Rebecca. J

The Fendi experience was amazing for us as a group of Fashion Marketing and Branding students. Being welcomed into the headquarters of the multinational brand owned by Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessey was a great privilege. Representatives from the company provided vast amounts of information and a detailed insight into many aspects of the hugely successful brand.

Upon arrival the aura of the brand was presented through luxurious interior architecture and design, a core characteristic of such a reputable brand.

 

What became well established throughout our tour of the building and lessons regarding all that takes place there, was how a luxury brand deserves its vast following and it’s freedom to charge at whatever price they see fit. The visit allowed for identification of how a luxury company warrants its high status and in turn high revenue through the quality woven into every strand of the brand, providing them with customers who have high brand loyalties and are not price driven.

The brand best known for it’s ‘Baguette’ handbag, made famous in the late 1990’s saw Sex and the City fanatics watch as Sarah Jessica Parker wore the bag under her arm like a loaf of bread, placing the distinctive item at the forefront of consumer desirability, marking it as one of the most admired items of the 90’s. However today with changing consumer demands Fendi have to use more than the tool of the celebrity status to create desirability surrounding their goods – it was explained to us that with their ‘Peekaboo’ bag they achieve this through placing customers on a waiting list, heightening demand for the exclusive item as it is not readily available, a characteristic that is highly consumed the elitist shoppers.

Fendi excel in their Fur creation, standing as the leading provider in today’s controversial market. Experts at the Italian headquarters in Rome gave us an extensive description of how these garments are designed, created and finally purchased. Drawings by Karl Lagerfeld were admired by us all, illustrating the detail and sheer craftsmanship demanded in the creation of every single Fur item.

The tour and accompanying talk provided FMB2 with an added experience in Rome, allowing us to improve our understanding of the luxury branded world with relation to the global marketplace.