Karlee Romp, Natalie Rowland, Emily Shallow, & Hannah Warnke

FMD 510 Final Project

April 27th, 2022
Celine

Part 1:
Many aspects are responsible for the success of a luxury brand, including Celine. Aspects
such as brand physique, brand personality, culture, relationship mode, customer reflected image,
and customer self-concept contribute to Celine’s success.

Brand physique can be divided into sections such as physical appearance, distinguishing
factors, and logo. For Celine, their overall physical appearance can be classified as elegant,
classy, sophisticated, minimalistic, and effortlessly chic. Some of the brand’s most
distinguishable factors include neutral colors, loose-fitting garments, artisanal silhouettes, and
quality handbags without excessive hardware, embellishment, and logos ​(de Carteret). Because
of these factors, things like contemporary femininity, their “less is more” motto, innovative yet
laid-back fashion, and their sleek handbags, especially the brand’s signature “The Luggage
Tote”, all come to mind when thinking of Celine (de Carteret). The logo, pictured below, follows
their sleek and classy brand identity with its minimal design of the brand’s name in thick black
font (Celine Officially Debuts New Logo and Brand Stamp, 2019).

Brand personality is another essential part in a luxury brand’s success. Celine’s specific
brand personality is minimal, luxurious, sophisticated, elegant, and unexpected yet practical. The
brand’s personality reflects in its clothing, marketing, storefronts, and overall brand image.

Celine’s culture is consistent and communicated through its collections and most recently,
its logo. After Hedi Slimane succeeded Phoebe Philo as creative director, Celine’s Instagram
account announced, “The accent on the ‘e’ has been removed to enable a simplified and more
balanced proportion, evoking the Celine collections of the 1960s where the accent wasn’t used
often” (Mackelden, 2021). Their culture has been celebrated ever since its creation in 1945 at 52
rue de Malte in Paris by Celine Vipiana and her husband Richard (Liczbinska, 2021). Originally
beginning as a luxury children’s footwear brand, operations were quickly expanded to Florence
for women’s shoes and accessories by 1967 (Liczbinska, 2021).

The brand emphasizes relationships between itself and its customers, specifically by
listening to what their customers want. In an interview with Vogue, Financial Times fashion
editor Jo Ellison, admits “Every season that Phoebe [Philo] has spoken about her work, and she
rarely does anymore, she’s talked about her design being about modern femininity, and new
perspectives on glamor, and what women want. She has continued to put women and their lives
at the heart of her design, without compromising attitude, intelligence, or excitement” (Wray,
2017). Current and former Celine creative directors willingly put their customers first without
sacrificing the identity of the brand.

Customer reflected image can be broken into two parts: how the brand is perceived by its
customers and the stereotypical user of the brand. A good example of how the brand is perceived
by its customers is shown in Vogue’s profile article, specifically a quote from executive vice
president of women’s apparel at Nordstrom’s Tricia Smith, “There is both a sophistication and
edge that appeals to so many generations of women” (Wray, 2017). While the stereotypical user
of the brand can be classified as a powerful, wealthy, high-profile, and fashion conscious
individual (Abuawad, 2019). Their typical customer also has a minimal style that is driven with
taste and unaffected by changing fashion trends (Abuawad, 2019).

Celine’s typical customer’s self-concept is translated from its customer’s reflected image.
Celine is able to match its powerful and influential customer’s personality. Despite its iconic
minimal style, while customers are wearing Celine, they feel confident, courageous, and driven.
As a result, these consumers inspire others to shop at Celine.

Part 2:

When focusing on and considering luxury brands and luxury fashion, both the Chinese
market and Chinese consumers, and how luxury brands will be portrayed and integrated are very
important aspects to consider. The Chinese market and Chinese consumers are increasingly
growing and beginning to make up a large percentage of the world market's spending power. It is
becoming increasingly important for luxury brands to cater toward this market and these
consumers in order to continue to be successful.

The Chinese market is becoming one of the most successful and wealthy markets in the
world, however, it has been a long journey. In the 90's and early 2000’s the Chinese market
began to steadily grow. By 2005, the Chinese market was estimated to be worth around 1.3
billion dollars and was expected to continue its growth rapidly at an rate of 50 to 70 percent
annually (Kaiser, 2006). Forward thinking luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton, Salvatore
Ferragamo, Ermenegildo Zegna, and Gucci had begun to arrive in China in the 90’s and early
2000’s as wealth began to emerge and grow in many Chinese cities. For many Western brands
making their entry into the Chinese market, they found that the Western concept of luxury
department stores that they were accustomed to did not exist in China. Many of these luxury
brands began to open small stores in hotels and started by selling small gift items (Kaiser, 2006).
As the Chinese market grew, luxury brands found that the Chinese luxury consumer had
begun to change. These customers were spending more on single purchases as well as purchasing
well supported pieces and they were becoming more opinionated and adventurous consumers
(Kaiser, 2006). With the quick growing middle class populations of China, luxury brands were
finding huge growth potential.
Although for many decades the majority of luxury fashion thrived in Western countries,
this is beginning to change. Since 2015, there has been a return of spending to mainland China as
import taxes have been lowered and many brands have begun to regulate and even their prices
across countries (Ap, 2021). Furthermore in 2019, China became the world leader in
international patent filings, overtook the U.S. as the world's largest retail market, and the value
of Chinese brands was expanding eight times faster than the overall global rate (Ap, 2021). At
these rates the Chinese market was expected to become the largest apparel market in the world
by 2023 and it was predicted that Chinese consumers would account for 40 percent of the world's
luxury spending by 2025 (Zhang, 2020).
While the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic affected the global markets, the Chinese
luxury market was very resilient against the effects and changes brought about and showed
promising results. During the pandemic many luxury brands were able to thrive in China, and
continued to be successful in brick and mortar when life began to return to normalcy again
(Zhang, 2020). In 2020, mainland China’s Chinese luxury spending increased to 75 percent, yet
was expected to decrease slightly as traveling began to increase. Additionally, it was estimated
that mainland China spending would continue to grow stronger as global travel was still limited
(Ap, 2021).
The current Chinese consumer has a large amount of disposable income and luxury goods
have become more accessible. From 2013 to 2018, it is estimated that there has been a 10,000
yuan increase in per capita disposable income (WWD studios, 2020). As the Chinese consumer
has grown to have more income and better accessibility to luxury goods, this market will begin
to grow increasingly important for luxury brands.

The Chinese luxury consumer is very different from the Western consumer that Western
luxury brands are experienced with. It is very important for luxury brands seeking to enter the
Chinese market to build their understanding of consumer psychology and understanding of the
East to better cater to those customers. However, not only is it important for brands seeking to
enter the Chinese market to understand the Chinese customer and their motivations, it is also
important for many Western stores to develop good relations with Chinese consumers. In many
Western stores, Chinese clients generally represent over a third of their business and sales (Ap,
2021).

For any brand, especially luxury brands hoping to conduct business in China, it is critical
for these brands to understand that the Chinese consumer's journey has evolved very differently
from those of their western peers. Many Chinese consumers did not grow up with the well
developed domestic brands and malls that many Western consumers and businesses are
accustomed to. Due to this factor, it became necessary for Chinese consumers to be very fluent
online (Ap, 2021). Furthermore, Chinese consumers tend to be some of the most digitally
connected consumers in the world; they tend to be informed and well researched on brands and
products (Zhang, 2020).
Many Chinese consumers living in first and second tier cities in China, receive their first
luxury products at very young ages. These consumers become introduced with luxury brands at a
very young age (Ap, 2021). Due to this young introduction, Chinese consumers have a long
standing knowledge of luxury and luxury brands. For Chinese luxury consumers, trust is very
important for them. A solid relationship of trust needs to be built between the brand and the
Chinese consumer for the customer to feel comfortable making a purchase. Chinese consumers
need to have a lot of context and information about a product and brand when making a decision
and purchase. These customers want to see every angle, dimension, material, license, and detail
of the product (Ap, 2021). The inclusion of these details help the Chinese consumer to be able to
trust the brand.
 Furthermore, Chinese luxury consumers want to be entertained and have fun. Many
Chinese consumers are intrigued by luxury pop up shops, events, and social spaces. Many
Chinese consumers want more than just to shop for products, these consumers want to be given
an experience as well.
New Generation Z consumers have been the first Chinese consumers to grow up in what
is now a prosperous China. Due to this phenomenon, this consumer group has a different outlook
and mindset especially when purchasing luxury goods. When making decisions they look at
whether or not the product is good for them rather than at the price, quality, or ‘do I need it”
factor (Ap, 2021). Gen Z consumers tend to favor new and innovative fashion. Limited editions,
customized products, and cross brand collaborations appear to be trending with the Generation Z
Chinese luxury consumer (Ap, 2021).

In China, the use of online platforms in retail have been more necessary due to the lack of
well developed off line infrastructure that the West has (Ap, 2021). To be successful with our
line, we will need to make it easily accessible online with clear pictures, thorough details, and
the capability to purchase the product straight from a mobile device. The use of the Tmall
Luxury, which offers an e-commerce solution for luxury brands, would allow our line to be more
easily accessed by the Chinese consumers. The use of Tmall Luxury works to reinforce the
power and value of luxury while also empowering luxury brands through creative marketing
(WWD studios, 2020). However, not only does the product need to be available online, the site
needs to be attention grabbing and easy to use.

While good use of online platforms is necessary, it will also be crucial to have a good
understanding of Chinese values and the Chineses consumer that we will be marketing to. While
certain Chinese consumers will be similar to Western consumers, brands must display local
content (Young, 2018). By taking something from a Parisian store, site, or boutique and
displaying it on a Chinese site will not translate well.

To create the best luxury line possible for Celine to present to Chinese luxury customers,
it is important to take into consideration both themes and meaning systems. For the Chinese
customer, meaning systems presented to them electronically and that capture their attention in
ways that both captivate and entertain will be crucial for success.
It has been found that in China, 99.3% of the country's internet users use mobile
electronics to access the web and view the internet (Ap, 2021). By creating many digital ads and
content that is mobile friendly, our brand will be able to reach these consumers more efficiently.
Furthermore as Chinese luxury consumers wish to be entertained, it will be important to have
captivating runway shows and events. Our line will feature logo based products and will be
shown in runway shows as well as featured in our ad campaigns to best present our brand and
product to the Chinese consumer.
It has been found that dissecting seasonal offerings into smaller collections for shopping
festivals is preferred by Chinese consumers. Many brands and consumers within the Chinese
market value these holidays (such as singles day) and take them very seriously (Ap, 2021).
Part 3:
Trend Board

Color Board
Accessories

Handbags
 With the start of Celine in Paris, 1945; founder Celine and Richard Vapiana focused on
making made-to-measure children’s shoes. Despite their large growth, the company continues to
hold a symbol of modern minimalism and sophistication. Haute History states “the Celine brand
is renowned for its understanding of what women really want to wear.” The brand's DNA and
core values can be seen throughout this collection. For example, multiple products within the
collection showcase the Celine symbol. They also provide clean lines which hold a level of
sophistication and precision. Our color scheme fits within the current brand's theme. We have
incorporated many neutral tones of black, brown, and white. These core colors allow for
products to be staple pieces in one’s closet. This also helps provide each item to hold its style and
be worn for years to come. Additionally, this line has reinvented many products allowing the
brand's values to continuously be seen.
This new line reflects the interest of the Chinese consumer in many different aspects.
Firstly, all products within the line are logo driven. Celine’s iconic logo and brand name can be
seen on each product. Additionally, we have provided a tote bag with the brand’s name
supersized. With the Chinese trends holding a need for stories displayed on oneself, this
collection fits these needs very well. As the Chinese luxury market continues to grow, it is
essential that our collection be sold on-line and throughout the country. We will ensure that these
products are obtainable by the Chinese market.
The line that we have created has many differences and similarities. To start off our line
differs from the previous lines created by Celine as it holds many different textures and hues. For
example, Our Medium Triomphe Belt with Texture features a new closure fixture. It also
incorporates a new texture. However, in order to keep the item cohesive to the brands identity,
the belt band has continued to stay similar to previous collections. Next, the Sun Brim Hat
explores a completely new style to the brand. With only having one previous straw hat within the
brands line, this Sun Brim Hat showcases a similar yet more on trend piece. It was developed to
be a multi-wear garment allowing the consumer to wear it in many different styles. It also
appears with the brand's logo which the previous brands straw hat does not. Additionally, the
texture and hue are different as well as the hat's silhouette.
Diving into the handbag category within this line, one can see many differences. Firstly,
the Ombre Clutch with Handle showcases a unique shape. Despite one's first glance, the handbag
is not similar to the brands already existing Wallet on Chain. The Ombre Clutch is much smaller
and also features sharp edges. This is an aspect that is new to Celine. With the majority of their
handbags providing curved edges, our Ombre Clutch takes a different approach though still
provides cohesiveness through the color pallet and logo placement. Lastly, we have created a
new handbag; the Textured Tote. With the brand carrying a range of totes it was essential that
ours be different though still connect with the brands core values and theme. Our Textured Tote
features a similar silhouette to the already existing ones though provides a unique design and bag
strap. We incorporated a similar straw texture that can be seen throughout our line as well as the
brand’s name which differs from the current products which simply provide the brand's logo
enlarged. Additionally, we provided a bag strap that allows the consumer to wear the item in
multiple forms. This aspect is also new to Celine as none of their totes offer this.
 As the luxury business has a very high break-even point, it is essential that our new line
makes a profit and not a loss. Thus, it is essential that our new line be of the highest quality and
distributed worldwide amongst prime retail locations. This includes flagship stores and in major
world capitals. The pricing of this line is critical in order to ensure that both the exclusivity of the
products and the democratization of luxury itself is intact. Within its core trade, this new line will
be launched at a higher price than the old ones as it holds brand new ideas and textures to the
brand.
The Medium Triomphe Belt with Texture is considered an entry level product. This
means that the belt will not be of the highest price. This item is to be seen as a consumer's first
access to the brand and cannot be seen by the client as too expensive. Thus, the belt will hold a
price of 820 USD. Similar products offered by Celine are priced at 790 USD. This price reflects
the high quality and craftsmanship of the belt and is slightly higher than products already
provided by Celine. However, this price point is promoted within the middle of their belt price
points. It is not at the highest end as this product does not carry an exclusive leather or other
high-cost texture. Overall, Celine belts range from 380 USD to 1300 USD. Next, the Sun Brim
Hat is higher on the pyramid though still considered an entry level product. It will hold the price
of 980 USD and differs some from similar styles provided by Celine. The price of currently
similar products is 930 USD, making our new hat a reasonable price point. This higher price is
justified as the hat provides the brand's logo along with high quality hat straps. Furthermore,
these products are not priced at the highest end as they do not primarily serve a marketing
purpose. These entry level items do not hold the goal of selling a lot, though are offered to
initiate new clients to the brand.
Moving on to the handbags category of our line. These products are within the brand's
heart of range. Thus, they will be priced higher than the entry level products. These items are
where the profitability is achieved as they are in the mid-range. First, the Ombre Clutch with
Handle holds multiple features that increase its value. This includes the enlarged logo as well as
the use of multiple leathers and textures. The Ombre Clutch with Handle will be priced at 1850
USD. With similar styles priced at 1800 USD, this new item is slightly above though not enough
to warn existing consumers away. Lastly, the Textured Tote will be priced at 1600 USD. This
price is justified as the tote holds a new style as well as a removable and adjustable bag strap.
Similar products within the brands current lines fall around 1200 USD to 1550 USD. Our new
products within the entry level, provide multiple enhancements though are not out of reach for
consumers.
There have never been more eyes on China’s fashion market than there are right now.
While it may seem so from the outside looking in, today’s salience of the Chinese fashion market
didn’t happen overnight. A long history of traditional culture, evolving consumer values, new
technological innovations, and a melding of Western markets with China’s own are just the
outline of the country’s rich state of fashion today. Behind every great market is a story, and this
one began many years ago. As fashion and designers evolve, so does the Chinese fashion market.
We believe that with this new Celine line the market will flourish. This product line will
communicate the theme and personality of these customers by being new and improved and
adding a little flare to their summer wardrobe as well as being sustainable. We designed items in
this line that can be seen as genderless and for most people like the belt, hat and tote bag. We
want to offer these products but make it seem like there is a limited amount so that consumers
jump right online or head to a store to buy them before they are gone. By evolving with our
consumers, we can make sure to keep our loyal customers happy as well as attracting new
customers to a new market of goods and products. The products we created look like they could
be placed on the Celine website today, but they have a little extra flare than what is normally
seen. Celine loves clean edges and logos and fine lines. We tried to make a summer feeling
collection that you would not wear year-round, which makes these items exclusive. We used
tweed and lighter leather touches as well as thick textured straps to ensure a lighter summer
season. We also used a hat and belt to display the same effects and make consumers want to buy
them now, because they are only for one season and won’t be on the website forever, they’re
luxury and exclusive, which is what the Chinese culture prefers.
We are incorporating artification into the development of this line by using gold
emblems, tweed touches, lighter leather, and an older style of hat. The pieces that we created
have an old school feeling of style while still being new and current. We also stayed with a
neutral color theme like what would be used in the past as well as functional pieces that are
fashion forward. By trying to use certain sustainable fabrics and materials we can market that
this distribution of products is going green and going to be all sustainable. We want to reach a
new target market of luxury with these products, but not make the product too accessible
considering it is still a luxury brand. Another way to promote and distribute these products is
through social media. The social media market and e-commerce market is flourishing in China,
and that would be the best way to get these new products out there. The world is still recovering
from the pandemic, and everyone got used to shopping online and not leaving their homes as
much for pleasure. Instead of going to the mall to pick out a new Celine bag, people might enjoy
the option better of an amazing online e-commerce experience. Celine could promote these
products on social media by talking about their new online stylists and shoppers who are waiting
online ready to chat with you and help you with any of your needs while shopping on their
website for products. They could also do unique ads and social media posts that use sustainable
products in order to show how serious they are about following the up-and-coming sustainable
Chinese market.
We think that a huge concept we need to think about is going green because that is such
an important concept in the world and especially in the fashion industry today. The “Go Green”
trend in China is being led primarily by domestic designers. We could somehow incorporate
sustainable packaging as well as trying to find sustainable materials. The products we made to be
distributed are a belt, hat, and two different styles of purses. If we could find a way to use
sustainable fabric touches on all of these items, we could promote a going green line of
accessories and handbags. By changing Celine’s ways, we could attract a new audience and new
consumers who were to only buy and use sustainable products. The products will be distributed
and promoted in a sustainable way, giving Celine a new concept and way of doing things, while
still being luxury. Our Chinese consumers are considered in this decision, because right now
there is such a want for sustainable luxury everyday products in the Chinese culture. We want to
offer these products but make it seem like there is a limited amount so that consumers jump right
online or head to a store to buy them before they are gone. By evolving with our consumers, we
can make sure to keep our loyal customers happy as well as attracting new customers to a new
market of goods and products.
Overall, our new line was created to enhance not only the existing product line but also to
connect with current trends. Staying within reasonable price points and offering fresh designs
that will be distributed and available worldwide will enhance the brand awareness and value of
Celine. Incorporating sustainability within the distribution will also promote the company's
environmental awareness. We believe this line will be a success and gain a profit for the brand.
 References

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