whim became an obsession. Laura designed a range of tea towels and other
kitchen accessories which found a ready market through department stores,
wholesalers, and craft shops. In time Bernard Ashley left his job in the City
and became the driving force behind the development of the business.
By 1960 the Ashleys had moved their now thriving cottage industry to a
disused railway station in the village of Carno, Powys, in Laura’s native
Wales. Principally a textile design and printing operation, the business
acquired a retail sideline in 1965 when it opened a small sales outlet in Mid-
Wales. Three years later a Laura Ashley shop opened in London, in a quiet
part of Kensington. Entry into the world of fashion followed soon after-
wards, with the introduction of ‘Basic Dress 1’. The simple above-the-knee
housedress was to be the forerunner of the famous Laura Ashley floral
frocks, long white nightdresses and Victorian-style pin-tuck blouses. Laura’s
countrified and quintessentially English designs conjured up rose-tinted and
rose-printed folk memories of bygone days. The clothes were not made for
real country people, but for city dwellers who craved a romanticized version
of a rural idyll. The Laura Ashley look soon acquired a loyal following in
London and the Home Counties, and attracted interest from abroad.
As the 1980s dawned, Laura Ashley shops were to be found scattered
throughout the UK, continental Europe, and the US. The business went
from strength to strength, fuelled by the beginning of a retail boom in the
British market. The Laura Ashley look was consistent throughout the
world, but brand positioning differed between the home and overseas
markets. In the UK and continental Europe, Laura Ashley was a moderately
priced purveyor of rustic charm to the urban middle classes. In the US it
was seen as an exclusive designer label. The difference was reflected in the
margins, which were as high as 18-20 per cent in North America, four times
the level of continental Europe and almost double those in the UK.
By the end of 1984 the Ashleys themselves had become tax exiles.
Turnover had reached £96.4 million per annum, and the company was
opening one new store per week somewhere in the world, yet it still
retained the culture of a close family business. In February 1985 another
important milestone was reached with the signing of a joint-venture agree-
ment with the Aeon Group, giving Laura Ashley its first toe-hold in Japan.
By now the company offered its customers a wide range of fashion and
furnishings, 85 per cent (by value) of which were produced in-house.
Design teams developed two fashion collections (Spring/Summer and
Autumn/Winter) and one home furnishing collection each year. Work on
the fashion collections started around 18 months ahead of launch, and
would eventually incorporate around 125 items per season, often made up
in a choice of colours or fabrics. Designs would be selected – usually by
Mrs Ashley herself – from hundreds of made-up samples. The Home
Furnishings collection was revised annually and had gradually expanded
to incorporate wallpapers, upholstered furniture and a complementary
Creating and implementing relationship marketing strategies 433