Burberry Brand Book

Brand Book (Burberry) UK

BURBERRY

’S BRAND BOOK

LOGO & IDENTITY

Figure 1: “In 1904 Burberry’s Equestrian Knight Logo was developed. The Latin word Prorsum (which) means ‘forwards’ and is the registered trademark of the brand. The iconic Burberry check was created in the 1920s as a lining in its trench coats! During WW2, Burberry continue to supply high quality gabardines to servicemen in all branches of the services, and was awarded the Royal Warrant from Her Majesty The Queen in 1955” (Juli TENG, 2011). Brand Mission & Vision statement: The mission statement of Burberry is very brief. It states: “Brand, Business, Culture” (Dihmes, 2013). The mission statement

clears that Burberry offers the customers the brand instead of only products and a great cultural experience (European one of course) in its business around the globe and compete with its best resources. A brand is much more than a product, it is an experience. The vision of Burberry is: “We have a vision – to be the first (fashion) company that is fully digital end-to-end” (Chaffey, 2012). The point made here is simple. The management, whether top, middle or lower, need to be in constant contact with the customers who are using, have used, or are even in some kind of contact with their brands. While launching a new product or checking the sales of the already introduced products in the past, Burberry uses social enterprise or social media to reach their customers. It is cost effective, fast and a large number of customers can be handled at the same time through this. Example: Instead of a magazine ad, Burberry launched a Facebook campaign for its products, Burberry Body Fragrance, to reach maximum audience. It also used an ad and published it online at YouTube (Chaffey, 2012). Brand history

When it comes to the market of Global Fashion, Burberry is indeed a name that is included. Burberry started working as a business in the year 1856 in United Kingdom under the leadership and management of Thomas Burberry, a 21 years old British boy. It is recognized by its distinct plaid pattern including the colours red, white, camel and black. Customers have been happy about the quality, durability and above all the innovativeness the brand offers. The innovativeness included the first ever water resistant fabric. This brand was worn by many adventurers including mountain climbers, swimmers and travellers of the ice cold places. This brand has been using the cultural and traditional touch with all new designs and new collections to maintain its image and focus on the roots. Since the starting of the first shop of Burberry in London (Haymark), its stores have been opened in more than 38 countries worldwide (Robinson, 2013). Burberry is a luxury brand which is listed in both LSE & FTSE, so Burberry is strong financially and it is considered to be the 98th most valuable brand in the world (Juli TENG, 2011). Brand platform / essence (emotional & functional values, personality) The brand Burberry is also having a remarkable feeling value to it. The relation to the British soldiers,

history of British oldest brand name known, quality, social approval because of the celebrity endorsements,

elite and

attractive perception that the consumers have of this brand make it really close to the consumers and it also has earned respect in their hearts. Brand positioning (why they can claim this above all others) The brand positioning is done wisely. By using adventurers, swimmers, mountain climbers, celebrities like the 007 Daniel Craig and Victoria Beckham, luxury status which only selected few can buy, it has become a status symbol and fashion identity. Following is a brief view of Burberry’s brand positioning in the apparel section (Juli TENG, 2011).

Figure 2: Brand Positioning Burberry (Juli TENG, 2011)

Consumer segments Burberry is offering products for 3 categories including for men, for women and for children. The products are provided in the next heading. The brand targets luxury brands lover. But while promoting the brand name through online medium Burberry only allows the present customers to enter the website’s campaign but it allows the visibility for everyone. Thus not everyone can afford the brand and Burberry knows it (Rebeiro, 2011). Product & branding guidelines Burberry is right now offering a wide selection of products not stopping at only the apparel category. Burberry is right now offering following innovative and high quality products (Burberry, 2014):

1. Apparel According to the official website of Burberry, in the apparel section the products range include trench coats both heritage and seasonal; ready to wear including coats, jackets, dresses, knitwear, shirts, polos, denim, swimwear (for children, men and women) and hooded tops and underwear (for men). 2. Footwear For females, prorsum, ballerinas, flats, sandals, pumps, boots and trainers are offered. 3. Handbag Check bags, leather bags, tote bags, clutches, bowling bags, shoulder bags etc are being offered to customers of both genders. 4. Others Jewellery, sun glasses, key charms, digital cases, belts, watches etc are offered as well. 5. Beauty & Fragrance Makeup and perfumes including Burberry body, classics, Brit etc are offered by Burberry to its customers promising innovation and high quality.

Communication guidelines Burberry has been always trying to find ways, new and innovative, to do stuff. Communication is also part of its innovative planning. Burberry’s chief creative officer has promised that the future holds nothing less than perfect. He promised to “build on an increasingly powerful brand (and continue to) push the boundaries of design, technology and communication (and its) heritage, Britishness and values”. According to the article, “Bailey has promised to continue to push the digital boundaries. The fashion brand has launched digital initiatives such as Kisses with Google in the past year” (Parsons, 2013).

Customer engagement is increased and so is the value for Google and Burberry. “A campaign such as Burberry’s is able to engage a consumer because the action is something that can be of personal benefit to the consumer, something that is very different than asking someone to share your latest product” (Shea, 2013).

Bibliography Burberry, 2014. Site Map. [Online] Available at: http://uk.burberry.com/site-map/ [Accessed 2014]. Chaffey, D., 2012. How digital and social media can transform businesses. [Online] Available at: http://www.smartinsights.com/goal-setting-evaluation/visionsetting/digital-and-social-media-transform-business/ [Accessed 02 May 2014]. Dihmes, W., 2013. Strategic Planning for cometitive planning. [Online] Available at: http://inspiredbyburberry.blogspot.com [Accessed 02 May 2014]. Juli TENG, Y.Y.Z.S.F.H.D.C.H.Y.L.J.T.Z., 2011. Brand Burberry. [Online] Available at: http://brandburberry.wordpress.com/about/ [Accessed 02 May 2014]. Parsons, R., 2013. Burberry's new CEO: 'We will continue to push communication boundaries'. Marketing Week, 15 October. [Accessed 02 May 2014]. Rebeiro, M., 2011. 5 principles to guide luxury brands’ use of social media. [Online] Available at: http://www.rmmlondon.com/research/5-principles-to-guideluxury-brands-use-of-social-media/ [Accessed 02 May 2014].

Robinson, E., 2013. Burberry. [Online] Available at: http://www.brandsbook.com.au/burberry/ [Accessed 02 May 2014]. Shea, E., 2013. Burberry engages consumers in branded peer-topeer communication via Google. Luxury Daily, 13 June.