At the time, when worldwide demand for hosiery is declining. Women in the entire world are paying less and less attention to tights and stockings. At the time of rapid growth of China production power, when more and more manufactures in Europe and United States are forced to give up.
Hosiery Market in Europe is not an exclusion. The demand is declining, and low-cost production from Asia is pushing local vendors down.
The need for a drastic change appeared in hosiery market. The need for bright strong impact noticeable and unbeatable. This unexpressed expectation had hanged in the air: who will summon his courage and will attack the market and will shake this slowly declining swamp? Who you may think would that be? Surprisingly we admit, that first to do the above was the "Good Old Granny" Britain!
British hosiery trademark Pretty Polly is now experiencing a new refresh and revitalization and gaining more and more attention on the British Market. New fresh brand image, unusual bright fashioned tights and the widely announced contest "The Hunt for Legs Eleven" are the examples of hi-quality courageous marketing strategy, attracting the customers and, as follows, increasing the sales.
The Hunt for Legs Eleven is a contest for best legs, which will become the "face" of Pretty Polly brand in 2011. Any potential woman customer may take part in, and take a chance to win the competition.
a page with Legs Eleven contestants
British Hosiery Market
No secret, that todays British society is much more feminized and saturated with different cultires. Certain ethical diversification and cultural diversification. No wonder that todays image of British Lady is somehow blurred and distorted. To wide extent the classic stiff British Ladys costume with inalienable corset and silk stockings (what we can somehow imagine had evolved to "todays classic business lady costume") had altered to a teenager girl who is sure to wear pajama-like pants and slippers. At any age. 25, 35, 40...
Before we go ahead, a little Mathematical adjustment: absolutely true that current British Costume Culture is being saved for centuries, and is exist today. However, the society itself became diluted with another cultures. Taking a look at the streets of London. For instance in 1980 and today the conclusion comes away: if then it was roughly two immigrants per ten British ladies, but today the share of 4 to 6 will be closer to reality. And with all the will and passion to save the tradition it is impossible to ignore such an important social factor.You simply can not split your customers to "locals" and "foreigners". Because your Target Audience consists of all the people in Britain, no matter locals, foreigners or people in business trip.
We ask you to adequately perceive the above it is only about facts their impact on social structure. Today in London you will see almost everywhere (at your every step) the young ladies with a good education, with good job and with good income, who are dressed "like a teenagers". And, in majority of cases, completely no makeup. "The freedom of self-expression" some will say.
"Feminism! Women has the right to strive for the success using their intellect, not their outlook" say others.
But lets be honest with ourselves: freedom is great, tolerance is perfect, but looking like "problem child" and intentionally killing your femininity by all available means this is too much.
Obviously, within such situation hosiery industry in Britain experiences serious decline. Roughly five years ago walking into every tiny convenience store you could easily find a wide assortment of tights and stockings, where Pretty Polly was the most presented brand. Today, the overall market assortment had shrunk to the low-priced only. The reason is sole: declined demand for tights and stockings.
The Hunt for Legs Eleven
Turn the Market Round!
Facing the above situation most of todays Russian and CIS entrepreneurs would rapidly make a decision: close the business, strip the assets, and invest into another industry which grows. This, to some extent, is easy to execute in the growing markets (Brazil, Russia, China, India) where lots of unopened and undeveloped niches exist. But British investors having centennial experience and background have completely opposite vision. Moreover, there are no unopened niches in the developed market. You are to work with what you have. Business bankruptcy will lead to serious consequences: loosing jobs, unemployment growth, dismissal wages. These social protection tools are working very well in here, contrary to the developing countries where the employee is almost not protected at all. Therefore Pretty Polly managers have taken the only right direction: the market is declining? Lets turn it round!
As far as we could see Pretty Polly's strategy is easy, simple and effective: 1. Customer Communication restructuring: re-branding incl. communication, package design, line-up structure. 2. Focus on Youth. Unlike the mature, the Young are more perceptive to all new and unusual, they are more likely to experiment with the outlook. Thats why the promoted PP models are that crazy and bright: golden stars, over-knee bandana etc. The unusual and bright works best in terms of attention.
Of course, no doubt, that crazy-fashion models promotion will increase the classic PP pantyhose sales as well.
And the most important: working with Youth today youre creating a base of your future mature patrons for a decades. Take a look at new package designs of Pretty Polly pantyhose and tights. Target audience: definitely a young lady, who is ready to try something new, fresh and bright to her outlook.
The packages are good. The only missing is "details about the product": denier thickness, info about toe-seams, gusset, waistband (lowered? Standard? Wide/thin waistband?)
However, such details are possibly are not key decisive factors for young audience.
Pretty Polly Super Star Gold - The Hunt for Legs Eleven
Pretty Polly Sassy - The Hunt for Legs Eleven
Pretty Polly Sparkly - The Hunt for Legs Eleven
3. Modern Communication Tools usage: facebook.com, youtube.com. Talking to younger audience requires modern understandable language and communication tools.
The above 1-2-3 wont work as themselves standalone. These are not enough.
The most important thing, that drives any consumer business, is Customer Attention. (what is often forgotten within Russia and CIS businesses).
The wish to wear pantyhose and tights is a key driver of this market. The preference between skirt and pants of every lady in the field.
4. Thats why, the most important activity in discussed Pretty Polly's promotion is an Customer Involvement into the Interaction. How do they do that? Simple: to announce a contest for the best pair of legs to personify Pretty Polly brand. The contest activity is communicated through modern channels: facebook.com, youtube.com and through the companys web-site. At same time PP opens brand shop in the centre of London with the full line-up presented on the shelves.And thousands of British girls start posting their photos striving for a dream "to be the face-and-legs of Pretty Polly in 2011". Hundreds of girls stand in a queue to take part in the contest. Isnt this whats needed to re-launch and refresh and revitalize a business? Add here some sneak peak videos about contest, and reminding, reminding, reminding your audience about the brans.The constant attention is guaranteed.
We won't be surprised if it finds out that retailers and distributors tear the phone-cords to reach Pretty Polly to start the business with them and to cooperate more closely.
Well, this is still not a successful business scheme yet. There are couple of things to do:
First, the most important thing within the above actions is a Sense Of Taste. This is a toughest challenge similar to rope walking in Circus or disarming a bomb under a crossfire. Theres no way to allow any sense of ambiguity in the whole communication strategy, or, moreover vulgarity. This becomes a twice harder task, when working with such a ambiguous woman's accessory like pantyhose. A dress or a shoes are quite easier to promote take a photo of a lady wearing them and you got the advertising picture. But how to depict pantyhose in whole and to keep this depiction within the bounds of propriety, avoid too-much-sexual image and too-vulgar, but at same time to make it strong enough to attract, to provide impression and to generate the lifestyle image. Because, lets face the reality ladies wear pantyhose and stockings not only to be and feel sexy. Tights and pantyhose are simple daily accessory of modern women. Tights are not only for dates and sexy outlook, but for job, for walks, and simply "to like themselves how they look". Well, this is quite tough task requiring brilliant sense of taste and strength in managing the whole brand image.
Second, anyway the contest needs to be finalized and the winner should be chosen. This is a whole branch of activities incl. production, contest organizing, legal treatment of contestants personal information, plan what to do with the winner etc.
Third, to secure strong permanent distribution to those channels, where you can reach the Target Audience. The promotion activities are just money spending. And the Brand Shop will not cover all the expenses because this is still only one shop. To justify the investments into the Campaign, the sales has to be hundreds of thousands, even millions of items.The strong and wide distribution is required to do that. And thats not as difficult as you may imagine! While promo campaign make a buzz in the air the distributors and retailers will be more cooperative in their purchases. The promotion, which is clearly visible in the market convinces much better than any of your presentations, negotiations, business conditions, calculations, estimations and etc. Fourth, wise product line-up management: timely removals of unsuccessful models, introductions of new models, inviting new product designers and fashion designers.
And, finally, the strategically vital objective: to become a trendsetter, a law-maker in the social life of your country. Not talking about incorporating into some fashion-magazine. But becoming a standalone fashion icon apart from the magazines. To let them run to you for the news and asking for cooperation. Obviously, Pretty Polly knows all the above, and we're sure they're hardly working now. We strongly recommend Russian Pantyhose Industry professionals to take a look at Pretty Polly case and keep this in mind as a standard of Marketing Policy. Brits will never do something, that has no sense.
Pretty Polly Suspend - The Hunt for Legs Eleven
Fight the Stereotype!
New Pretty Pollys Marketing Strategy puts a bet on a youth and modern communication tools. This is quite understandable. The Society today experiences strong pressure of changing information environment, and the Society changes and adapting to these new conditions. Today we can see social changes we can name as "diversifying society" the people are now splitting into groups and sub-groups and this process is only started and will continue for the next 20 years. For instance, every modern society has group of 18-22 years old, who like visiting dance clubs, and those who play video-games. And these categories are split into sub-categories of those who dance only salsa, and those who dance only disco. Those who play WoW on PC, and those who only play PS3. And these groups and sub-groups are never cross each other in communication. Never cross completely. They don't chat usually, they dont see each other, except let's say streets and school classes (where they're still don't share that much info, as they do inside their preferred group). Expand this example to the whole society, ages, incomes, genders and you will see that today this diversifying process is getting faster and deeper.
Therefore, you'e loosing a sense when trying to tell everyone about your brilliant product through expensive TV-commercial. This looses sense because youre paying for covering all the viewers, not only your selected audience.This is similar to spilling a giant boiler of hot pitch to ocean breakers (with the hope to stop the ocean from touching the ground). Its bulky, expensive, heavy, it burns and its useless. The Marketing messages today have to be adapted to certain audience, certain group and sub-group.
Social Diversification is todays trend.
The Conclusions are obvious: - TV commercial, covering everyone at once pensioners and students, housewives and office clerks becomes too bulky and too rough tool of marketing. - The Demand on the markets experience diversification and structural complication.
Therefore today's Pretty Polly case is an example to start acting in line with modern social trends. Theyre somehow are ahead of others the Pioneers in Modern Marketing.
By the way, we won't be surprised if we face a luxurious looking brand stands and corners of the Pretty Polly located in luxurious shopping malls. We may not know about them through internet simply because Internet is not a main communication channel for such Target Audience. Women who afford to buy £50/pair of pantyhose are not using facebook.
