Fashion Notebook

The Big Bang: J.C. Penney's Biggest Launch Ever for "American Living," (And Why It's Smarter Than You Skeptics Might Think!)

J.C. Penney is really going whole hog with the
marketing push behind its new "American Living" collection!

While we hear a lot of "biggest push ever" b.s. from marketers, this one's the real deal:

-First TV spot hits Univision, in Spanish, for the "Premio Lo Nuestro a la Musica Latina" Awards, on Feb. 21
-Mass-market TV spot to make full debut during the Oscars, on Feb. 24
-Month-long run on prime-time TV slots
-A 60-second in-cinema spot at an estimated 14,000 theaters for all PG and PG-13 features
-Print campaign in the usual barrage of consumer pubs (see example, right).
-Direct mail with 12 different specialty catalogs
-In-store promotions, including fixtures and themed uniforms for employees
-AmericanLiving.com dedicated Web site.
-Creative shot by Bruce Weber (sufficeth to say, ain't cheap people!)

The brand and the campaign, both by Polo Ralph Lauren's Global Brand Concepts group, will be the biggest in the company's history, according to CMO Mike Boylson. The imaging is meant as an emotional play that connects consumers with images of Americana and family.

While some may doubt the strategy of going big during a time when consumers feel like they're going bust—and Boylson said he's heard more than a few naysayers—the strategy actually works in their favor, according to Patricia Pao, of The Pao Principle, New York, who told me that J.C. Penney could potentially triple their media spend value given that they will be one of the few people making a real push.

And even though she felt the price points for the collection—a broad swath covering $24-$500 goods—might be a bit too aspirational for the times, WSL Strategic Retail's Candace Cortlett told me that the big campaign is still a good investment in the brand.

"[This effort] will live beyond the hard times," she said. "The worst thing to do is to put all of the energy into developing a brand like this and then just letting it sit on the shelf. That was Sears’ mistake when they got the Land’s End franchise."

Check out the full story here.

Financial Desk: Polo Ralph Lauren Sales Climb 13% in Q3

Looks like Polo Ralph Lauren will follow Coach in refuting
those analyst downgrades last month.

The New York-based fashion house posted a 13% increase in sales, at $1.2 billion for the third quarter ended Dec. 29, though net income rose a scant 2% to $112.7 million, or $1.08 per diluted share, over the same period. Polo also upped its fiscal year-end earnings guidance, now anticipating earnings per share in the lower end of a $3.64-$3.74 range. The prior guidance has been $3.50 to $3.60.

"Even in the context of macroeconomic uncertainty, our strategies remain intact," said Roger Farah, president and CEO, in a statement, an obvious allusion to fears over the pending U.S. recession's impact on the luxury market (for more on that, see my previous article, "Mass Affluents Retreat En Masse," here).

"Our company offers the highest quality, aspirational merchandise across the entire consumer spectrum," added Ralph Lauren, chairman and CEO, in a statement. "The diversity of our brand portfolio, the strength of our lifestyle positioning,  the talent of our creative and managerial teams and our increasingly global reach are enviable assets that position us well for long-term growth."

It's the last part of that statement that has gotten us to thinking: Has Polo really beaten the U.S. recession?

The company does not break out its sales for the U.S. region, in particular. No real surprise there, many global companies shy away from doing so. But there were some other indicators that have us scratching our head a bit.

"In the past few years, we have made significant long-term investments in our international business with the expansion of Europe, product categories such as Lauren and childrenswear, and channel expansion with our own retail stores and e-commerce," said Farah, in a statement. "Our more recent efforts include the repositioning of Japan and the development of accessories. While the recent decline in consumer spending presents near-term challenges, we continue to invest in our strategic initiatives as we believe they are long-term drivers of shareholder value."

So it would seem that Polo is hitching its horse, at least in part, to the international and e-commerce markets. Interesting, particularly in light of the conversation I had with luxury analyst Milton Pedraza (of The Luxury Institute, New York) a while back. Pedraza told me that, in the wake of the recession,  luxury brands had three main points of attack to weather the storm: focusing only on the super-rich who would be effectively immune from an economic recession, focusing on international markets to provide global relief for near-term losses in the U.S., and beefing up their online presence to accomplish that global reach.

Seems like Polo is hitting two out of three now. Of course, it would seem that the broad array of price points the brand offers might also provide some recession-ready padding.

Still no information on what role, if any, advertising and marketing played in the quarterly results. Will have to wait on that for later. Can't imagine they'd have much impact, since they've been fairly boring and cookie-cutter across the various collections. Enjoy a recent spot, above.

Polo spent $57 million on measured media advertising in the U.S. market for 2006, and spent $58 million through November 2007, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus.