7/26/2019 Love Brands feature, Drapers, June 2016
3/3
THE DRAPERS INTERVIEW
LOVE
BRANDS
reorder and request replenishment top-ups 24/7.
"We offer
more
than
iust
names or distribution,"
says
Deane. "Ifyou have a retail
platform,
ifyou're
looking
to do concessions, ifyou're looking to
find
franchise
partners,
we
know
how
to
do
that,
too. We
want
to
say
to
our
partners,
to the brands
that we'd
sourced,
'We
can offer
you
guys
a
multichannel
business."'
tT
wAs THESE
VALUE-ADD
services
that
led Love Brands to
clinch
a key UK sales
and
distribution
accountforspring
17: the
200m
(d156m)
Italian fourth-generation
famiiy-owned
mainstream
women's and
men's
wear brand Stefanel.
"You start
dealing
with a
certain
level
ofbrands
and
that
opens
the door
to
more brands
in that
arena. It's been
little
steps for us,"
says
Deane.
Now,
having
a
retailer
stock two
orthree
oftheir
brands
is
typical:the
duo
pride
themselves
on
being
a
"one-stop shop" to view collections.
And
they do
not accept
a
mark-up
ofless than
2.8 from retailers.
"Old
school"
face-to-face
contact
is
crucial too,
says Deane:
"we
believe it's really important
for
the
sales
guys to get
out
oftheir
bubble
and to
have
a
look to
see
what's
happening,
to
find
out
what the
competition
is, and
to
go
and meet
people.
Unlike
the
digital
world,
we
live in the real
world,
and we
actually
talk to
people
and
shake
hands
-
you have
to
trust
each
other,
don't
you?
We think long-term
sustainable
relationships."
Ann
Aarestrup Larsen, global sales manager at
NU Denmark, say
ofthe
supportive
pair:
"They
are
always
good-humoured,
always at
the fairs,
and
working
with
the
brand."
Despite waning attendance at some trade shows,
both men see them
as
necessarynetlvorking events.
Deane says:
"We
see
[attending
trade shows] as
important. It's incredibly expensive for all concemed
to
put
on those shows. There's a
huge
commitment
and investment.
If
I
owned
a
shop,
I
would
like to get
out and
just
see
ifwhat
I'm
doing
is right,
and
if I'm
missing anJ,thing,
to
talk
to
other
retailers. Trade
shows
are
the bestway of
doingthat."
Shalders
quips:
"If
someone comes up
with
an
alternative, they'd be
a
very wealthy
person
"
While
face-to-face
contact
is
a
must
for
Love
Brands'
relationships
to
thrive,
the
digital world
also
piays
a
big part.
"You can't
ignore
technology,"
says
Deane.
"You
can't
ignore
progress.
You have
to
embrace it,
but
at
the same time, hopefully
influence it."
"We
started
quite
early
with
Custo
Barcelona,"
explains Shalders. "We
helped itwith
its
retail
pres-
ence in Westfield Stratford City
and, at
the
same
time,
with an
opening
at House
of
Fraser
online,
which was
massively
expanding
its
presence. It
put
a
lot
ofresources
into
it and
was
really
very
clear
about
making
House
ofFraser
a
destination online.
It
partnered
with some
really good people,
and
invested
in
technology.
We gained
a
lot
of
experi-
ence
duringthattime."
On a
digital
platform
orwhen
dealingwith
bricks-
and-mortar
shops,
Deane
believes:
"You
have to be
u
l)rrrpcls /
MAY
27JUNE
3
2016
honest
and
open: about
the
prices,
the
margins
that
we
work
on.
We
try to
make the brand
feel
comfortable
from
the beginning. We sit down and agree
on
a
strategy,
agree
on
a
target, agree on
the growth
ofa
brand, so
that no
one
is
disappointed because
it
hasn't
been
discussed.
There
are
different
facets to launching
a
product
in
the
UK."
And
if it
goes
wrong?
"When
things
go
wrong
-
and nothing's perfect
-
you
have to be able
to
put
your
hands
up and
say,'Let's
see
howwecanfixthistogether,"'
says Deane.
"The
whole conversation
is
very open, and
we
have
that
conversation before we
even
start selling
their
product.
Obviously
numbers
are
very
important
to
any
brand when
it launches,
and collections
are
expensive. It's spending
money
on
marketing,
and
it's
a
refurnoninvestment.lt's
the
same
forus. Every-
body
needs to
be
realistic about
what's achievable."
'ASYOU
GROW
[as
a
business], you've
gotto make
sure
thatyoukeepupwith
it," Deane
continues.
(([In
January]
we
hired
a
sales
support
managerto
come
on board to strengthen customer service,
to really
get that right. We also have
a
freelance
PR
-
she
workswithusinhouse. Shepromotes specificbrands
and our brand
with digital,
e-flyers,
showroom
invites
and
trade
show
invites."
Love Brands
has
also
partnered
with
fashion
industry
software
provider
I.Level
to
create
I.Level
Mobile.
The
programme,
they
explain, "allows
agents to
place
orders on or offiine and
sync back
to
Love Brands headquarters.
The order
can
also
be emailed directly to the client, and
agents
can see live
stock levels and
the
status
oftheir
orders,
including
what's been shipped to
give
real-
time
info."
Winning the
Drapers
Independents
Award last
year
has helped Love Brands to upscale.
"Drapers
put
us on the
map
by
articulatingwhatwe
do
as
a business.
Brands
like
that and take note,"
says
Deane. "As
a
result
of
that
we've really
started to
engage
with
really
strong
international brands."
As part
of the
judging
process,
the
award
was
subiect to
an
online vote. In
picking
the
winner,
judges
noted
Love Brands'
"strong
marketing"
and
"excellent
approach
to
nationwide
retailers".
"You
listen
to actors
who win
awards
given
byfellow
actors,"
says
Shalders.
"It's
quite
nice
to
know that
what
we're doing, we're
doingproperly by
our
peers."
On
the
future
of
Love Brands,
Deane
says:
"We're
always
open and looking to
expand our
brand
prop-
osition where
it makes
strategic sense,
Iike
taking a
product
that has
something extra to
give.
"We
want to extend to
different
sectors, too,"
adds Shalders. "We've recently
gone
into footwear,
lingerie
and
accessories,
like
the Mighty
Purse
-
a
wearable-tech
fashion
bag
that
has
a
lithium
battery
to charge
your
mobile
phone.
"We're
quite
interested in
developing
relation-
ships
with
iconic
British brands,
as
well
as
expanding
into
other
markets.
We
are
also keen on seeing
how
our
digital platform
develops
for
our brand,
just
offering a
little
bit of extra
service,
not
to replace
face
to
face,
but to
complement it."
Despite the advent
ofsuch futuristic
products
as
phone-charging
bags, Love Brands abides
by
a
few
important
-
albeit
"old
school"-type
-values:
trans-
parency,
face-to-face contact,
ambition
and
drive.
Shalders
and Deane complete
each
other's
sentences
-
they
agree
to
agree.
They are
"people
people". When asked about the
history
behind
the
name Love Brands, Deane says: "I think
that
was
your idea, Michael," Shalders nods,
"we
had
a
busi-
ness
plan,
we knew what
we
were
going
to
do."
Deane
continues,
"Andwe
love
whatwe
do, and we
knew
people
would
love
our brand,"
With
a
look
back at
his
business
partner
and
friend,
Shalders
finishes
the
thought: "It
just
kind
ofstuck."
