Other factors are high media advertising costs and the application of feasible
business strategies. Also new product failure rates are dramatically rising and
product life cycles have become shorter, making operations management
more challenging.
In the face of all these factors, it might seem that new luxury brands are
doomed to fail. However, new luxury brands have a high success potential if
they apply suitable business strategies. The most important tool a new luxury
brand currently requires is a crisp clear Brand Concept and a well-defined
Brand Positioning as the platform for developing the other aspects of its busi-
ness strategy. A new brand which possesses these qualities and stands out
from the rest is French brand André Ross. The brand has a potentially
successful future as a result of its relentless focus on integrating high creativ-
ity and advanced business techniques.
History
André Ross is a French luxury fashion accessories brand that produces and
retails highly crafted luxury leather goods. It is considered to be the first truly
French luxury brand of the twenty-first century and is also one of only two
true luxury brands that have emerged from France in the last ten years. The
brand’s origin is France and its foundation is built on the specialized fashion
savoir-faire of the artisans on Paris’ Rue Saint Honoré, where the company is
based.
The brand was formed to design, produce and retail exclusive luxury fash-
ion accessories made by skilled artisans with a distinction in rigorous high
standards, contemporary designs and exquisite craftsmanship. The brand
name is taken from that of its Founder and Creative Director and is a mixture
of the French forename (André) and American surname (Ross).
chapter 10 305case illustrationsFigure 10.3 André Ross spring/summer 2005 product collection and
autumn/winter 2005/2006 advertisements
Photography by Sara White Wilson