brands

A few days ago my colleague Rigel Celeste wrote an interesting story about what your handbag says about you. In the story she posited that "carrying a knock-off bag can say that you're putting a fake front to the world." According to an intriguing story on Bloomberg, a study done by Renee Richardson Gosline, an assistant professor of marketing at MIT's Sloan School of Management, showed that if you want to get away with wearing a fake you need to have a certain attitude. Her research revealed that people are more likely to peg a handbag as being a real designer bag if the woman carrying it is wearing expensive clothes or has an aura of wealth.

Her methodology involved showing 100 owners of luxury handbags photos of bags alone and photos of bags worn by people in social settings. The study subjects were more able to ascertain an item's authenticity and potential cost of the item when it was in context. Gosline, who also happens to be a former brand manager for LVMH Moet Hennessey Louis Vuitton, found that even a nice fake won't fool many consumers if the rest of the package doesn't match up. I would suggest that a similar principle is often in effect with jewelry. A costume piece can appear more or less authentic depending on the person wearing it. Individual pieces of a person's wardrobe seen in context can elicit very different reactions from observers.

Gosline's research also showed that people are willing to pay twice as much for an item that they think will impress others and can be used to trumpet wealth and status. In another study she found that many purchasers who buy knock-off bags later gone on to buy real ones. Quoted in the Bloomberg article she says that the counterfeit served as a "placebo for brand attachment" leading people to become attached to a certain brand even though they never actually owned it.

Coach president and creative director Reed Krakoff has never entered the public lexicon the way other creative directors like Tom Ford have. But Krakoff, who has has had a long and influential career in fashion, may be stepping into the spotlight.

Fashion Week Daily says that Coach will be developing a new brand around Krakoff. The names "Reed," "Reed Krakoff," and "RK" have been registered with the United States Patent and Trademark office along with a couple of custom logos. The trademark could be used for ready-to-wear and leather goods or for personal care products as well as "hotel and restaurant services."

What does the always ambitious Krakoff have up his sleeve? Coach has only said that they always have new projects in development. Before joining Coach in 1996, Krakoff worked for Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger so he has learned about building a personal brand from the best in the business.

It's official, according to the latest Global Luxury Brands Survey the "most coveted luxury brand" in the world is Gucci -- 1 in 5 global customers said that if money was not an issue they would choose Gucci over every other luxury brand. The survey was done this past November and this marks Gucci's third year holding on to the top spot in what is a more challenging and competitive luxury market than ever before.

It's worth noting that this survey ranked Gucci as #1 globally, not regionally. Other brands ranked better in specific places, like Chanel was #1 in China and Christian Dior did the best in Russia.