Okonkwo Prelims

Option eight: no web presence

The ‘no web presence’ e-retail strategy indicates an aversion to the use of the

internet for e-retail and also for information provision. Some luxury brands

that currently adopt this approach are Prada, which has a single-page website

with no information, although it occasionally features pop-up messages of

news and events related to the brand. Other luxury brands like shoe designers

Christain Louboutin and Manolo Blahnik don’t have independent websites

although their products are retailed from the websites of e-retailers like

neimanmarcus.com. There are often several reasons for the non-adoption of

the internet medium as an information or retailing channel, which might vary

among brands. The fact remains however that the internet is the biggest

potential of global commerce and any luxury brand that intentionally ignores

this medium has literally signed a long-term death wish.

Luxury fashion e-marketing and e-branding strategy

Consumers decide to visit websites according to the information and products

they seek but they re-visit websites according to the experiences of their

previous visits. These experiences are shaped by effective e-marketing and e-

branding strategies. The internet is a pull marketing medium, which contrasts

with the push medium used in offline marketing. This is because internet

activities function on the premise of drawing or ‘pulling’ consumers to visit

websites while traditional marketing platforms ‘push’ consumers to make

purchases. The marketing strategy used for the internet should therefore focus

on the acquisition and retention of website visitors.

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luxury fashion branding

Case Analysis

Louis Vuitton and Eluxury.com

Louis Vuitton is the most valuable luxury fashion brand in the world. Its brand

value asset has been placed at above US$ 17 billion and its consumer following

is likened to a cult. The brand characteristics include innovation, creativity and

exclusivity. Louis Vuitton also implements stringent brand developmental

strategies such as a ‘no price discount’ principle, rigorous product tests and the

destruction of unsold goods. The brand’s stores are located in the most exclu-

sive areas of the world’s major cities and its clientele range from the rich and

famous to the new luxury mass consumers. Louis Vuitton stores are also

neither located in the same vicinity as mass fashion brands nor in shopping

centres. However on the internet, the goods of Louis Vuitton are retailed on

eluxury.com, which is a pioneer fashion retail mall that also retails the products

of more than fifty brands ranging from luxury to premium and mass fashion.

Some of the brands retailed on eluxury.com have low brand awareness. This

strategy raises several questions.

Does this e-retail strategy represent the ‘exclusivity’ and ‘high status’ brand

attributes of Louis Vuitton? Does it enhance the equity of the brand?