United Colors of Benetton

By

Jael Evangeline.M.E

SUMMARYA global brand, and one of the most well known in the world, United Colors of Benetton has an international style that combines color, quality and fashion. Each season the womenswear, menswear, childrenswear and underwear collections offer a total look for everyday, for work and for leisure, in the city and outdoors. The Benetton Baby label is a new product line dedicated to the prenatal and the under-fives world.

The brand is present in many other sectors, from the elegant accessories to the eyewear lines and perfumes, from the home collection to baby products. The above products are available in selected specialized shops worldwide.

The Benetton Group is present in 120 countries around the world. Its core business is fashion apparel: a group with a strong Italian character whose style, quality and passion are clearly seen in its brands, the casual United Colors of Benetton, the glamour oriented Sisley, the leisurewear brand Playlife. The Group produces over 150 million garments every year. Its network of around 6,000 contemporary stores around the world, offers high quality customer services and generates a total turnover of over 2 billion euro.

HISTORYUnited Colors of Benetton is a global luxury fashion brand, based in Treviso, Italy. The name comes from the Benetton family who founded the company in 1965. Benetton Group is listed in Milan. Benetton has a network of around 6,000 stores in 120 countries. The stores are managed by independent partners and generate a total turnover of over 2 billion euro.

In 1965, Luciano Benetton, the eldest of four children, was a 30-year-old salesman in Treviso. He saw a market for colourful clothes, and sold a younger brother's bicycle in order to buy his first second-hand knitting machine. His initial small collection of sweaters received a positive response in local stores in the Veneto region, and soon after he asked his sister and two younger brothers, Gilberto and Carlo, to join him. In 1965, the entity known as the "Benetton Group" is formed.

In 1966, the Benettons opened their first store in Belluno and three years after in Paris, with Luciano as chairman, his brother Gilberto in charge of administration, their younger brother Carlo running production, and Giuliana as a chief designer.

INTRODUCTIONThe company's core business remains their clothing lines. Casual clothing is marketed under the brand United Colors of Benetton; there are also a fashion oriented Sisley division, Play life leisurewear. Their products include women’s wear, menswear, children’s wear and underwear and they have expanded into toiletries, perfumes, and items for the home such as kitchen accessories and baby products

Consistently high quality is one of the fundamental characteristics of the Benetton production process from the raw materials to the finished garment.

A constant commitment to innovation, a crucial factor for development, has always characterized the Group’s business organization, from communication to IT, from research into new materials to integrated logistics. Special attention is given to innovation in production, where all systems and equipment are constantly renewed.

The Benetton production system, co-ordinated by a high-tech facility at Castrette (Italy) is capable of turning out over 150 million garments every year.

United Colors of Benetton Store Mantri Mall Malleshwaram

What you see – The showroom of United Colors of Benetton, Mantri Mall Malleshwaram in the upper ground floor is attractive - colorful ribbons and cute posters endorsing kids' collections adorn the entrance. A large signboard in white against green makes it easy to identify the store.

What you get – United Colors of Benetton (UCB) is a popular family garment brand from Italy. The franchise store in Mantri mall, set up in February 2010, stocks casual wear for men, women and kids. The clothes (pants, shirts, T-shirts, jackets, skirts and shorts) are in a variety of colors and displayed wonderfully, according to variety, design and size with useful signboards. The interiors of UCB are clean and brightly lit, which helps to get a good view of the colorful collection. The store is divided into three sections for men, women and teenagers and the kids’ collection.

UCB, according to one of the sales staff members, has garments for different seasons like summer wear, winter wear, etc. The fabrics used are mainly cottons, corduroy and denims. To begin with the men’s wear section that has trousers, shirts, T-shirts, sweatshirts, sweaters, Bermuda shorts, jackets and blazers. The pants here are in different designs like pencil and straight fit jeans, denim trousers with vintage effect, textured cotton trousers, etc. Shirts, in stripes and in micro-checks, are available. A striped cotton polo T-shirt that has a contrasting neck and print (Rs. 1,999) and find it perfect for casual wear. The T-shirt range goes from embroidered and printed to short-sleeved and long sleeved. Quilted jackets, sleeveless checker print jackets, Cotton jackets (with and without a hood), woollen sweaters, woven cotton striped and plain single breasted blazer

and zipper sweatshirts complete this section. Prices here are between Rs. 999 and Rs. 7,000 (with trousers and shirts commanding the highest price tag).

UCB’s women’s wear is trendy and stylish ranging from denim and cotton trousers, shirts, T-shirts, round neck shirts, polo T-shirts, sweaters, sweatshirts, jackets, shorts, dresses(woven and knitted in cotton and wool) and skirts(denim and woven). Designs and choice in colors are plenty. The denim trousers (between Rs. 2,500 and Rs. 6,000) vibrant and the T-shirts, casual ,formal tops and shirts, both embroidered and printed, in the range of Rs. 999 and Rs. 3,000, amazing – perfect for college-goers and party hoppers. There is also a good collection of V-neck sweaters, formal skirtsand dresses and striped shirts along with accessories (for women) like fancy bags and belts here. In the kids' section, UCB offers denim, cotton and corduroy wear for kids aged between one and 12 years. One can source trousers, shirts, T-shirts, round neck shirts, polo T-shirts, sweaters, sweatshirts, jackets, capris, frocks, shorts and dungarees. Here too prices are in the high-end band of Rs. 799 and Rs. 1,999.

The brand has also introduce travel bags and suit case for fall 2011 ranging from 2,999-5,000 .

Timming – 10.30 AM – 9.30 PM

What sets Benetton apart from these other establishments are its use of unique colors and fabrics. Around the 1970's when the brand first began, designers were pumping out up to 50 colors per season and now it seems like they have every color under the sun. They are additionally unique when it comes to their use of exciting materials like ramie, a vegetable fibre, and

angora, wool obtained from the hair of angora rabbits. The range of colors and quality of garments at United Colors of Benetton is unique and satisfactory. As a leading brand in clothing, it is sure to satisfy one’s quest for known brands and for top-notch quality. The sales staff personnel are polite, knowledgeable and helpful.

Income Level: Benetton shoppers are generally the upper middle class folk. The prices for each item are generally expensive, and yet there is nothing that is overly pricey. 

The one great thing about Benetton that should be taken advantage of (as said earlier) is their diverse and unique color schemes. Benetton offers a lot of bright neon, bold and pale colors. The palette or shades of Benetton clothing line anywhere else. 

The fall season clothing line of Benetton has some great cheker jackets and colourful sweaters. Even though most are extremely breathable, they are all made with heavier fabrics and are more appropriate for the cooler weather conditions. 

Sizes- The sizes are displayed with European and American sizes. Because of the slimmer fit in most of the garments, however, the clothes are not exceptionally flattering fuller figures. The brand really caters to those flat and skinny individuals. 

Labels- All the clothing have size, brand as well as care label.

LOGO

White against green logo in words

This logo varies in colours accordingly to match the colors t-shirts or jackets

WINDOW DISPLAY(Mantri Mall)

The store has two windows

The window is semi enclosed with a grey background and colored props looks very attractive with vibrant coloured clothing on male and female mannequin.

The second semi enclosed window with kid’s mannequins in a high platform standing or sitting on top of wooden logs and a grey background towards the right of the window the newly launched luggage’s are displayed.

The clothing on the mannequins is changed every 4weeks but the background of the display is changed every 2 months.

ADVERTISINGBenetton in India could not use the same marketing strategy as Europe or America since Indians are not very familiar with their diverse race. Hence the customers could not understand their controversial colours advertisements

White-Europeans, Black-Africans, yellow-Asians

Because of this Benetton has a different approach in India the advertisements or banners consist of youth wearing vibrant colours in order to attract the younger crowd.

QUESTINAIRE How many international brands in India are

you aware of? How long have you been using international

brands? What are the factors that influence you while

purchasing a product from any brand? Which brand do you prefer the most and why? What are the other brands you’re willing to

shop from and why? Are you satisfied with the garment sizes

offered by international brands? How impressed are you with the customer

service offered by the international brands? How do you rate the products provided by

international brands in terms of value for money?

a)Excellent b) good c) average d) not good What range of products do you expect from

international brand?

Apart from the direct benefit of the product, what else do you look for in the product?

a) Image of the product b) Identification with other users of the brand c) Other