Tory Burch Plans 100 Stores, Cosmetics Line

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed)
Feb 11th 2010 at 9:01PM

In just a handful of years, Tory Burch has gone from a a single store in Manhattan to a global empire. Businessweek has a profile of Burch that says that the designer, who now has 25 locations, is planning another additional 100 namesake stores worldwide in the next three to five years. She is also working on creating a cosmetic and fragrance line.

What makes Burch's line so popular especially at a time in which the mid-range luxury market to which Burch's line is targeted has seen consumpion plummet? Part of it is that Burch's line is highly versatile and wearable, including pieces that are comfort-friendly and yet fashionable like her Reva ballet flats and her embellished tunic tops which hit a chord with Oprah. Part of it is Burch herself who at 43 represents the type of woman that her customers identify with, it doesn't hurt that she is a beautiful working single mom. She spent years working in marketing and public relations with Ralph Lauren and Vera Wang which also helped her learn what this type of customer desires.

As the economy lumbers back to life and shoppers began to return to the stores, Burch is primed for big success. There are some concerns that the Tory Burch line is expanding too rapidly but Burch happens to have a sound business partner in her ex-husband Chris Burch who is quoted as saying that they are conscious of not getting ahead of themselves.

Tags: apparel, fashion, tory buch, ToryBuch