Marketing Report: Positioning and Repositioning of Fashion Brands

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the importance of positioning and repositioning strategies in the fashion accessories market, with a specific focus on the luxury brand Burberry. The introduction establishes the significance of these marketing concepts, followed by an examination of their benefits for marketers. The main body delves into the importance of product positioning for identifying customer needs, selecting effective communication channels, and differentiating products from competitors. The report also emphasizes the role of repositioning in adapting to market changes and maintaining competitiveness. A key component of the report is the discussion of positioning maps as visual tools for illustrating customer perceptions and conducting competitive analysis, exemplified by a comparison of Burberry with competitors like Gucci and Primark. Furthermore, the report identifies and explains two effective methods for achieving repositioning, focusing on Burberry's strategies to move into the luxury sector and create new luxury leather accessories. The report concludes by summarizing the benefits of repositioning and positioning, emphasizing their importance for meeting customer expectations and achieving business objectives, drawing from the provided references.

Fashion Accessories

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
1. Importance and benefit of positioning and repositioning for the marketers...........................1
2. Positioning map.......................................................................................................................2
3. Two methods which will effectively demonstrate methods which will be useful in
achieving repositioning...............................................................................................................4
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................4
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................5

INTRODUCTION
This study will focus on determining the importance and benefit of positioning and
reposition for the marketers. It also helps in demonstrating positioning map which is useful in
changing the results. Furthermore, this study will effectively demonstrate methods which will be
useful in achieving repositioning.
Burberry is a luxury fashion British company which was founded in the year 1856 by
Thomas Burberry. This company is headquartered in London, UK. This company mainly deals in
clothing, accessories, cosmetics and perfumes.
MAIN BODY
1. Importance and benefit of positioning and repositioning for the marketers.
An important element of marketing plan is positioning. Marketers use product positioning
for properly communicating the product to marketers (Camilleri, 2018). It attributes the product
to its target customers on the basis of needs of customer, competitive pressures &
communication channels. Product positioning is essential for identifying and understanding the
needs of customer. On the basis of this correct communication channels are selected. Product
positioning begins with identifying niche market segment to customer that is specific. It enables
marketers to identify the specific needs of customers related to the products or services that will
be provided to the customers. It helps in targeting the channels of communication (van
Riemsdijk and et.al., 2017). This helps marketers in identifying whether the products offered by
them are different from that of its competitors. It also helps in carefully crafting the key
messages in the marketplace.
Repositioning is important for meting the need and demand of customers it is also important
when the company is having the opportunities for improving the demand for the offering.
Repositioning is generally triggered by competition, market environment, consumer trends or
internal environment. But repositioning help company to offer new or enhancing the existing
offering for retaining the existing customers and to attract new customers. Repositioning is more
beneficial for the company for maintaining the market share of company (Johns and English,
2016).
Implications
Positioning product will help Burberry company to identify the factors that can influence the
decisions of customers. This helps marketer in developing new place for the product in the
1

market. It helps company to manufacture specific product as per the needs of consumers. This
helps company in retaining the market share (Milgram, 2019). Where the repositioning helps the
businesses to remain in the market with improvised products that will help the business to retain
in the market place.
2. Positioning map.
Positioning map is referred to a visual representation which helps in illustrating the
perception of the customer towards particular products of the brand (Voronina, Hartley and
Buce, 2015). Market performance is most important for organization. One of the way to evaluate
the performance of Burberry positioning map can be used. This also allows the organization to
present a comparative positioning of Gucci, Primark and Burberry. To find the positioning of
organization two most important factor price and quality are considered for mapping. As for
Burberry, it has positioned its products like clothes, accessories, bags at a prestige price and are
exclusive. This is considered to be one of the lucury goods which in turn helps Burberry stand
out in the market from its competitors like Gucci, Primark, Louis Vuitton, etc. As per Gucci, it
has high prestige price but it also has large mass market which in turn helps in reaching various
customers and in turn results in greater profitability for the business. As per the comparison of
organization there are not too high difference between their product quality, pricing, mass
market, affordability and exclusivity. The cost of Gucci product are too high and quality of
product delivered to consumer is of premium range. On the other hand, Primark products are
positioned as large mass market at affordable price. Burberry and Gucci has been considered to
be of prestige price goods and are considered to be a luxury brand by delivering high quality
products. Burberry is also providing product with good quality. This is how position of Burberry
in Market place. Burberry can opt to offer large variety of leather and luxury goods in order to
maintain competitive position in the market. This in turn leads to higher operational
performance, customer base and profitability for the Burberry company.
2

3

3. Two methods which will effectively demonstrate methods which will be useful in achieving
repositioning.
Repositioning is an effective tool which helps in changing brand status of the company in
the marketplace (Kim and Eastin, 2015). Repositioning is very essential as it helps company to
meet up the expectations of the customers. Brand repositioning in turn results in attainment of
higher operational goals and objectives of the company which in turn helps in achieving higher
profits. This in turn leads to higher operational performance, customer base and profitability for
the business.
Burberry will reposition its brand by effectively moving the position of the business to
the luxury sector. They will focus on extending the price architecture and will also focus on
scaling back sales to the lower end wholesalers and retailers. This will help in moving product to
the market which leads to higher sustainable growth, probability and customer base for the
business.
Another effective method to reposition the brand is that, Burberry will focus on creating
new luxury leather accessories and goods which will help in attracting high end customers (Eagle
and Dahl, 2018). This in turn is very useful in moving the product to a different place in the
eyes of customers. Expanding the available range of products helps Burberry to give customers
high level of choices and it also helps in gaining competitive position in the market among its
rivalry competitors.
CONCLUSION
This study summarizes that, repositioning helps company to meet up the expectations of
the customers. Positioning of the product and brand is essential for identifying and understanding
the needs of customer. Furthermore, this study states that, brand positioning map is considered to
be a visual technique which helps in determining how the customers of the brand has positioned
themselves in the market against the competitive product. It has been concluded that, effective
repositioning strategy opted by the company is creating new luxury leather accessories and
moving the position of the business to the luxury sector.
4

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Camilleri, M. A., 2018. Market segmentation, targeting and positioning. In Travel Marketing,
tourism economics and the airline product (pp. 69-83). Springer, Cham.
Eagle, L. and Dahl, S., 2018. Product placement in old and new media: examining the evidence
for concern. Journal of Business Ethics. 147(3). pp.605-618.
Johns, R. and English, R., 2016. Transition of self: Repositioning the celebrity brand through
social media—The case of Elizabeth Gilbert. Journal of Business Research. 69(1). pp.65-
72.
Kim, E. and Eastin, M. S., 2015. External brand placement: The effects on game players’
processing of an in-game brand. Journal of Promotion Management. 21(3). pp.391-411.
Milgram, B. L., 2019. Gift-Commodity Entanglements: Repositioning (In) Formality in a
Transnational Philippine Market Trade. Anthropologica. 61(1). pp.51-63.
van Riemsdijk, L. and et.al., 2017. Strategies for positioning animal welfare as personally
relevant. British Food Journal. 119(9). pp.2062-2075.
Voronina, M., Hartley, N. and Buce, D., 2015. June. REPOSITIONING THE LUXURY
FASHION INDUSTRY: A CONSUMER-BASED MODEL. In 2015 Global Fashion
Management Conference at Florence (pp. 481-493).
5