon found the denim section, which appears to have had a revamp. I managed to take the following pictures on my camera phone:

This display highlights the different styles of jeans available

This stand was close by the display above, further educating the customer on the different shapes and styles available.

The rails feature tabs at the top, ensuring the customer find thier preferred style of jean easily.

Large wall display featuring the product. Aspirational for customers, and also appealing to a younger market.

Floor feature, displaying the denimwear with other products from casual wear, from the INDIGO Collection. Interestingly shaped mannequinn and way of hanging the jeans in the box-like rail (towards the back of the image).

Overall, I was suprised with what I found in Marks and Spencer; I didn't expect there to be the selection of denim wear that there was, nor did i expect the visual displays or the customer guidence in shape and style selection. Therefore, I have decided to change my competitor company, from French Connection, to Marks and Spencer.

What????

The beginning...

For this unit I am creating a Reflective Journal and Blog on Store Management. I have already decided that my chosen method of Journal writing is through a book with both writing and images, I chose this as I have written this way before and I enjoy this outlet as a way of expressing my thoughts.

My next obstacle was deciding which shop/ store to focus my work on. I knew I wanted to look at denim wear, as it is a product of interest to me and also very different to what I looked at for Fashion Cycle, but I wasn't sure which store to research.

Yesterday I took a walk around West Quay Shopping Centre walking around the stores, looking at how shops display their denim wear. A store that stood out to me was Next, which had a clear section for their denim wear, wall space taken up with jeans, and differently shaped racks for dresses, skirts, shirts, jeggings etc.

I felt that for Next, the way they hung their jeans was different for them: folded in half over the hanger then folded back and hung by the belt loop, and I liked the look as it was more interesting and eye catching than simply hanging them with a clip hanger, which I remember they generally do, as saw some other jeans in other sections of the store hung this way. I wanted to take a photograph with my camera phone, but a store assistant appeared to re-stock the section and created a slight atmosphere of tension through looking at me every few moments or so. I felt uncomfortable so didn't attempt the photo. I plan to return to the store to take my photo, but next time I may look for a store assistant who appears more approachable, and introduce myself before taking the photo.

Now I needed to choose a competitor. I was unsure of who to choose as a competitor as they have such a vast target market. So I asked the advice of Emma, who suggested French Connection. I have looked on their website, and like the look of their denim wear, and after only a brief look their website already looks much more interesting than Next's so I feel French Connection may be a good competitor for comparison.

My next step is to visit French Connection, and get those photos!!!!!!

Store Management

New Unit

Store Management

Reflective Journal and Blog