United Colour of Benetton

7/28/2019 United Colour of Benetton

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MARKETING STRATEGY

OF

UNITED COLORS OF BENETTON

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT


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An Analysis of Marketing Strategy of

United Colors of Benetton

A report submitted towards the partial fulfillment of the requirements of the two years

full-time MBA Degree.

Guided By:

PROF. PABITRA RANJAN CHAKRAVORTY

Submitted By:

SHREY GHOSAL

STEFFY VELAYUDHAN

SANDEEP SINGH BHADAURIA

SUMIT TANWAR

HARSHIL PATEL


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ACKNOWLEDGMENT

We, the Competency Group, take this privilege while presenting this project report,

to express our deep gratitude to all those who offered their valuable help and devoted

their precious time to help us in completing the project successfully. This journey into

project methodology would have been a travesty had it not been for the guidance,

assistance, encouragement and moral support from many. It would be unjust if we do

not commence this study by acknowledging their efforts. We would like to express our

gratitude to all those who gave us the possibility to complete this Marketing Strategy

Report. We would like to thank Indian Institution of Planning & Management.

We are deeply indebted to our faculty and guide Mr. Pabitra Ranjan from Indian

Institution of Planning & Management for his valuable guidance, stimulating

suggestions, patience and for encouraging us to go ahead with our project report.

We want to thank all the faculties and our friends in Indian Institution of Planning

& Management for their help support, interest and valuable hints during our project.


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CONTENTS

Sr. No Particular Page No.

1. Introduction 05

2.. Objectives of the Study 07

3. Research Methodology 07

4. Marketing Strategy 9

5. Brands 14

6. Sales 15

7. Supply Chain 16

8. Sourcing 17

9. Visual Merchandising 17

10. Competitor Analysis 18

11. SWOT Analysis 20

12. Questionnaire Analysis 21

13. Recent Developments 29

14. Recommendations & Conclusions 30

15. Appendix 32


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1. INTRODUCTION:

1.1 History:

Benetton Group is a global fashion brand, based in Treviso, Italy. The name comes from theBenetton family who founded the company in 1965. Benetton Group is listed in Milan. Benetton hasa network of around 6,000 stores in 120 countries. The stores are managed by independent partnersand generate a total turnover of over 2 billion euro.

In 1965, Luciano Benetton, the eldest of four children, was a 30-year-old salesman inTreviso. He saw a market for colourful clothes, and sold a younger brother's bicycle in order to buyhis first second-hand knitting machine. His initial small collection of sweaters received a positiveresponse in local stores in the Veneto region, and soon after he asked his sister and two youngerbrothers, Gilberto and Carlo, to join him. In 1965, the entity known as the "Benetton Group" isformed.

In 1966, the Benettons opened their first store in Belluno and three years after in Paris, withLuciano as chairman, his brother Gilberto in charge of administration, their younger brother Carlorunning production, and Giuliana as a chief designer.

In 1965The Benetton Group is established.

In 1970A business model making the difference: unique, flexible and innovative.

In 1980Benetton communication campaigns: known all over the world.

In 1990A global company present in 120 countries.

In 2000Benetton grows with the market: over 150 million garments produced every year and distributed

in around 6,000 contemporary store
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luciano_Benettonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venetohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellunohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellunohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venetohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luciano_Benetton


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1.2 Overview of United Colors of Benetton:

Today, the Benetton Group is presented in 120 countries around the world. Its core business is

fashion apparel: a group with a strong Italian character whose style, quality and passion are clearly

seen in its brands, the casual United Colors of Benetton, the glamour oriented Sisley,Playlife

American college style andKiller Loop streetwear. The Group produces over 150 million garments

every year. Its network of more than 5,000 contemporary stores around world, offers high quality

customer services and generates a total turnover of over 2 billion euro.

Target Customers: The companies target group is between the ages of 16 to 32 The prices must be logical for someone as young as 16 is able to afford the product The older people who have their own income dont find the product price to cheap or

expensive.

Older women (over 32) buy these clothes so that feel and dress younger than theirreal age.

Headquarters:Benetton Group's Corporate headquarters is located at Villa Minelli in Ponzano,

about 30 km from Venice. Villa Minelli is a complex of sixteenth century buildings

of great historical and cultural interest.

The villa was acquired by Benetton in 1969 and the task of restoring and

remodernising the complex, entrusted to architects Afra and Tobia Scarpa, took over

fifteen years. From the mid 1980s Villa Minelli became the headquarters of the

Group and home to all its strategic functions.

Around 6,000 stores worldwide: The development of Benetton's commercial network, characterised by prestigious

locations in historic and commercial centres and by the high level of customer

services offered, has been supported by a major programme of investment worldwide.

The Benetton stores carry complete collections, as well as a wide selection ofaccessories, offering a full range of Benetton style and quality.


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Design: A staff of 300 designers from all over the world creates the collections for the casual United

Colors of Benetton, the glamour oriented Sisley, the leisurewear brand Playlife. The design

team is also engaged in researching new materials and creating new lines for different targets

from children, men and women to expectant mothers, offering them not only practical and

modern styles but also maximum comfort.

The result is the latest trends in design and a rich output of many models a year which arerealized with computer assisted design systems fully integrated with the rest of the company's

production phases.

2. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

2.1 Primary Objective:

To analyse the marketing strategy of United Colors of Benetton.

2.2 Secondary Objective:

To study the various promotional schemes of United Colors of Benetton. To study the Branding strategy of United Colors of Benetton. To understand the perception of consumers towards United Colors of Benetton. To analyse the strategy of competitors of United Colors of Benetton.

3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The methodology of our project was purely based on personal observation as well as interaction and

discussion with customers. The study involved both exploratory and descriptive research techniques

using both primary and secondary sources.

3.1 Primary Research

Research Design: The research design used in the study was descriptive in nature.


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Sample Design:

i) Population:UCB customers all over the world.ii) Survey population:UCB customers in Ahmedabad.iii)Sampling unit:A consumer of fashion clothing and apparells (male or female).iv)Sampling technique:Non probability method using judgmental sampling.v) Sample size: 150vi)Research Tool: Questionnaire & unstructured interview and focus group discussion.

3.2 Secondary Research

Secondary research provided insights regarding Industry trends, Offerings of key players and

Consumer Profile and preferences; Focus Group discussions and Depth Interviews provided

information about Consumer perception about the Product/Service offering, Key factors that

influence their choice, Satisfaction levels with current offerings, and desirable features.

3.3 Design Considerations

All questions (except identification-based) were closed-ended. The basic questions were posed

first, and identification questions were at the end. Careful wording was used to avoid ambiguity or

biasing questions. Several questions involved the respondent expressing his/her level of agreement

with a certain issue. Few of these questions were stated positively and few others negatively to

avoid biasing in response. Sensitive information such as Information regarding Income/Family

Status had response categories and was placed towards the end of the questionnaire to increase

response rate.

3.4 Questionnaire Development

A well-structured questionnaire was developed after a review of Internet commerce literatures. The

first half of the questionnaire tried to study the general perceptions and attitudes of consumers

towards online ticket booking and the second half tried to study their perceptions related to online

travel portals. The questionnaire included different scales such as nominal scale, Likert scale,

importance rating scale as well as semantic differential scale.


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4. MARKETING STRATEGY:

4.1 The Pricing Strategy

Benetton has moderate priced boutiques and the strategy of the firm is the match between its internal

capabilities and its external relationships. The strategy describes how it responds to its suppliers, its

customers, its competitors, and the social and economical environment within which it operates. The

inclusion of several of its competitors, such as the GAP and others in the garment industry, would

appear to suggest that although conditions in the apparel market are undoubtedly tough, the more

brand focused organizations are adapting to the market evolution and are still commanding a

premium for added value sales.

In the absence of a store or even on-line prices, to find pricing information for Benetton clothing a

search on E-bay was the only site to yield clothing information and since this was an auction site, the

prices on the clothing were not an actual representation of the corporations pricing policies. A

plethora of information could, however, be found in regards to the accessory line, the magazine, and

on the fragrance.

4.2 Production strategy

The Benetton group to the U.S market in hopes of revitalizing its brand across the country. The new

benetton stores will have a larger format ranging from 6000 square feet to 20,000 square feet. They

will also have a more expensive line of products and a minimal design, say company officials.

The retailers plan to open three stores in Manhattan this fall and are looking at sites in Los Angeles,

san Francisco and Atlanta.

Today United Color of Benetton is one of the best known brands, with daring campaigns and new ,

innovative and high quality products. This brand stayed in the top for more than twenty years.

Anything done under this brand proved to be successful from the start.

The mix of the products made under the brand name United Color of Benetton include the consumer

products as brightly colored clothing lines, accessories, shoes, baby clothing lines, each collection


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with is own personality adapted for a larger consumer scale as possible. The organizational products

include licenses and franchising. The UCB products designed for young people of all ages, colors,

nationalities, with the desire to have more color in their life.

A global brand that has an international style combining color, energy, and practicality, the united

Colors of Benetton sells in addition to a range of male and female clothing for several occasions, a

magazine, a fragrance line, and accessories. The core group of Benetton is the clothing line which

has a strong Italian character in design and style offering a total look for every day.

The adult clothing line is described as having no boundaries or set rules. The adult clothes line

extends from casual to formal to glamours to sportswear that allows the consumer to mix materials,

style, and themes.

The childrens clothings line assimilates popular and emergent trends, encouraging childrens

explosives creativity. Much as the adult line, the childrens line offers a multi-ethnic eclectic range

of choices. For teenagers, there is an entire dedicated line referred to as, The Hip Site.

4.3. Promotional Strategies

"Communication should never be commissioned from outside the company, but conceived from

within its heart".

Benetton Group use the value to creating from capitalize on an image, the Benetton group's

advertising campaigns are not only a means of communication buta feeling of us. They use the

mediums through their universal impact; they have succeeded in attracting the public to attend to

their brand and especially, in standing out among the current clutter of images.

All the colors of the world"this is the first slogans to appear in Benetton ads, and thence later has

modified to "United Colors of Benetton." this concept communicated on a strong of colors.


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Examples of advertisement media.

Magazine

Colors Magazine is one of magazine about the rest of the world. It's on sale in 40 countries,published in 4 languages. Colors Magazine let talk to young people in around the world.

Internet

Benetton's website is one of easy way to invite, the user can see the new collection and the newcampaigns. It's a way to up to date for customers all the time.


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Fabrica

Fabrica is Benetton's communication research centre, they made it with the aim of combining culture

with industry and volunteering young people from around the world to creative and interchange their

experience. Fabrica give an opportunity to young artists/designers for training and studying, and

develop into the experts.

The promotion strategy of Benetton is mainly the advertising strategy and it Is one of Benettons

main assets. At first, from 1984 to 1990 Benettons advertising strategy was based on picture of

young people, each of them representing a different skin color, wearing really colorful outfits. The

main point of this advertising strategy was to set up individuals together from all over the world, no

distinction between skin colors. The brands value was about brotherhood and cultural tolerance.

The ads were focusing on cultural tolerance such as Black and White, Russian and American,

Jewish and Palestinian. Benettons slogan is the well-known: United Color of Benetton. Thebrand wanted to have the identity of colors. This is also a sign of allegiance, an outward sign of an

ideology and a set of values and brand culture (social issues). This strategy was an innovative

advertising strategy, because the company uses social issues. In the same way, it created a long term

relationships with customers with strong brand recognition.

Nevertheless, in 1991, Benetton changed its advertising strategy. The company repositioned itself in

showing the real world and its issue. The advertisements are more and more shocking, the topics are

wider such as Aids, war, pollution, and other social issues.


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4.4 Place strategy

Benetton is arguably the worlds largest retailer with a network of 6000 large stores, smallerbranches and franchises in 120 countries, worldwide. The company trades on the basis of Just-In-

Time coloration and finishing providing flexibility to consumer demand.

Benetton is an Italian clothing manufacturer with sales of 1.9 billion pounds in 2002. The company

distributes mainly through third-party independent retailers, but is currently developing its own retail

network. It generates 69% of sales in Europe, 9% in North America, 9% in Asia and 13% in the rest

of the world. Italy is Benettons single largest market accounting for about 31.1% of sales.

Benettons distribution strategy revolves around a large network of independent franchises and

resellers who invests capital in their own network of stores( totaling roughly 5,200 at the end of

2002). These in turn buy merchandise from Benetton and sell directly to the retail customer.

Benetton does not impose very strict on the independent distributors regarding the presentation of

erchandise, completeness of range and general store ambience.

Off course, this strategy creates a number of risks for Benetton. First, the company has less control

over the production positioning and the way merchandise is presented to consumers. This raises the

risk of inconsistence and variations in consumer perception to the detriment of the overall brand.

Second, relying on the third-party distribution weakens business intelligence and customer feedback

and generally creates a less responsive business model.

Benetton sees itself as a clothing service company rather that a retailer or a manufacturer. Itscustomers are its shops, which are owned by outsiders. Unlike normal franchises systems, the shops

pay no royalties and Benetton accepts no returned stock. A network of 83 area agents knits the whole

operation together, finding investors for the shops and keeping Benettons head office near Treviso

in touch with customer taste around the world.


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5. BRANDS:

A global brand, and one of the most well known in the world United Colours of Benetton has an international style that combines colour, quality and

fashion

The Benetton Baby label is a new product line dedicated to the prenatal and the under-fivesworld.

The brand is present in many other sectors, from the elegant accessories to the eyewear linesand perfumes, from the home collection to baby products.

It is an extension of the Benetton brand, featuring under wear, beachwear,sleepwear, accessory collections

Under colors is available in its own chain of stores which now has more than 500 locations inthirty countries and in selected Benetton Shops.


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A fashion brand for young adults, with a resolute and distinctive style. It is inspired byteenagers' favorite role models and icons. Killer Loop is the Benetton brand that edgily

interprets "street vibrations.

This is the Group's most fashion forward brand Sisley presents elegant and seductive collections, with special attention given to the choice of

design, fabrics and new shapes

The brand has created the very fashionable Sisley Young line for children from 8 to 12 yearsold

It is the Benetton leisurewear brand that redefines a style With its clean and elegant collections Play life blends exclusive styles with strong sense of

individuality

6. SALES:


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Benetton achieved 967 million euro in sales of its brand "United Colours of Benetton Adult",that is 51% of the total sales in 2009.

Another 31% of sales have been achieved through sales of the brand "United Colors ofBenetton Kid", that is 601 million euro.

The third highest percentage of 16%, that is 300 million euro grossed the "Sisley" brand. The "Playlife" brand grossed 37 million euro.


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7. SUPPLY CHAIN:

Information technology links the market place with the manufacturing process. ElectronicData Interchange (EDI) allows Benetton's agents in each country to regularly transmit orders

to Benetton's head office.

The market is updated every 24 hours allows Benetton to carefully track and react to demandby manufacturing only those garment styles, colours and sizes required.

Communications technology has allowed Benetton to "eliminate the filters between thecustomer and production" and to link the customer directly to the factory.

It established WIDE (Worldwide Integrated Distribution Enterprise) to manage theinternational forwarding and customs clearance functions.

WIDE was first established to manage the North American product movements. This organization deals directly with air carriers--eliminating a level of freight-forwarded

intervention.

EDI technology allows Benetton to transmit documentation ahead of consignment arrivals. toallow speedy clearance through customs and forwarding to the retail outlets. These functions

are managed or performed by WIDE.

The result of this rationalization was a 55 per cent reduction in physical distribution costs anda reduction in lead times to the USA from 22 days to seven days.

Benetton is creating great designs, but also building a logistics system to compete with thefast fashion companies.

It has invested more than $160 million into its supply chain for its brands that also includeSisley and Playlife.

Benetton is outsourcing the production of high-margin accessories and has a world-widedistribution network.

The company can reroute merchandise during shipment if another store needs more clothes. Benetton sends inventory in small shipments, ships every two weeks, but can ship in seven

days if a product is hot


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THE ROBOTIC DISTRIBUTION CENTRE Benetton has huge distribution centre where the garments are already packed in

one of two standard boxes which are bar-coded and pre-addressed to customers.

The bar-coded cartons are delivered by high speed conveyors from the receiptbays to rail-guided transporters in the storage area.

Each transporter can transfer up to 24 cartons at a time to and from the racking. Simultaneous put-away and retrieval occurs to maximize efficiency. The storage zone has a capacity of 250,000 boxes sorted randomly. The DC handles 12,000 boxes a day. equivalent to 6,000 consignments a day,

representing some 60 million garments a year.


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8. SOURCING:

Sourcing the finished productIn recent years special attention has also been focussed on the "Sourced Products" areas, with

outsourcing of production in countries like China, India and Thailand, Turkey.

Three main areas of sourcing:- China coordinated from Hong Kong;

- South East Asia (Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia) coordinated from

Bangkok;

- India (coordinated from Bangalore).

9. VISUAL MERCHANDISING:

It should be simple yet attractive with appropriate color and lighting. Itshould focus on the best selling products and should carry a distinct theme.

Window displays have been found to promote sales, highlight seasonalchanges, and announce the arrival of new products apart from showcasing the

best selling merchandise.

It provides a view of both the exterior as well as the interiors of thestore. Walks and entry should be so designed that there is sufficient space for

customers to have a hassle free movement.

Benetton provides Valet parking for its customers. The followingExhibitor shows the signage put on the entrance of the store


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10. COMPETITOR ANALYSIS

Benetton mainly operates in the apparel sector, which is a highly competitive industry with respect

to production, distribution and sales. There is a lot of diversity in competition ranging from local,

national and global department stores, specialized retailers, independent retailers and manufacturing

companies. In India, the major competitors of Benetton include Mango, FCUK, Guess, Espirit,

Westside, etc. The company faces a lot of competition internationally as well from brands like Gap,

H&M etc. The competition in the industry has increased in the last few years, owing to the entry of

foreign brands into the Indian market, and thus low cost production plays a key role. Apart from

competition for sales, the companies also compete for significant store locations. The intensity of

competition also puts a price pressure onto the operating companies in the industry or could lead to a

loss in market share.

MANGO

Mango clothing company is a worldwide famous manufacturer and distributor, specializing in

women's and men's apparel and accessories. Mango clothing brand MNG was founded in 1984 and

has become one of the leaders in retail sales. Mango retail stores are based in big city shopping

malls and on shopping streets. Mango (MNG) is a Spanish company which is based in Barcelona but

which has expanded to over 92 countries with more than 1000 shops; and with further expansion

planned.

GUESS

Guess? Inc. The Group's principal activities are to design, market, distribute and license lifestyle

collections of casual apparel and accessories for men, women and children that reflect the American

lifestyle and European fashion. The Group operates through the following divisions: Retail,

European, Wholesale and Licensing. The Group also grants licenses to manufacture and distribute

products, which complement its apparel lines. Its products include collections of denim and cotton

clothing, including jeans, pants, overalls, skirts, dresses, shorts, blouses, shirts, jackets, and

knitwear. The company also grants licenses to manufacture and distribute various products,

including eyewear, watches, handbags, footwear, kids and infants apparel, leather apparel,


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swimwear, fragrance, jewelry, and other fashion accessories. It sells its products through its own

stores, a network of wholesale accounts, and the Internet.

GAP

The Gap, Inc is American clothing and accessories retailer based in San Francisco California, and

founded in1969. The company has five primary brands: the namesake Gap banner, Banana

Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime and Athleta. Gap, Inc. remains the largest specialty apparel retailer in

U.S., though it has recently been surpassed by the Spanish-based Inditex Group as the worlds

largest apparel retailer. Gap Inc. is one of the worlds largest specialty apparel retailers, with more

than 3,100 stores and fiscal 2008 revenues of $14.5 billion.

ESPRIT

Esprit is an international youthful lifestyle brand offering smart, affordable luxury and bringing

newness and style to life. The Group offers 12 product lines encompassing womens wear, mens

wear, kids wear, edc youth as well as shoes and accessories through over 640 directly managed

retail stores and over 12,000 wholesale points-of-sale worldwide, occupying over 817,000 square

metres directly managed retail space in more than 40 countries.


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11. SWOT ANALYSIS

The SWOT analysis includes the Opportunities, Threats, Strengths and Weaknesses.

Strengths:

Customers are brand loyal. Benetton is enjoying competitive edge vis--vis competitors in Italy. Benetton is maintaining good company relationship with labor. Benetton is having soundness in financial management. Benetton system procedures, structures, processes are consistent with designed industry

standards.

Weaknesses:

Benetton needs improvement in re-inventing vision, mission and strategic objective andgoals.

Marketing improvements are needed in marketing management.Improvements are needed in Human resource Management.

Opportunities:

Economics conditions including all its indicators reflect positive health of Italy economic conditions.

Benetton is reasonably equipped to internalize the social shift. Benetton is implementing all the related laws and its article/clauses.

Apparently Government policies are supportive towards industry. Benetton is reasonably equipped to maintain the pace of technological changes. International components namely economics, political, technological, legal exhibit normally

in USA.

Threats:

Italy is experiencing social shift in terms of customers. Customers are seeking value andthey have become savvy also.

Legislations are being passed frequently related to apparel (textile) industry. The industry is subject to technological changes and having a high vulnerability. Benetton is facing fierce competition in USA and their counterparts dominating the

market.

In USA due to cultural diversity customers have different taste, preferences and they seeout different values from their transactions.


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12. QUESTIONNAIRE ANALYSIS

1. From where do you purpose fashion garments ?

2. How frequently do you go for shopping of garments?

16%

49%

33%

1.50%

Shopping Place

Street Market

Retail Shops

Mall

Internet

1%

56.50%

34.50%

8%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Weekly Quarterly Monthly Annualy

Frequency


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3. For which purpose you go to Mall most ?

4. What is your monthly budget for shopping of garments ?

Purpose

0%10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Shopping Games Movies Others

53%

7%

31%

9%

Purpose

Purpose

8%

68%

25%

Monthly Budget(Rs.)

X < 1000

1000-3000

3000 < X


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5. Have you ever seen any advertisement of United Colors of Benetton ?

6. Which brand of fashion garments you prefer more ?

42%

58%

58%

Watched Advertisement

81.50%

18.50%

18%

29.50%

9%

43.50%

Brand

United Colours of Benetton

Levi's

Spykar

Others


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7. Which factor of UCB attracts you more ?

8. How much do you appropriate quality assurance of United Colors of Benetton ?

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

Price Quality Brand

Ambassador

Advertisement

6%

84.00%

5% 5%

Factor

Factor

20%

65%

13%2% 0%0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Very Much Appreciable Can't Say No

Appropriable

Not at All

Response

Response


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9. Which brand of UCB you like the most ?

10. On which occasion do you like to purchase the UCB most?

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

UCB Sisley Play life Killer Loop

33%

18%

28%

21%

Brand of UCB

Brand of UCB

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

Festival Parties Birthday Anniversaries

41%

19%23%

17%

Ocassion


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11. Would you suggest UCB to your relatives / friends?

12. Do you find sufficient varieties of accessories & apparels at UCB outlets?

81%

19%

Response

Yes No

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Yes No

73%

27%

Response


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13. Do you find enough number of outlets of UCB in Ahmedabad ?

14. For whom do you prefer the product of UCB ?

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Response

68%

32%

Yes No

13%

64%

23%

Category

Kids

Gents

Ladies


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13. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

UCB Men's Collections

United Colors of Benetton has consolidated its product range and expanded the assortment in its

men's collections, a segment that now accounts for around 21% of UCB sales.

Sisley YoungSisley Young collection for children from 3 to 12, but concentrating on the 8-12 age group, it

plays on sensations, emotions and creativity, all of which are reworked, filtered and adjusted to the

young age of our very modern little women and men.

LUCKY YOUFrom 30 October 2010, customers purchasing in a single transaction three items from the

United Colors of Benetton Toddler and Kid (from size 74 to XXL) lines among those markedwith the special LUCKY YOU sticker will receive the cheapest item free (subject to availability in-store at the moment of purchase).

The promotion will be valid at participating United Colors of Benetton stores, displaying

the special United Colors of Benetton. Lucky you advertising posters.

The UCBs product merchandising policy is also important in its success because they

emphasized a climate of scarcity and opportunity. So, its consumers know that if they like

something, they must buy it in this moment and not later. All these characteristics makes UCB a

business model difficult to imitate and for this reason its competitive advantages are more

sustainable.

In conclusion, Benetton uses knowledge management to balance structure and creativity. They

recognize that both creativity and structure is crucial in ensuring the success of the venture.


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14. RECOMMENDATIONS & CONCLUSIONS

Recommendations

Based on the analysis of information gathered and inferences made thereof, some recommendations

are as follows

Promotional Offers: Consumers are price-conscious and are attracted towards promotional offers.

Give the usual promotional offers that other brands do, like cash back offer on usage of certain credit

cards.

Customer Care: Easy and quick access to customer care acts as a re-assuring factor and increases

customer satisfaction with service offering. The company should look at providing multiple channels

of customer care, though the focus should be on customer care over phone, as revealed through data

analysis.

Conclusion

Since 1984 wearing Benetton clothing was not just an act of covering the body or nice, it was a

statement. A statement that he or she wearing them is an open-minded, modern person. This

mentality was achieved by the highly inspired and original advertising directed by Toscani. Every

campaign they have launched under his direction always attracted an enormous quantity of attention

and almost every poster or billboard they had put up attracted many reactions.

Their campaigns have introduced new words in the advertising language, words such as

shockvertissement and reality ads.

Today the brand Benetton no longer stands out from other clothing and apparel manufacturers which

is also showed the lower profits they get every year. So they still have quite the ethnic diversity in

their promotion, but in todays modern society this is no longer something of frown upon, but a

necessity. So their billboards continue to be simple and not so commercially intensive, but if this is

not backed up by a powerful story, the effect is almost null.

The advertising society, especially in Europe, has reached a point where simple commercials that

directly try to convince the buyer to buy a product or service, no longer work. The buyer has become

quite an intelligent breed, they do not want other people telling them what to buy, and they want to

be convinced by arty commercials, smart ads a company philosophy they relate. And because

Benetton didnt change their advertising style since 2000, everyone got used to it and even grew


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tired of it. Their simple portraits with whitebackground just dont cut it when faced with the

aggressive and intelligent campaigns by

rivals such as Nike, Adidas, Puma, and Reebok. Even though Benetton like to think of themselves as

above this sport &leisure wear league and into the Marks & Spencer, The Gap etc. lifestyle wearleague, the lack of a strong identity places them somewhere in between. Some people would rather

see Benetton maintain the controversial ads. In Britain, when the new, happy-faced ads broke early

in 2001, they were panned as so innocuous as to be invisible. Even though these new ads were

made by his disciples at Fabrica, Oliviero Toscani was even more dismissive. Its a waste of

money he said.

Bitterly attacked by some and internationally acclaimed by others, Benettons campaigns are not

only means of communication but also an expression of our time. At the same time they have paved

the way for innovative models of transmitting corporate intelligence.

In the end, some might say that it doesnt matter what critics said, that the campaigns were

tasteless, that the company was exploiting the worlds problems to create the image. It doesnt

matter Toscani said that ads were only trying to raise awareness on social and cultural issues. What

matters is that Benetton brand was built on petty cash and in a very short time frame; it is now

among the worlds best known brands, and this was achieved in less than 20 years by one

photographer, only print ads and billboards, no advertising agencies, no television commercials.

Today, the Benetton Group is present in 120 countries around the world. Its core business is fashionapparel: a group with a strong Italian character whose style, quality and passion are clearly seen inits brands, the casual United Colors of Benetton, the glamour oriented Sisley, the leisurewear

brandPlay life.The Group produces over 150 million garments every year. Its network of around 6,000contemporary stores around the world offers high quality customer services and generates a totalturnover of over 2 billion euro.

United Colour of Benetton

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