MKT101 - Individual Assignment: Christian Louboutin Marketing Report

This individual assignment provides a comprehensive marketing analysis of the luxury shoe brand, Christian Louboutin. The report delves into the brand's history, highlighting its establishment in France and the iconic red soles designed by Christian Louboutin. It explores the brand's evolution, expa...Read More

INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT
MKT101 – IB1504
LECTURER: PHẠM THỊ THUỶ TRIỀU
FULL NAME: ĐỖ THỊ MAI HƯƠNG
STUDENT ID: HS150179

CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN
INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT
OVERVIEW
Christian Louboutin is a famous luxury shoes brand
which established in France and the man behind it is
Christian Louboutin - who is one of the world’s most well-
known shoe designers; the red soles of his designs have
become synonymous with luxury and celebrity. Louboutin
currently sells more than a million pairs of shoes a year.
The company sells in about 150 department stores and
self-branded stores in more than 35 countries.
The brand
"Red Ferrari, orange Hermes bag, and Christian
Louboutin shoes must have red soles - dark red
but still very bright!"
The Christian Louboutin brand revolutionizes high heels
for the fashion industry present. From lavish catwalks to
street sidewalks, Christian Louboutin's powerful red
soles have become the global definition of luxury in every
step for more than two decades. Christian Louboutin is a
fashion brand specializing in high-end shoes and
accessories by designer Christian Louboutin founded in
1991 in Paris, France. Born in 1991, later than other
high-end fashion brands, its luxury design still has its
own place in the market thanks to top quality. The red
mark of Christian Louboutin in the history of fashion is an
affirmation of the status of a master of craftsmanship and
a symbol of luxury on the red carpet.
History & Activities
The Christian Louboutin brand revolutionized the girls in
the 20th century. On one occasion, Christian Louboutin
wanted to renew his Pensée and saw the secretary next
to her, painting her nails red. Chris used that paint color
to paint on the sole of the shoe makes a difference and is
extremely charming. Since then, the red sole shoe brand
was born.
 In 1991, Christian Louboutin store was born with
its first customer, Princess Caroline of the
Principality of Monaco and became a name that
attracted the attention of Parisian fashion and the
world.
 In 2003, the brand expanded into the handbag and
wallet industry.
 Christian Louboutin brand was ranked at the top of the most luxurious brands for
three consecutive years 2007, 2008 and 2009.
 In 2011, Christian Louboutin brand launched the first men's footwear collection and
became the most searched shoe brand on the internet.
 In 2012, Christian Louboutin cooperated with Batallure Beauty LLC to launch the
Christian Louboutin Beauté line and began to attack the cosmetics market.
CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN
“The shiny red color of the soles
has no function other than to
identify to the public that they
are mine. I selected the color
because it is engaging,
flirtatious, memorable, and the
color of passion.”
“You need to believe in yourself and
what you do. Be tenacious and genuine.”
- Christian Louboutin

 From 2014 to 2016, Louboutin continuously launched new product lines such as nail
polish, lipstick, perfume, ... and received great attention from customers.
The achievements
- In 1991, Princess Caroline of Monaco finished praising the store of Christian Louboutin in
an interview, and since then Louboutin's name has emerged like alcohol.
- In his first year of business, Louboutin sold 200 pairs of shoes.
- Today, he sells 700,000 a year and expects revenue to grow at an annual rate of 40%.
- In terms of market share, the U.S. accounts for 52 percent of Louboutin’s sales; Europe, the
Middle East and Russia, 30%; and Asia & Japan, 18%. 95% of the firm’s $300 million in
annual revenue comes from shoes, with the remainder derived from purses and handbags.
- Wholesale purchases represent 88% of the business, but that figure is expected to change
as more boutiques – both company owned and through partnerships – are opened.
Marketing topic
One of the interesting ways to create an interesting product is to zig where everybody zags.
Christian Louboutin did this when he introduced his red-bottomed heels. Most people never
bothered to care about the underside of a pair of heels – they’re the part that gets dirty. But
attention to detail is what makes Louboutins so noteworthy and remarkable.
MARKETING CONCEPT
Start with a slam dunk
Marketing creates engagement, which usually starts with a big slam dunk. So, to promote a
product to the developer, a hit is what they need to attract customers and Louboutin did it.
Branding
Branding with marketing concepts through images, emoticons, sounds or colors and
conveying promises to customers. Create a unique attraction for the product, place it in the
hearts of customers.
Locate
Positioning is a marketing concept that helps position a product in the market. Positioning
helps businesses identify their selling channels, competitors and other essentials to better
serve customers.
Marketing - mix
The marketing mix refers to the set of actions, or tactics, that a company uses to promote its
brand or product in the market. The 4Ps make up a typical marketing mix - Price, Product,
Promotion and Place.
SUCCESS FACTOR
Start with a slam dunk
In 1991, Princess Caroline of Monaco finished praising the store of Christian Louboutin in an
interview, and since then Louboutin's name has emerged like alcohol.

Branding
The celebrity factor – winning over all the style icons makes you very fashionable celebrity-
louboutinsDo a Google image search for “celebrity louboutins” for a massive list of high-
profile Louboutin fans. Celebrities tend to be fashion influencers, and Louboutin benefits
tremendously from the organic word-of-mouth that spreads from their love of his brand.
There are many lists you can check out. Jennifer Lopez even released an entire song about
them.
Locate
Louboutin understands its customer segment since its inception, we can see that the first
product launched as well as most of Louboutin's products are for women. With his first
unique product being a red high heel shoe with a 12cm high sole, Louboutin believes that his
shoes have the ability to "make a woman look sexy, beautiful, to make her legs look as long
as [he] can."
Marketing - mix
a) Product: Products can be physical goods, services, ideas, people or places prepared
for exchange of money or other value (Brassington and Pettitt, 2013).
- Christian Louboutin shoes are made in Italy - famous for traditional shoemaking, all of
Chrisian Louboutin's shoes are handmade.
- Christian Louboutin shoe brand is associated with the image of red soles.
- Christian Louboutin can embroider the customer's desired tattoo on the shoe. This
unique service is an advantage of Christian Louboutin shoes and can reflect the tastes
and social status of customers.
- Designers emphasize on premium, quality and fashionable designs, leading many in
the fashion world and women to admire Christian Louboutin shoes.
b) Price: Price is an important factor in the market, as the goal of every brand is to make
a profit, Christian Louboutin is a luxury brand, so its positioning is very high.
 Internal influence:
Internal factors that influence product pricing include: organizational
objectives, cost and marketing goals. Raw materials are of high quality and each
shoe is hand made so labor costs are higher. In addition, fashionable designs
are priced high. For example, custom-made shoes add 30% more cost to ensure
high quality.
 External influence
Product prices can be influenced by 5 external factors: customers and
consumers, laws and regulations, distribution channels, competitors, demand
and price elasticity.
First, the target customers of Christian Louboutin shoes are those with high
income and social status, if the price of the product is too low and everyone can
pay for it, the shoe cannot represent taste, good social status and high social
status, which will lose their target customers. Second, the legal and regulatory
aspects are an important factor: Chinese people buy a portion of the world's
luxury products, according to a Bain report. However, the tax in China is too
high and many people buy goods overseas. At the same time, the application for
a visa to the UK is very difficult and complicated and leads to the Chinese
buying luxury products in other European countries. To improve Chinese
consumption, Christian Louboutin should adjust prices. Third, the prices of
competitors, such as Valentino and JIMMY CHOO, are valid for reference, they
should be affordable and not too high to pay.
c) Place: The company cannot overlook the function of a location where the product is
sold, a good place that can improve profits.
Christian Louboutin stores are most concentrated in major cities such as
London, New York, Paris, etc ... Due to the high demand for luxury goods in the

Asian market, Christian Louboutin has focused on the Asian market. Asia and
opened several stores. According to research by Bain, the Chinese are one of
the main customers for buying luxury goods. Compared with JIMMY CHOO,
Christian Louboutin established fewer stores in China. However, the demand
and market share of JIMMY CHOO is increasing in China despite the negative
growth in demand for luxury goods in China. In this respect, Christian
Louboutin needs to adjust his market to demand.
d) Promotions: Promotions are all about communicating with target customers. The
promotion mix has five elements, sales promotion, direct marketing, public relations,
personal sales and advertising.
 Traditional promotion method:
Advertising is a basic approach to displaying their products. Like shoe design,
Christian Louboutin also always makes bold and creative advertisements,
attracting a large number of impressive and interested customers.
 Advertising on social networks:
Advertising on social media (Facebook, Youtube, Weibo, Twitter, etc.) is a new
trend for all products and brands. A 2011 study found that Christian Louboutin
was the most popular brand on Facebook and its competitor JIMMY CHOO. And
the trend of data on Twitter is similar. These show that digital social media is an
important way to promote it. In addition, on Youtube there is also a large
number of videos of customers introducing Christian Louboutin shoes to others.
It's a great way to communicate with companies and advertise for free for
brands.
 Celebrity and co-brand validation
Celebrity endorsement is a traditional approach to branding and presentation.
Celebrities represent high income and good fashion sense. Angelina Jolie
became an endorser for Christian Louboutin and wore these shoes to film
activities.
CONCLUSION & EVALUATION
In short, Christian Louboutin uses mixed marketing tactics to position his market. Christian
Louboutin shoes represent a premium quality luxury brand with a unique design. The
reputation of Christian Louboutin shoes can reflect good taste, high income and social status
of customers, bringing customers satisfaction. In addition, the social network has helped
Christian Louboutin to expand advertising and communicate with customers much more.
Since Asia is the larger luxury market, Christian Louboutin should shift some tactics to adapt
to the Asian market in order to make more profits. Today, the red soles are still the shoe
everyone dreams of, the designer talent and the precise marketing tactic that will make
Christian Louboutin a success forever.
REFERENCES
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Louboutin
https://www.biography.com/fashion-designer/christian-louboutin
https://fashion.luxury/brands/story-behind-brand-christian-louboutin/
https://www.businessoffashion.com/community/people/christian-louboutin

https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/christian-louboutin-quotes
https://didyouknowfashion.com/history-of-christian-louboutin/
https://www.businessinsider.com/why-christian-louboutin-shoes-are-so-expensive-red-
bottoms-heels-2018-9
https://www.referralcandy.com/blog/louboutin-marketing-strategy/