The history of Gucci has spanned more than 95 years. It began in 1921 when the brand’s founder Guccio Gucci established a company that specialized in the production of leather goods. The first store was opened in Gucci’s native Florence. It sold luggage items such as suitcases and bags (“Gucci History” par. 1). The positioning of the brand was the combination of aristocratic esthetics and Italian craftsmanship.
Gucci had explored the refined and sophisticated style of English nobility when he was living in London and working in the high-class Savoy Hotel. Upon his return to Italy, he wanted to mix this style with the manufacturing traditions of Tuscan artisans to create classy, high-quality, original products. Gucci quickly attracted customers from certain social groups. Particularly, Gucci’s clients were local aristocrats and rich sophisticated foreigners who came to Florence on vacation (“Gucci History” par. 2). Since the region of Italy where Gucci emerged had been famous for its horse-riding amusements, the company supplied its customers with equestrian products such as gloves, footwear, bags, and belts.
The founder, Guccio Gucci, was responsible for the brand development. He was assisted by his sons, who were also involved in business development and expansion of the company. One of the primary challenges that Gucci faced was finding the balance between manufacturing and growth. On the one hand, the company employed specialists in leather crafts who inherited the world-famous Florentine traditions of artisan production. On the other hand, Gucci had to adopt industrial modes of manufacturing to increase the volume of output and grow. For example, machine stitching needed to be introduced in the production process, while it contradicted the traditional fabrication.
Therefore, an important part of the brand development was modifying the traditional craftsmanship to make it compatible on the modern market without dramatically damaging the quality. In the 1940s, the brand faced a new challenge of a shortage of supplies. Under the Fascist dictatorship and the conditions of the war, Gucci had to use materials that had not been associated with luxury brands. Such innovation also required significant brand development efforts. Gucci’s rebranding became one of the iconic examples of “necessity as the mother of invention” (“Gucci History” par. 3) in fashion. The company started using hemp and linen. Later, it also brought bamboo to its production. Since then, bamboo became an iconic Gucci product. Until today, multiple Gucci collections have been featuring bags with bamboo handles.
Fundamental things about a brand are its ethics and esthetics, which govern the brand’s development, operation, and practices. Gucci’s esthetics was initially based on sophistication and luxury. The inspiration came from aristocratic notions of beauty, which is reserve and supreme quality. However, as the brand evolved, it continued to experiment and ultimately adopted eclecticism as its main esthetic principle: a combination of different styles and influences, carried out with the highest standards of quality. Concerning Gucci’s ethical code, two major principles declared in it are integrity and responsibility (“Code of Ethics” 2). The Code of Ethics includes the company’s vision on how their employees, customers, and the society should be treated. One of the serious ethical challenges for Gucci is that, in its collections, the brand uses leather, fur, ivory, and other similar materials, the use of which is criticized by animal rights activists. In its ethical code, Gucci declares the respect to the environment and minimization of impact, including “the responsible sourcing of raw materials” (“Code of Ethics” 5), including fur, leather, and precious skins.
The emergence of Gucci was originally associated with the need for a luxury brand in Tuscany. The region was a place where many wealthy and noble people from all over Europe came to spend their vacation. One of the most popular activities was horseback riding. Gucci became the company to sell these audiences luxury equestrian and travel products. It was established upon two main things: luxury design, ideas for which had been initially brought from England, and traditional high-quality craftsmanship, which was native to the region. Gucci presented a formula for a successful luxury brand: to offer to a particular public high-end products that combine unique regional characteristics with international standards.
After facing a crisis in the 1940s, Gucci did not shut down but redefined the luxury market by introducing new materials instead of those that had become unavailable. It was a success for the company. In the 1950s, Gucci opened stores in Milan and New York, becoming a global luxury brand (“Gucci History” par. 4). What further facilitated Gucci’s development is the rise of the Jet Set culture (“Gucci History” par. 5). It was the time when celebrities became especially interested in luxury products that were to maintain their status. Gucci provided them with adequate goods, and the association with celebrities made the brand even more successful, allowing opening luxury stores in London, Paris, Florida, and California.
Brand DNA is a term used in marketing to refer to certain characteristics of a brand which make it unique and different from similar ones. The concept of brand DNA includes a brand’s background, genesis, creators’ story, ethical and esthetical codes, and other components that distinguish the brand from the ones that may sell similar products. Gucci’s brand DNA is that it combines Italian traditional fabrication with international esthetical values of a luxury audience. This combination determined the further targeting and creative vision of the brand. The target audience is defined by high income rather than age or cultural background. And the creative vision is experimenting with inspirations but staying connected to Italian traditions.
Cultural Significance
Brand meaning is an essential characteristic of a luxury brand (Hudders, Pandelaere, and Vyncke 393). It is implied that, for a customer, buying a thing by Gucci is a meaningful experience that is different from buying a thing by a different brand. The meaning has been constructed by the brand itself within decades of its history, but it is also different in different categories of consumers, i.e. depending on their income, background, and demographic characteristics. Nowadays, the meaning of Gucci in customers is primarily the association with the luxurious lifestyle. This meaning is based on the Gucci’s positioning and the established reputation of a brand that is popular among celebrities. However, studies show that many potential customers rather strive to avoid this association.
A series of in-depth interviews with luxury brands consumers revealed that consumers often stress that they might buy Gucci products because of their quality, not because those products are Gucci (Roper et al. 386). Discourse analysis of these interviews showed that many consumers separate themselves from a majority of luxury brand customers. In this separation, most customers buy products such as Gucci to “be in the club,” while the interviewees claim to buy them because of the quality and genuine interest in fashion. As one of the interviewees, a Gucci consumer, put it, “I wouldn’t just have anything ’cos it’s got a name on it” (Roper et al. 390). It means that a certain amount of customers desire to establish the perception that they buy Gucci because it’s high-class fashion, supreme quality, or because they like it, not because it is a famous brand.
Besides the meaning of Gucci for consumers, the way the brand is regarded by non-consumers is also an important characteristic of cultural significance. A large-scale survey showed that three main aspects of the luxury brand meaning are recognized by the general public (Hudders, Pandelaere, and Vyncke 391). The first one is a so-called expressive facet, which is about the exclusivity of luxury products. The other two are so-called impressive facets. The functional facet is the acknowledgement of the supreme quality of luxury goods, and the emotional facet is recognition of outstanding esthetical aspects of such goods. Therefore, the constructed meaning is that luxury products are unique, fine, and beautiful. It was also revealed that non-consumers tend regards luxury clothes as a sign of belonging to a high-class society. Moreover, the study observed the connection between the consumption of products such as Gucci’s and some aspects of personal well-being such as self-esteem and life satisfaction.
The brand meaning is closely associated with the needs that a brand satisfies. Initially, Gucci’s mission was to provide high-class customers with refined goods that met the international esthetical standard but at the same time had a regional tint to them. As the brand evolved, its concept has inevitably changed because of expanding. The needs that underlie the Gucci’s brand meaning in customers are asserting a certain status and pursuing diversity. Asserting a status refers to the customers’ desire to show that they belong to a high-income part of the society.
Although the studies discussed above show that customers tend to avoid this perception of their incentives to buy luxury products, the Gucci’s popularity and the effectiveness of advertising campaigns that involved celebrities confirm that consumers appreciate Gucci’s status in the fashion world and want to be associated with it. Another incentive is diversity. Modern-world customers who are interested in fashion pursue expressing their personalities through the choice of clothes and accessories within the relatively small area of luxury brands. From this perspective, Gucci should strive for creating diverse yet integral collections that differ from other luxury brands’ collections to attract customers who are looking for something different.
The brand meaning of Gucci has been inevitably changing over its history of 95 years. In the 1970s, the first ready-to-wear collection was developed, which became a tradition for the brand since then. Gucci’s new leader, Aldo Gucci, the son of Guccio Gucci, promoted the brand’s global expansion, opening stores in Tokyo and Hong Kong (“Gucci History” par. 6). Experiments with materials continued. In the 1940s the brand had to resort to cheaper materials, but thirty years later, it was striving to emphasize its luxury status by using extraordinary materials such as baby crocodile skin.
In 1981, Gucci held its first runway show, thus strengthening the brand position in the changing fashion world (“Gucci History” par. 7). New modifications came with the appointment of Tom Ford as the Creative Director of Gucci in 1994 (“Gucci History” par. 8). Ford brought the spirit of daring and provocation to the brand, making it attractive to younger audiences that tend to like rebellious styles. By 2000, Gucci was an iconic brand. In 2007, it was “named the most desirable luxury brand in the world” (“Gucci History” par. 9). The transition to the floral pattern as a major theme in Gucci’s collections, which is still present in the brand’s merchandise today, signified the combination of legacy, traditions, experiments, and modernity.
Gucci is still on the market. Moreover, under the conditions of a financial crisis, it continues to grow in terms of profit and popularity much more intensively than it has been predicted by analysts (Thompson par. 2). In this situation, it is interesting to consider what the brand meaning might be in the nearest future. Gucci claims that its success is due to the duality in brand positioning, which encompasses “modernity and heritage, innovation and craftsmanship, trendsetting and sophistication” (“Gucci History” par. 10). Gucci’s most recent achievements in terms of brand image and financial performance are attributed to the appointment of Alessandro Michele as the Creative Director in early 2015.
Michele brought Gucci’s eclecticism to its highest, combining Renaissance architecture with street culture of the 1970s, French couture with punk rock, and medieval tapestries with digital technologies (“Gucci History” par. 11). Since these experiments were successful for the brand, it can be assumed that Gucci will continue to create products in daringly eclectic styles. The brand meaning in 10 years will most likely include supreme quality, Italian traditions, and provocative esthetics. The former two elements have been part of Gucci’s brand image throughout its history. The latter one is relatively recent, but it has already become integral.
Luxury Brands vs. Accessible Brands
Luxury business models differ dramatically from business models of accessible goods. The difference made some researchers refer to luxury branding aspects as “the anti-laws of marketing” (Kapferer 456). The two main aspects of business models of various luxury brands such as Gucci, Chanel, and Louis Vuitton, are uniqueness and non-comparability. Luxury brands often lack the standard aspects of accessible brands’ business models. For example, many brands use financial incentives like discounts to gain customers’ loyalty. Gucci provides no discounts to its customers, thus showing that the brand’s target audience does not need any financial incentives.
Studies in the area of luxury business modeling revealed several principles that luxury brands are usually built upon (Kapferer 456). First of all, luxury brands tend to preserve the specific characteristics of their origin because luxury products are seen as symbols of local culture and should not be delocalized. Second, luxury brands’ advertising is not aimed directly at selling particular goods, but rather at building a high-end image, a dream. The dream building is connected to communications with non-target audiences, which is another important element of luxury business models. Luxury brands use product placement in mainstream movies to reach audiences that averagely cannot afford their goods. This is done to increase recognizability among general consumers and thus make the brand more attractive to those who can afford to buy its products.
The quality of luxury goods also requires that the business model is developed in a way that allows full control over the value chain and distribution. An example is directly operated stores, which guarantee the highest standards of service and interaction with customers. One-on-one communication with customers should be developed, and each customer should be treated as a VIP. For this purpose, luxury brands pay special attention to the selection of employees who work with customers in stores. Such positions have significantly higher requirements than similar positions in accessible brands’ stores. That is why luxury brands prefer not to issue licenses to operate on their behalf. Licensing increases the risk of damaging the quality of products and service, while quality should remain the priority. Another specific principle of a luxury business model is constant increase in average prices. This is done to remain the dream of the middle class as it is becoming richer. Even if a luxury brand creates an accessible line of products, it should be counterbalanced by constant trading-up.
Based on these business modeling principles, a luxury business strategy can be developed, which is also different from business strategies of accessible brands. First of all, products should be positioned as pieces of art rather than consumer goods (Kapferer 461). Developing a luxury brand is a long process. Normally, it is much longer than launching an accessible brand. Entrepreneurs who want to find themselves in the luxury business should start with building cultural significance of their brand by attaching it to elites and art centers. To a large extent, luxury is about cultural heritage. Also, it is suggested that a newly established luxury brand should pursue avant-garde artistic movements if it is aiming for the future, but at the same time, it is important to create the brand depth by promoting an association with traditions and influences of the past. Another part of a luxury business strategy is to give up the notion of the distinction between communication and products, which is present in accessible brands’ strategies. In the luxury business, products and communication are elements of the same process of building a dream.
Luxury is being redefined in the modern word. One of the main aspects of luxury brands’ meaning discussed above is exclusivity, which is a perishing concept nowadays. In their pursuit of being regarded as unique, luxury brands replace the concept of “rarity of ingredients or craft [with] qualitative rarity” (Kapferer 453). This is closely connected to the building of an artistic value of products. In the future, as the objective rarity continues to reduce, creating the image of qualitative rarity will become even more important in the luxury business than today. Another thing that will most likely change the nearest future of luxury brands is technological progress. With the development of internet communications and online sales, everything happens faster and pursues customers’ convenience.
For example, Gucci runway shows held at fashion weeks present collections that will be marketed the following season, approximately six months later. However, since trends are much more rapidly set now than ten years ago, luxury brands may consider shifting from this model to immediate distribution of goods after their presentation. This will change the whole paradigm of luxury fashion, making it pay more attention to short-term tendencies. The online distribution is an issue, too. For example, online purchasing is not available in every country where Gucci operates today. The necessity to follow customers’ desire for faster and more convenient service, including delivery, may force the luxury brand to develop its online distribution further, partially losing the inherent component of exclusive directly operated service.
Works Cited
Code of Ethics 2013. Web.
Gucci History 2012. Web.
Hudders, Liselot, Mario Pandelaere, and Patrick Vyncke. “Consumer Meaning Making. The Meaning of Luxury Brands in a Democratised Luxury World” International Journal of Market Research 55.3 (2013): 391-412. Print.
Kapferer, Jean-Noël. “Abundant Rarity: The Key to Luxury Growth.” Business Horizons 55.5 (2012): 453-462. Print.
Roper, Stuart, Robert Caruana, Dominic Medway, and Phil Murphy. “Constructing Luxury Brands: Exploring the Role of Consumer Discourse.” European Journal of Marketing 47.3/4 (2013): 375-400. Print.
Thompson, Adam. “Kering Sales Jump as Gucci Brand Shines.”Financial Times. 2016. Web.