Mulberry Goes Direct To Consumer

Mulberry has announced that instead of having a show at London Fashion Week this September, the brand will hold private appointments with press and buyers in London and Paris to show them the spring/summer 2018 collection, with the view to returning to the schedule next February as a direct-to-consumer brand - more commonly referred to as see now, buy now.

"Mulberry has always been focused on offering a real and accessible lifestyle," said CEO Thierry Andretta this morning. "The shift announced today enables us to continue to drive engagement and increase our relevance to our customers. Our strong omni-channel, retail-led business ensures we are well placed to align our collection launches globally and support growing consumer demand for immediacy."

The brand has adopted the see-now, buy-now model as many other brands who originally opted for the format have pulled back. Tom Ford, famously one of the first major houses to test out the model, explained in March that while he had been optimistic about the new structure, ultimately "the store shipping schedule doesn’t align with the fashion show schedule", adding that he "lost a month of selling" because he held back on putting the autumn/winter 2016 collection on the shop floor until after it had been seen on the catwalk (it had been ready since mid-August). 

In the same week, Thakoon announced that it was abandoning the model and halting operations entirely. A spokesperson for the brand mirrored Ford's reasoning, saying that the label had "recognised that the business model is ahead of the current retail environment", confirming that it is "taking a pause and an eventual restructure".

Caroline Rush, CEO of the British Fashion Council, however, welcomed Mulberry's rethink, saying today: "Our industry is going through a period of change and we are delighted that as a significant British business Mulberry are focusing on a strategy that puts customers front and centre; building this into their show campaign for February 2018."