SALVATORE FERRAGAMO INTERNSHIP REPORT

Alessandra Petrungaro

Boston University Summer 2014

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction 1

Part I: Summary of The Salvatore Ferragamo Group 2

History of the brand 3

Salvatore Ferragamo S.p.A Today 4

Image and Identity of The Salvatore Ferragamo Brand 5

Part II: Internship Narrative Section 8

Tasks Performed & PR Lessons Learned 9

Appendix Disclaimer 13

Part III: Self-Evaluation 14

Conclusion 16

Bibliography 17

1

Introduction

This past summer I had the opportunity of interning with the iconic Italian

fashion house Salvatore Ferragamo. My internship took place at the retail store in

Chicago, Illinois from the beginning of June until the end of August, and I worked

three to four days per week. I worked largely under the store manager and Midwest

Regional Director, Jason Ross. The Chicago store is Ferragamo’s main operating

branch for the midwest and southern regions within the United States. Salvatore

Ferragamo’s unique image and coveted designs are desired all over the world, and I

was able to see a portion of the brand’s influence at my summer internship.

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PART I

Summary of The Salvatore Ferragamo Group

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Summary of the Salvatore Ferragamo Group

History

In 1927 Salvatore Ferragamo legitimized his footwear creations into a high

fashion brand.1 Originating in Florence, Italy, Salvatore Ferragamo gained

popularity from his innovative women’s footwear styles and functionality. Then in

1948, the brand expanded into the United States creating a headquarters in New

York City.2 With this expansion, Salvatore Ferragamo also expanded his product

line. By 1980 the brand had collections such as women’s ready-to-wear, leather

goods, ladies footwear, men’s footwear, and men’s ready-to-wear.3 Adding a men’s

fashion division heightened Ferragamo’s presence in the fashion world and thus

gained a much larger customer base. Over the next decade Salvatore Ferragamo

expanded the brand’s scope into Asian countries such as China, Japan, and South

Korea.4 This provided the brand with another massive addition to its customer base.

As Ferragamo continued to establish retail locations all over the globe-

additions in Latin America, India, and the Middle East from 1999-2010- and also

continued to expand its products, Ferragamo still remained true to its family-

operated foundations.5 With such massive retail development the brand created

product lines such as eyewear, fragrances, and timepieces for both men and women.

1 The Salvatore Ferragamo Group. Web. <http://group.ferragamo.com/en>. 2 Ibid. 3 Ibid. 4 Ibid. 5 Ibid.

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In 2009, to accompany its global retail locations, Ferragamo created a new website

with an e-commerce access for the United States and major European countries.6

Even though the brand’s presence is highly regarded all over the world, Italy

still remains the brand’s true source for inspiration and identity. In 2011 Salvatore

Ferragamo reached a level of grandeur: the brand’s initial public offering on the

Milan Stock Exchange.7 The brand profited nearly 345 million euros during the IPO,

and gained a market value of 1.65 billion euros.8 This success has allowed

Ferragamo to continue developing the brand, yet still remain true to its authentic

Italian style.

Salvatore Ferragamo S.p.A Today

The Salvatore Ferragamo S.p.A is the parent company of the Ferragamo

group, thus existing because of the Milan Stock Exchange IPO. The S.p.A has “over

3,000 employees and an extensive network of 606 single-brand stores.”9 Salvatore

Ferragamo is established in 26 countries worldwide with a total of 338 directly

operated single-brand stores.10 In addition to the directly operated Ferragamo

boutiques around the world, the brand has also partnered with third-party retailers

such as Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus, and Saks Fifth Avenue as several examples

within the United States.11 In total, Ferragamo has 268 wholesale locations

6 Ibid. 7 Ibid. 8 Paul Jarvis, "Salvatore Ferragamo Advances as Much as 8.3% in Milan Stock-Market

Debut." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, 29 June 2011. Web. 9 The Salvatore Ferragamo Group. Web. 10 Ibid. 11 Ibid.

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worldwide, and therefore offers its glamorous products, in some retail form or

another, in nearly 90 countries across the world.12

The Salvatore Ferragamo S.p.A is unique in that it is one of the only fashion

brands not owned by large luxury goods conglomerates such as LVMH Group or

Kering Group. The Salvatore Ferragamo S.p.A has a Board of Directors consisting of

five positions: Chairman, Vice Chairman, Managing Director, Directors, and

Independent Directors.13 Salvatore Ferragamo’s familial descendants compose three

of the five positions, notably the Chairman (Ferruccio Ferragamo) and Vice

Chairman (Giovanna Ferragamo) titles.14

Image and Identity of The Salvatore Ferragamo Brand

The S.p.A is highly recognized in the luxury goods market and focuses on

designing and manufacturing high-fashion products all handmade in Italy. Salvatore

Ferragamo works to “combin[e] style, creativity, and innovation with the quality

and craftsmanship typical of Italian-made goods.”15 Salvatore Ferragamo aims its

identity at combining elegance and luxury with contemporary designs for the

modern man and woman of all ages.

Regarding women’s fashion, the brand has historically designed products

geared towards a more mature demographic of women. As Salvatore Ferragamo

began his brand with women’s footwear, the craftsmanship of each shoe is highly

coveted by women who desire style and functionality. Ferragamo’s footwear serves

12 Ibid. 13 Ibid. 14 Ibid. 15 Ibid.

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not only a fashion purpose but an orthopedic function as well. Since the brand puts

great emphasis on the quality of ones shoes in regards to orthopedic health, women

in the workforce and of a mature age appreciate the functionality of Ferragamo’s

footwear. In recent collections, however, Creative Director Massimiliano Giornetti

has designed not only footwear, but ready-to-wear as well, that has a more modern

aura. In Anamaria Wilson’s article, “Fashion’s Best Kept Secret,” for Harper’s Bazaar,

Wilson recounts James Ferragamo’s statement about the ‘then-new’ creative

director: “’ Massimiliano is helping us maintain my grandfather’s pr inciples, beliefs,

and values but at the same time supports the innovation, creativity, and modernity

of the brand.’”16 Blending these elements has expanded Ferragamo’s female target

audience to attract the chic young woman looking for elegance who does not have to

sacrifice her flare for trend to achieve it.

Concerning men’s fashion, Ferragamo has historically appealed to both the

younger, fashion conscious man and the more mature refined man. Consistent with

the values of the brand, Ferragamo’s products emote a true Italian style. Giornetti

led the men’s division of the brand for nearly 10 years before his promotion to

Creative Director.17 With this, Massimiliano Giornetti continues to design the men’s

collection with an ode to true Italian fashion, but with functionality and style that

appeal to all men interested in fashion. In Laurie Brookins’ article for Vegas

Magazine, Brookins interviews Giornetti who states, “Menswear for me is very

surgical and really about working on the details…. [I] want to create a closer

16 Anamaria Wilson, “Fashion’s Best Kept Secret,” Harper’s BAZAAR, Web. 30 October 2012. 17 Ibid.

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language between tailoring and sportswear, to create pieces that feel closer to the

refinement of a tailored piece while at the same time less strict.”18

Salvatore Ferragamo’s brand identity remains true to its foundation. Classic

Italian fashion comprised of elegant silhouettes and unmatched quality mixed with

modern elements makes Ferragamo truly distinct. Regarding the brand’s perceived

image among its publics, the image is a direct reflection of how the brand has

promoted its identity: “Massimiliano masterfully introduced his own vision while

respecting and building upon the rich legacy of Ferragamo. That first resort

collection set the tone for what was to come- elegance and decadence. We quickly

moved to have Ferragamo on Moda Operandi, and customer response has been

phenomenal,” stated Lauren Santo Domingo, a cofounder and creative director of

the major online retail haven Moda Operandi.19 With large retailers and famous

figures in the fashion world praising Giornetti’s designs, the brand’s image remains

esteemed among its publics. Moreover, the brand’s favorable image promotes its

success in the luxury goods market, thus solidifying its prestige as a premiere

fashion brand.

18 Laurie Brookins, “Ferragamo’s Massimiliano Giornetti,” Vegas Magazine RSS, Web. 19 Anamaria Wilson, “Fashion’s Best Kept Secret.”

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PART II

Internship Narrative Section

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Internship Narrative

Tasks Performed & PR Lessons Learned

Salvatore Ferragamo’s corporate offices are located in New York City. Since

my internship took place in Chicago, Illinois, I did not work in a traditional office

setting, yet I still performed tasks associated with this type of environment. As

stated earlier, I worked mainly with my internship supervisor, Store Manager, and

Midwest Regional Director, Jason Ross. There are 12 employees at the Chicago store

that I worked with throughout my internship. Since the Chicago Salvatore

Ferragamo store is primarily a retail location, 10 of the employees are sales

associates, one employee is a shipping and handling manager, and the other is Mr.

Ross. Since Jason Ross oversees all of the stores in the midwest and southern region

of the United States, he manages all internal communication, product information

and orders, visual displays, special events, and general business operations for this

division. He is in close contact with other directors such as the east and west coast

directors, and the national buyers for the several men and women’s collections.

Since I worked primarily under Jason Ross, I was able to gain knowledge and

experience in the types of tasks he performs, as well as being able to work as a sa les

associate within the store on occasion.

My first few work days consisted of learning the rules and customs of this

particular store and the company in general. I watched how sales associates

interacted with each customer to learn the level of hospitality that the brand

requires to present to customers. Ferragamo employees are instructed to treat

every prospective customer with unmatched kindness and authenticity. The days

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when I worked on the sales floor, in both the men’s and women’s departments, it

was utterly essential that I knew information about each product line and

subsequently each individual item within that collection. Since Ferragamo’s

products are created uniquely and with impeccable quality and care, it is essential to

relay that information to customers. Many customers expect a certain level of

quality because Salvatore Ferragamo is a high fashion brand, but on several

occasions customers were greatly impressed after I transmitted the company’s

history and practices to them. For example, Ferragamo creates a line of men’s shoes

called the Tramezza Collection. This collection is made-to-order and each shoe is

masterfully crafted in Italy. To make the shoes, shoemakers hand-stitch each pair to

perfection, and perform extensive leather treatment and dye processes, which take

up to one month. The labor hours needed to create products such as this are

extensive, and that is reflected in the price of the shoes. Often after communicating

this information to a customer, he or she was impressed and this helped raise

awareness about the brand’s practices and level of prestige. I found that directly

interacting with customers, in a sales-driven role, is a vital way that brands

disseminate identity elements and information to its publics. This allows the

company to enhance its image and strengthen the power it has within the

marketplace.

Another interesting concept I encountered while working directly with

customers was that I was able to see how customers reacted to certain products.

Footwear, for example, was the division that had the largest range of opinions. In

both men’s and women’s footwear, customers would comment on how comfortable,

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or not, the shoes were for their feet. Since each customer has a unique anatomy, the

‘fit’ of a certain style of shoe may not be ideal for that customer, even though

Ferragamo designs their shoes in the most comfortable way possible. Having a

customer provide you with feedback about a product such as shoes allows the sales

associate to direct them to a style more suited to their anatomy. This helps the

customer’s perceptions of the brand. The sales associate can then relay that specific

feedback to other associates or corporate employees so the brand is aware of how

customers are responding to their products.

The second task I performed at my internship with Salvatore Ferragamo was

working with a visual specialist on store displays. For each season, new products

arrive in three stages. Each shipment is a portion of the new collection, and must be

presented in a certain manner in accordance with Ferragamo ideals. Window

displays, for example, must highlight the most coveted products from the seasonal

collection, and must also transmit a story to the viewer. Corporate employees in

New York and Florence decide which items are ‘red hot,’ which are usually looks

highlighted on the runway. The displays are presented in a manner that radiates the

inspirational elements behind each collection. Each story must attract customers

and also stay true to Ferragamo’s fashion vision. While working with the visual

specialist at the Chicago location, we presented pieces from the fall collection that

would appeal to Midwesterners in terms of design and practicality. Although

Ferragamo boutiques in places such as Bal Harbor and Beverly Hills receive

sweaters, furs, and coats, they do not emphasize those items in displays because it

would not agree with the climate. In Chicago, we displayed these furs and coats

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because of consumer demand for cold weather clothing. Within the store, the visual

specialist based the layout of the products on the same principles in the window

displays. Each display fixture had to incorporate a story and had to respect the

priority of the products, also like the window displays.

The third task I performed while interning at Ferragamo was assisting in the

store inventory process. For this, every employee had to manually scan in every

item within the store so that corporate employees can assess products, revenue, and

success of certain products over others. Inventory allowed us to measure the

monetary amount of products within the store, thus showing how Ferragamo

allocates products and prioritizes each boutique location. Unfortunately for our

location, there had been a theft incident of nearly $5000 before the store inventory

process. Not only was this an obvious monetary issue, it also became a legal issue

that resulted in high legal costs.

The fourth and main task I performed as an intern was assisting Jason Ross. I

worked with him mainly on internal communication matters such as contacting

product buyers, planning events, allocating products, and relaying company-wide

new business to other boutique locations. When communicating with buyers, I

would inquire about new product deliveries and promotional information about

these products and collections. I would also contact them when we sold out of items

in order to inform customers if products would be restocked at our location. When

forwarding company-wide business to other boutiques, the task was simply

emailing the managers from each boutique with the information provided from

corporate. Another aspect that I assisted Jason Ross in was planning a store event

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for September 10th, 2014. The event was a social charity gathering in which a

percentage of the amount sold that night was donated to a local charity. I assisted

my supervisor in securing a catering company, a music performer, and creating

invitations. The guest list consisted of Ferragamo’s top tier clients in Chicago, and

important figures such as Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Ferragamo’s regional directors

from each major sector in the United States, and certain professional athletes. I

unfortunately could not attend the event, but I am grateful for the opportunity to

have helped plan an event for a company that I highly admire and that philanthropy

was the basis of the gathering.

Appendix Disclaimer

I regard my internship at Salvatore Ferragamo as an extremely beneficial

experience. I gained very valuable knowledge of the fashion and retail industries as

well as being exposed to how public relations works within this sector. Given that

the tasks I performed at my internship were not traditional PR pieces such as press

releases and editorials, I do not have any tangible work to include in an appendix.

Although I did not conduct any traditional PR work, I created meaningful

relationships within the internal world of Salvatore Ferragamo and gained

knowledge of Ferragamo’s company practices that I will apply to my future career in

the fashion industry.

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PART III

Self- Evaluation

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Self- Evaluation

My summer internship with Salvatore Ferragamo was an irreplaceable

opportunity that I am fortunate to have experienced. Working at such an illustrious

high fashion brand solidified my passion for the industry and allowed me to create

meaningful relationships that I will continue to foster into my future. As an intern, I

was treated with respect and a sense of professionalism that many other interns do

not receive. Granted that the staff I worked with were very welcoming and kind, I

believe that it is the principles of the brand that allow for such a pleasant work

environment.

The fashion industry is not a patient or forgiving industry. My past

internships in fashion have been extremely demanding with no room for error and

strenuous hours and tasks. In the past, I have interned at companies that were not

enjoyable to work at, and where my work was not appreciated. At Salvatore

Ferragamo, however, I felt accepted and valued. Since Ferragamo is one of the only

fashion brands that remains family operated, I believe that this sense of family and

hospitality truly impact the employees and creates a strong workforce. When

Salvatore Ferragamo started the brand, he incorporated influences from the Italian

lifestyle into his designs and his business practices. Since the concept of a strong,

close-knit family is of great importance within Italian culture, Ferragamo worked to

translate that mentality into his brand. For 87 years the brand has continued this

mindset, and as an intern this past summer I truly felt that I was part of a family.

Not only did I feel as though I was part of a family, I also believe that I grew

closer to my Italian heritage. I was exposed to the Italian fashion world and the

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characteristics that define Italian fashion from other styles. Prior to my Ferragamo

internship, I was familiar with Parisian fashion qualities and knew little about the

philosophy of Italian style. Now having learned the Italian way of fashion, such as

the materials used, the care and quality in product creation, and cultural influences,

I feel as though my personal sense of style has changed for the better. I have

adopted a newfound sense of pride in my heritage, and will continue to cultivate

that notion as I continue into a career in the fashion industry.

Along with the acceptance I felt at my internship, I also was treated like a

true professional. I never performed mundane tasks such as coffee-runs or other

demeaning errands. I was presented with real communication and business work.

Since I was communicating with important figures in the company, I felt as though I

was regarded as important also. This treatment helped me to mature not only

professionally but personally as well. I feel as if I now have a clear vision of how to

behave in the workplace; with elegance and creativity. In addition to maturing in the

workplace, the brand’s aura of maturity also translated into my personal life. I feel

mentally more mature and refined.

Conclusion

Having interned at Salvatore Ferragamo this past summer, I learned vital

lessons and was able to experience a preview of my future career. My internship

furthered my knowledge of Italian fashion, helped me mature professionally and

personally, and heightened my sense of pride in my culture. Although my internship

with Salvatore Ferragamo is now in my past, the experiences and knowledge I

obtained will support my future career in the fashion industry.

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Bibliography

Brookins, Laurie. "Ferragamo's Massimiliano Giornetti." Vegas Magazines RSS. N.p.,

n.d. Web. 7 Sept. 2014.

<http://vegasmagazine.com/style/articles/massimiliano-giornetti-steers-

ferragamo>.

Jarvis, Paul. "Salvatore Ferragamo Advances as Much as 8.3% in Milan Stock-Market

Debut." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, 29 June 2011. Web. 8 Sept. 2014.

<http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-06-29/salvatore-ferragamo-

advances-as-much-as-8-3-in-milan-stock-market-debut.html>.

The Salvatore Ferragamo Group. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Sept. 2014.

<http://group.ferragamo.com/en>.

Wilson, Anamaria. "Fashion's Best Kept Secret." Harper's BAZAAR. N.p., 30 Oct. 2012.

Web. 7 Sept. 2014. <http://www.harpersbazaar.com/fashion/fashion-

photography/ferragamo-massimiliano-giornetti-fashion-shoot-1112#slide-

1>.