Women's Wear Daily (WWD) captured the details of Deborah Weinswig's departure from Citi and her move to Profitect

1. NEW YORK — Two headline-making designers, the
chief executive officer of America’s largest department
store chain, the artistic director of Condé Nast and
head of CBS Corp., the ceo of a global luxury brand,
the owner of the New England Patriots and two
denizens of the Internet world were among the
guestsastheWWDRetail&ApparelCEOSummit
finisheditsrun.Forfullcoverage,seepages6to13.
WWDWEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2013 ■ WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY ■ $3.00
Transformers
The
ransformers
2013 WWD CEO SUMMIT
’’
’’
Thesimpletruthiswe
areallinthebusinessof
creativecommerce.If
bothpartiesrealizethat,
thenit’ssymbioticand
that’swhenitworks.And
whenitworks,fashion
canbeverybigbusiness.
L
’’
’’
It’sveryimportant
totakerisks.Ithink
thatresearchisvery
important,butinthe
endyouhavetowork
fromyourinstinctand
feelingandtakethose
risksandbefearless.
— ANNA WINTOUR
L
’’
’’
Thedigitaltideishitting
allofus,profoundly
transformingoureveryday
lives,anddramatically
transformingtheway
consumersbehaveand
thinkaboutbrands.
— NATHALIE REMY
L
’’
’’
L
’’
’’
Leadershipisabout
havingthecouragetogo
againsttheadviceofthe
so-calledexpertsand
doingwhatyourinstinct
tellsyouisright.
— ROBERT KRAFT
L
’’
’’
Foreveryshopper
seekingfakes,there
are20seeking
bargains.…Oneinfive
areduped.Ifthey
weren’tmisled,they
wouldbuyfromyou.
— MARK FROST
L
’’
’’
Itwasvery
importantinthe
beginningthatwe
feltthatwehada
balanceofdesign
andintegrityand
pointofview
thatstoodfor
ourownethics.
— ALEXANDER WANG
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’’’’
’’
Twentysomethings
havebetterthings
todothangoto
thehighstreet.
Theworld’slargest
brandisintheir
pocket[viaa
mobiledevice].
— NICK ROBERTSON
L
Digitalhasto
beatwo-way
conversation.
— EMILY WHITE
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L
’’
’’
Sometimesthe
greatesttransformation
happenswhenyougo
backandrediscover
whoyoureallyare.
— PATRIZIO DI MARCO
PHOTOS BY JOHN AQUINO
’’
’’
L
Technologyand
onlineshoppinghave
enabledourbusiness
andmadeusastronger
andbetterretailer.
— TERRY J. LUNDGREN
Thedifferenceinour
businesstodayisthatwe
usedtohaveonemeans
ofrevenue,whichwas
advertising.Now,we’repaid
insomanydifferent
ways—wesellourproduct
allovertheworld.
— LESLIE MOONVES
W
HAT’S
NEXT
IN
DENIM
/
SECTION
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PERM
IRA
SAID
EYEING
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STAKE/5
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NEW
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ADDRESSES
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CONTROVERSY/2
— MICHAEL KORS

2. WWD.COM
2 WWD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2013
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ON WWD.COM
THE BRIEFING BOX
IN TODAY’S WWD
Citigroup’s Thomas Chauvet published a lengthy report
on Compagnie Financière Richemont’s overall health, and
speculated about disposals in its fashion division. Page 4
Shares of Sears Holdings Corp. jumped nearly 11.8 percent as
investors liked the idea of a spin-off of Lands’ End. Page 4
Pandora Group is hoping to broaden its consumer base with
its latest simple, yet refined collection called Essence. Page 4
Permira is said to be on the short list of investors seeking a
minority stake in Versace. Page 5
Bonobos Inc. will launch a separate brand for women, called
AYR, and a related e-commerce site next month. Page 5
Iconix Brand Group Inc. registered increases in profits and
sales in the third quarter. Page 5
Lululemon Athletica Inc. on Tuesday named Tara Poseley
chief product officer. Page 5
Coverage of the 17th WWD Apparel & Retail CEO Summit,
which wrapped up on Tuesday. Pages 6 to 13
A report by two House members accused the Colombian
government of failing to implement a labor action plan. Page 14
Kenzo on Friday opened a store in the L’Avenue mall in
Shanghai’s western district of Hongqiao. Page 14
Miu Miu has tapped actresses Léa Seydoux and Adèle
Exarchopoulos for its 2014 resort ad campaign. Page 14
Environmentally sustainable designs were the star attraction
at the Eco Fashion Challenge awards. Page 15
Uniqlo is collaborating with French style icon Inès de la
Fressange on a capsule collection due to go on sale early
next year. Page 15
Chanel Iman at the
“To Catch a Thief”
screening. For more,
see WWD.com.
EYE: A Monday night screening of Alfred Hitchcock’s
“To Catch a Thief,” sponsored by Ralph Lauren, acted as
an unofficial prelude to a string of New York appearances
for the Princess of Monaco. For more, see WWD.com.
PHOTOBYDAND’ERRICO
By LISA LOCKWOOD
NEW YORK — Mark Lee, chief executive officer of
Barneys New York, said Tuesday at a press confer-
ence at National Action Network headquarters in
Harlem that his store’s personnel weren’t respon-
sible for detaining and questioning two black cus-
tomers for alleged credit card fraud after making
luxury purchases at the store.
“Our preliminary investigation concluded that in
both of these instances, no one from Barneys New
York raised an issue with the purchases, brought
them to the attention of internal security or reached
out to the authorities,” said Lee. He acknowledged
that no one should go through the unacceptable ex-
periences described by Trayon Christian and Kayla
Phillips in recent media reports, “and we offer our
deepest sympathies to them both.”
Both Christian and Phillips were questioned by
officers from the New York Police Department after
they made expensive purchases at the Barneys
flagship. Christian has filed a discrimination suit
against Barneys, the city and the NYPD, while
Phillips has filed a $5 million notice of claim.
Eric Schneiderman, the New York Attorney
General, is investigating Macy’s and Barneys after
complaints from black customers who were stopped
by police after making luxury purchases. He has set
a Friday deadline for stores to turn over informa-
tion about their policies for detaining and question-
ing customers based on race.
“Barneys New York has zero tolerance for any
form of discrimination and we are committed to
treating everyone who comes into our stores with
respect and dignity,” said Lee. In addition, Lee said
that Shawn “Jay Z” Carter and the Shawn Carter
Foundation have been a good partner from the start
and there are no plans to end the collaboration. A
petition had circulated online calling for Jay Z to
cancel his collaboration with Barneys for the holi-
day season. “Our collaboration is based on a shared
mission of helping individuals facing socioeconom-
ic hardships to help further their education at in-
stitutions of higher learning. We regret that these
recent events have distracted from the great work
of the Shawn Carter Foundation, and we offer our
apologies to Mr. Carter,” said Lee.
Moving forward, the Barneys ceo said that there
is a broader issue that needs to be addressed, and
the retailer is committed to being part of the solu-
tion. “We appreciate that we were given the oppor-
tunity to discuss this important subject with Rev.
[Al] Sharpton and other leaders here today,” said
Lee. “We look forward to collaborating with them
and the broader retail community to bring about
positive change.”
Lee and Daniella Vitale, Barneys chief operating
officer, met with Sharpton, president of National
Action Network; Kirsten John Foy, chairman of
NAN’s Brooklyn conference, and Hazel Dukes,
president of the New York chapter of the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People,
among others, prior to the press conference. The
meeting at NAN headquarters was closed to media.
During the press conference, Sharpton said he
wants to move forward before the holidays to ad-
dress retailers on the “shop and frisk” issue. “We are
solution-oriented. We are not interested in retailers
coming to our affairs or supporting some local situ-
ation,” he said. “We are interested in a policy that
will not render blacks as automatic suspects when
they go in stores and are treated any differently than
anyone else. Whether it is Barneys, Macy’s, Saks,
Bergdorf Goodman or the corner store, we cannot
live in a city where our consumer dollars are deval-
ued based on the fact of predisposed bias. It was in
that spirit that we talked to Mr. Lee.…We had a very
candid and open meeting today to begin a dialogue.”
Sharpton said he was concerned with the two
cases that have been filed. “We want to see those
victims dealt with fairly and justly. Secondly, we
want to see a coming together of a broad section
of community leaders and a broad section of ceo’s
representing the major retailers in this city to ad-
dress racial profiling, and address how retailers
and NYPD relate on the issue of ‘shop and frisk.’
This must be done immediately…to talk about con-
duct and policy,” said Sharpton. He said the com-
munity should not invest their dollars in companies
and stores that do not respect them personally.
During a brief question-and-answer period,
a person said he heard from former security em-
ployees at Barneys that new management has put
pressure on security guards to turn in more people
suspected of using fraudulent cards. “That’s not the
policy of Barneys,” said Lee. “Barneys has zero tol-
erance of discrimination of any form. Racial profil-
ing is an extremely serious form of discrimination,
and we take it very seriously. If we found that to be
true we would terminate the individual.”
As reported, Robert Brown, an actor who stars in
the HBO series “Treme,” said he was racially profiled
at Macy’s Herald Square on June 8. He allegedly was
stopped by at least three plainclothes officers, ac-
cused of using a fraudulent credit card and detained
at the store. He has filed a lawsuit against Macy’s and
the NYPD. On Sunday, Macy’s said that preliminary
findings of its own investigation showed no involve-
ment of Macy’s personnel in Brown’s detention,
which was characterized as an NYPD action. “Macy’s
permitted the New York City Police Department,
at its request, to use a room in the Macy’s Herald
Square store in relation to its detention of Mr. Brown,
but Macy’s personnel were not involved,” it said.
Another complaint was filed by Art Palmer, 56,
an exercise trainer from Brooklyn, who said he was
accosted by police, who demanded to see identifica-
tion after he used his credit card to buy $320 worth
of Polo merchandise at Macy’s in April.
By EVAN CLARK
FRED GEHRING is passing the torch
at Tommy Hilfiger Group to Daniel
Grieder — who will oversee the brand
globally as chief executive officer and
also work to help Calvin Klein dupli-
cate Hilfiger’s success in Europe.
Gehring, 59, is currently ceo of both
Hilfiger and PVH Corp.’s international
unit, and by the end of next year will
transition to chairman of Hilfiger, a
new role, and vice chairman of PVH.
From that perch, he will advise PVH
chairman and ceo Emanuel Chirico.
Grieder, 51, who has worked with
Tommy Hilfiger Europe since 1997,
will keep his current job as ceo of
PVH Europe.
“We’ve worked as a team quite effectively for
many years,” Gehring told WWD.
While the Hilfiger business is likely to stay on its
same general course, Gehring noted, “The weather
changes every day. You can never say the way we do
it today is the way we should stay. We evolve all the
time. There is a constant need for adaptation. He
and I will figure it out.”
The company also named Peter Schlagboehmer as
president of brand management for Tommy Hilfiger
Europe and Iris Epple as president of brand manage-
ment for Calvin Klein Europe. Both report to Grieder.
Gehring’s tenure at the brand has seen many
major changes, including a buyout by Apax Partners
and the sale to PVH in 2010.
“I’ve had a chance to do every-
thing that I would like to do, but
there are other things in life,” he
said. “My passion is also to do a lit-
tle bit less, more hobbies. This is not
to be seen as a semiretirement with
an honorary role, I’m superpassion-
ate about this brand. I won’t need
any trigger or encouragement to be
actively involved.”
Gehring said the Hilfiger business
has been “quite good everywhere.”
“There are areas in Europe that
are really tough, so the other areas
have to make up for that,” he said.
“We definitely feel pretty good about
the European business going for-
ward. America…we’re quite happy
with the performance. There are
certain aspects we could be happier with.”
One of Grieder’s key jobs will be to build up the
Calvin Klein business in Europe, which Gehring de-
scribed as “another major power name that aestheti-
cally is the opposite of Tommy Hilfiger, if you will, so
it is completely noncompetitive. It’s a sleeping giant,
but it needs to be built from the ground up.”
Chirico said Gehring, who is already on PVH’s
board, would remain a close adviser.
“Since the acquisition, any of the major deals
that we’ve done, from Warnaco to some of our
major licenses around the world…a lot of that’s [in-
volved] discussions with Fred,” Chirico said. “He’s
been a major force in the strategy of the company.”
Grieder Succeeds Gehring at Hilfiger
Barneys’ Lee Addresses Profiling Issue
Fred Gehring
PHOTOBYJOHNAQUINO

4. By ALEXANDRA STEIGRAD
PANDORA GROUP, the Danish company
known for its charm bracelets, is hoping
to broaden its consumer base with a new
collection called Essence.
The line, which will hit Pandora
stores on Monday, represents a second
attempt for the midmarket, charm-cen-
tric jeweler at elevating its collection. In
the past, the brand attempted to offer a
higher-end 18-karat gold collection, but
according to Scott Burger, president of
Pandora North America, the jewelry
brand “alienated its core customer.” In
the U.S., that core consumer is a subur-
ban woman in her 40s.
The new collection, he said,
is a “logical and safe brand
extension,” as the price
points are in line with the
company’s core collection.
Essence starts at $60 for a
sterling silver bracelet.
Shoppers can choose
from a variety of beads,
which will retail from
$30 to $65 apiece. Unlike
its Moments collection,
which is a charm-based line
geared at celebrating an event
such as an engagement or a birthday,
Essence is all about the individual, ac-
cording to Burger.
“We wanted there to be a distinct dif-
ference between commemorating mo-
ments and meanings. We didn’t want to
blur the two,” he said. “For us, there is a
style element to Essence. It gives people
the ability to wear [the collection] in dif-
ferent ways.”
Indeed, shoppers can purchase an
individual bead, which will remain in
place thanks to a flexible silicone grip
built inside each charm, or they can buy
multiple beads to create a unique look.
Pandora is hoping its core customers
— and some new ones — will embrace the
line, which capitalizes
on the “individuality”
trend that U.S. brands
such as Alex and Ani
have thrived on in recent
years. Although Pandora
is more like a big fish
than a small guppy in
the space — in 2012, the
company logged $571.2
million in sales in the
North America region
and about $1.17 billion in
total sales — it could still
gobble up major share
here, Burger said, ex-
plaining that “meaning”
is central to Essence’s
potential success.
Lee Gray, vice pres-
ident for creative at Pandora, was
charged with developing meaning via
the creation of charms that each repre-
sent a different value or concept. Values
include confidence, wisdom, joy, hap-
piness, trust, freedom and prosperity.
Beginning with 120 concepts, Gray culled
the list down to 24 and worked with his
team to source stones and metals that
would reflect each value.
Stones include amethyst, lapis lazuli,
smoky quartz, spinel, rose pink moon-
stone, aventurine and aquamarine,
while metals consist primarily of ster-
ling silver, which is smooth or faceted
with cubic zirconia or diamonds.
Gray said part of his inspiration
behind designing the collection
came from other brands, such
as Philosophy, the skin-care
company.
“I love the way they
interact with women,”
he said, and pointed to
Pandora’s own advertising
campaign, which he hopes
will mimic that sensibility.
Set to launch in tandem
with Essence is a print,
television, video and digital
campaign featuring eight dif-
ferent women who are consid-
ered influencers of sorts. Pandora’s
muses run the gamut from a social en-
trepreneur and research scientist to a
cosmetics creator and yoga instructor.
Each woman chose a value that repre-
sents them and spoke about it on camera
or in print.
“The most important element was the
women,” Gray noted.
Pandora’s chief creative officer of group
design Stephen Fairchild echoed Gray.
“We don’t want to alienate our existing
customer,” Fairchild said. “The bracelet
is an extension of what we do. All con-
sumers are searching for something. This
collection has timeless longevity and
meaning. It comes down to values.”
4 WWD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2013
By SAMANTHA CONTI
LONDON — Compagnie Financière
Richemont may have denied that Net-a-
porter Group is for sale and repeatedly
declined to comment on speculation
about potential fashion disposals, but
it’s all fallen on deaf ears at Citigroup.
On Tuesday, Thomas Chauvet, head
of European Luxury Goods Research at
Citigroup here, published a lengthy re-
port on Richemont’s overall health — and
speculated in detail about disposals in
Richemont’s fashion division —in antici-
pation of the company’s first-half results
announcement on Nov. 8.
Chauvet, who acknowledges the Net-
a-porter denial in his report,
expects Richemont to make a
“complete exit” from fashion
and accessories in a bid to
refocus on its hard luxury
brands such as Cartier, Van
Cleef & Arpels and Piaget,
with the aim of forging
a more “homogenous”
group that generates
higher margins and capi-
tal returns.
With regard to Net-a-
porter, Chauvet said: “We
could envisage an oppor-
tunistic spin-off of Net-
a-porter and subsequent
market listing or a sale
to private equity investors
or strategic trade buyers in
the next 12 to 24 months.”
Chauvet believes Net-a-
porter could be sold for 2.28
billion euros, or $3.15 bil-
lion, three times the luxury e-
tailer’s projected sales of 760
million euros, or $1.05 billion, for the 2014-
15 fiscal year, according to Citi estimates.
Chauvet said he used a multiple of
three for a number of reasons: “We be-
lieve [Net] is an asset operating in a highly
coveted segment, considering the intense
M&A activity in the online luxury space,
Amazon’s intentions to make a move in
online luxury retailing and rich valuation
multiples enjoyed by Asos and Yoox.”
In the spring of 2010, Richemont ac-
quired the shares that it did not already
own in Net-a-porter in a deal valu-
ing the luxury retailer at 350 million
pounds, or $532 million.
Earlier this month, WWD reported
that Richemont had been in merger and
acquisitions talks with Yoox Group with
an eye to finding a buyer for Net-a-porter.
Richemont later issued a denial that
the company was for sale, while Yoox
founder and chief executive officer
Federico Marchetti said: “At the mo-
ment, there are no negotiations taking
place with Richemont.”
Chauvet brushed aside Net-a-porter’s
current losses at the earnings before in-
terest and taxes level, estimated to be 19
million euros, or $26.2 million, in the 2012-
13 year, on revenues of an estimated 530
million euros, or $731.4 million.
“NAP is not yet profitable on a headline
EBIT basis, but it is generating positive op-
erating cash flow,” the report said.
“While the business is currently only
at breakeven, excluding an annual amor-
tization of intangibles, it largely reflects
a heavy investment phase over the past
few years which saw the automation
of the U.K. platform, expansion of U.S.
warehousing facilities, build-up
of Asian operations, as well as
the launch of Mr Porter and in-
vestments at…The Outnet.”
Citi said it expects Net-a-
porter to reach midsingle-
digit EBIT margin gradu-
ally from the 2015-16 fiscal
year onward.
Speculation about the
future of Richemont’s
fashion and accessories
portfolio has been mount-
ing since late spring, when
the company’s founder and
chairman Johann Rupert told
analysts that the company
needed to “cull” its bad invest-
ments quicker, although he did
not give any specifics.
As reported last month,
Richemont has quietly put
Lancel up for sale, although
the company has declined to
comment. Chauvet estimates
that Richemont’s entire soft
luxury division — Lancel, Chloé, Dunhill,
Shanghai Tang, Purdey, Azzedine Alaïa
and Peter Millar — could fetch a multiple
of two times 2014-15 projected sales, or
1.86 billion euros, or $2.57 billion.
He also speculated that the struggling
watch brand Baume & Mercier could be
sold for 309 million euros, or $426 mil-
lion, twice its estimated sales for the
2014-15 fiscal year.
In the report, Chauvet is bullish about
Richemont’s watch sales in the current
year, and said he expects growth in the
jewelry category to remain “robust, and
continue to outperform watches.”
He said Richemont’s shares have been
outperforming those of its luxury compet-
itors, and the company remains among
the most attractive growth stories, with
“superior long-term earnings power,” a
powerful portfolio driven by profits at
Cartier and a strong balance sheet.
By VICKI M. YOUNG and
DAVID MOIN
SHARES OF Sears Holdings
Corp. jumped nearly 11.8 per-
cent as investors liked the idea
of the company spinning off its
Lands’ End business, even as
Sears projected a third-quarter
loss as high as $582 million.
The stock closed at $62.09 in
Nasdaq trading.
The company said Tuesday
that it is considering the separa-
tion of the Lands’ End and Sears
Auto Center businesses.
Sears said Lands’ End has
the potential to be a “global
business” and that a separa-
tion would allow the operation
to pursue its own strategic op-
portunities, optimize its capital
structure and allocate capital in
a more focused manner.
“This will allow us to focus
more on Lands’ End and contin-
ue our hard work,” said Edgar
Huber, the president and chief
executive officer of Lands’ End.
Sources said Lands’ End gen-
erates about $2 billion in volume
and is profitable, and that there
isn’t any set timing for when
Sears would want to spin off the
brand. Lands’ End would also
have to work through various ser-
vice contracts it has with Sears.
Lands’ End could grow faster
under a different ownership
structure that could allow for
more investment back in the
company than what Sears has
been willing to do.
Sears Holdings, which also
owns the Sears and Kmart
chains, last year tried to find a
buyer for Lands’ End. Sources
said the asking price was ini-
tially $2 billion, but offers that
came in from private equity
firms were shy of $1 billion.
Sears acquired Lands’ End
in 2002 for $2 billion when it
was still Sears, Roebuck and
Co. That was before chair-
man Edward Lampert’s Kmart
Holdings Corp., which he ac-
quired out of bankruptcy
through his hedge fund ESL
Investments in 2003, bought
Sears in 2005 for $11 billion.
Sears said Tuesday if it did
decide to separate out Lands’
End, it would not entail a sale of
the business. Rather, the move
would be structured to “allow
existing shareholders the op-
portunity to benefit” from the
potential for value creation over
the longer term. That suggests
a spin-off, while giving existing
shareholders an equity stake in a
separated Lands’ End business.
As for opportunities, Huber
cited ongoing efforts to further
“digitalize” the business, par-
ticularly overseas, where 60 per-
cent of the business is through
the catalogue and 40 percent is
online. By contrast, Huber said,
80 percent of the ordering in the
U.S. is online, and 20 percent is
through the catalogue.
Huber also mentioned the
possibility of rolling out free-
standing stores, of which there
are only about 13, and develop-
ing additional in-store shops,
possibly at stores other than
Sears. Over the last seven years,
nearly 300 Lands’ End shops
have been planted inside Sears,
ranging from 5,000 to 10,000
square feet, with a handful as
big as 20,000 square feet.
Separately, the retailer is
set to post third-quarter earn-
ings on Nov. 21 for the period
ended Nov. 2.
It provided an update of its
business, stating that compara-
ble-store sales fell 3.7 percent,
with declines of 4.8 percent at
Sears domestic stores and 2.6
percent at Kmart stores.
On an operating basis, ad-
justed earnings before inter-
est, taxes, depreciation and
amortization widened to a loss
of between $250 million and
$300 million for the quarter,
compared with an adjusted
EBITDA loss of $156 million in
the same year-ago quarter. The
net loss is projected at between
$532 million and $582 million,
compared with a loss of $498
million a year ago.
Sears Considers Separating Lands’ End Business
Citi Weighs In on Net-a-Porter,
Other Possible Richemont Sales
Pandora to Unveil Essence Collection
A Baume & Mercier
calfskin and stainless-
steel watch.
Kinga Burza, a
Polish-Austrian
video director,
shot at her home
in Paris for the
Essence line.
A carnelian
stone representing
“Energy.”

5. WWD.COM
NEW YORK — Iconix Brand
Group Inc. easily beat expecta-
tions for third-quarter earnings
and initiated guidance for fiscal
2014 above Wall Street’s early
estimates.
In the three months ended
Sept. 30, the brand-management
firm generated net income of
$29 million, or 50 cents a dilut-
ed share, 6.9 percent above the
$27.1 million, or 38 cents, regis-
tered in the comparable quarter
of 2012. On an adjusted basis,
earnings per share were 59
cents, 7 cents above the 52 cent
analysts’ consensus estimate.
Earnings before interest,
taxes, depreciation and amorti-
zation rose 26.6 percent to $65.6
million from $51.8 million.
Revenues in the quarter,
principally from licensing royal-
ties, rose 23.8 percent to $107.2
million from $86.6 million. On
average, analysts had expected
revenues of $105.9 million.
In addition to raising its full-
year estimates, the company ini-
tiated guidance for fiscal 2014,
with adjusted EPS expected to
be in a range of $2.50 to $2.60
and revenues seen growing to
between $440 million and $455
million. Wall Street had expect-
ed adjusted EPS of $2.47 on rev-
enues of $451.8 million.
Revenues for the current
year are now expected to land
between $425 million and $435
million with adjusted EPS of be-
tween $2.30 and $2.40, 10 cents
higher than earlier projections.
Neil Cole, chairman and chief
executive officer, told analysts on
a Tuesday morning conference
call that the company had made
“significant progress” in its inter-
national operations. “This year,
we expect our international busi-
ness to almost double, represent-
ing more than a third of our over-
all business,” he said. “This is
up from just 6 percent just a few
years ago and we estimate this
will grow to approximately 40
percent of our revenue in 2014.”
Investors liked the results,
sending shares of Iconix up $1.48
cents, or 4.4 percent, to $34.94 in
Nasdaq trading Tuesday. They
hit an all-time high of $35.23 in
intraday trading.
For the nine months, net income
rose 22.3 percent to $101.9 million,
or $1.67 a diluted share, from $83.3
million, or $1.15. Revenues expand-
ed 21.8 percent to $327.4 million
from $268.9 million.
The Iconix brand portfo-
lio includes Candie’s, Badgley
Mischka, Mudd and Marc Ecko,
as well as equity interests in Ed
Hardy, Material Girl and Buffalo.
— ARNOLD J. KARR
5WWD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2013
Lululemon Taps Poseley as Product Officer
PermiraSaidinMixforVersaceStake
IconixNet,RevenuesUpinQ3
Bonobos to Launch
Women’s AYR Line
By DAVID LIPKE
THE BONOBOS GUY is about
to get a new sister.
Bonobos Inc. will launch
a separate brand for women,
called AYR, and a related e-
commerce site next month.
The contemporary label will
have its foundation in denim
and pared-down sportswear
designs like cotton shirts, silk
tops and cashmere sweaters,
all in clean silhouettes with
minimal embellishments.
A splash page announc-
ing the new venture goes live
today at Ayr.com. On Nov. 13,
e-commerce will launch with
two styles of denim, a skinny fit
and a cropped “ciggy” fit, each
in two washes. The full spring
collection, encompassing 75
pieces across 25 styles, will
make its debut in late January
or early February.
“I saw a similar opportu-
nity to Bonobos in address-
ing a really busy female
consumer — but with a new
aesthetic and new product,”
said Andy Dunn, founder and
chief executive officer of New
York-based Bonobos, which
launched in 2007 with men’s
pants and has expanded into
a full collection. “We’re focus-
ing on elevated essentials:
quality investment pieces that
can live in a woman’s ward-
robe all year round. With all
the focus today on fast-fash-
ion, where do you get your ba-
sics and staples from?”
AYR — which is both an
acronym for “all year round”
and the name of a Scottish
seaside town — will be the
third brand operating under
the Bonobos umbrella, fol-
lowing the launch of its Maide
men’s golf label in March. “It
really came down to me feel-
ing that this is a different
customer,” explained Dunn
of launching the stand-alone
women’s site. “I don’t want
to confuse our customer and
I didn’t want to mess with
Bonobos. It creates clarity
between the two customers
and it protects our core brand
asset of Bonobos.”
AYR is leveraging the com-
pany’s existing expertise in
technology, customer service
and fulfillment, including a
quality office in Hong Kong.
For design and branding, Dunn
recruited a new team headed
by design director Jacqueline
Cameron and brand director
Maggie Winter to spearhead
the women’s concept. Cameron
was previously de-
sign director of denim
and washed wovens
at Calvin Klein Jeans
and a senior designer
at Madewell; Winter
was previously a se-
nior merchant at J.
Crew and a merchant
at Madewell.
“We want to serve a
generation of women
who are old enough
to be established in
their careers but young
enough to be living
their lives digitally,”
said Winter of AYR’s
target demographic
of 25- to 40-year-old
women. “We’re leaving
Bonobos as a boys’ club
and leaving them to do
what they do so well.
Men don’t like to feel
like they are shopping
in a women’s store.”
AYR denim will re-
tail from $150 to $195,
shirts for $95 to $150,
sweaters for $150 to
$250, T-shirts for $50,
silk tank tops for $150
to $225 and jackets for
$225 to $485.
The first spring
collection is predi-
cated on a long-over-
lean proportion, with
somewhat oversize, draped
tops meant to pair with slim
bottoms. Denim emphasizes
stretch and softness, utiliz-
ing Tencel blends. Silk crepe
blouses come in cami, wedge
and tank silhouettes while
sweaters are fashioned from
Merino wool, baby alpaca and
Scottish cashmere fabrics. The
most dramatic item is an ar-
chitectural wool coat, cut like
a robe with no button closures.
Dunn pegged the Bonobos
investment in AYR at around
$750,000, the same amount
he raised in the original
angel round of fund-raising to
launch Bonobos in 2007. “It’s
a radically leaner proposition
than if you had to launch a
brick-and-mortar brand,” ob-
served Dunn.
Privately held Bonobos
does not release financial re-
sults but Dunn said total vol-
ume this year in gross margin
dollars (which is total sales
minus cost of goods sold and
shipping) will be 2.5 times
the 2012 figure. Additionally,
the brand’s distribution at
Nordstrom stores is increas-
ing from 70 doors to 118 doors
early next year.
By LUISA ZARGANI
MILAN — Permira is said to
be on the short list of inves-
tors seeking a minority stake
in Versace, according to well-
placed sources. The private eq-
uity group and owner of brands
including Hugo Boss and New
Look last week agreed to acquire
R. Griggs Group Ltd., parent of
the Doc Martens brand. Permira
took control of Valentino Fashion
Group SpA in 2007, selling it
five years later to Mayhoola for
Investments, an investment vehi-
cle backed by a private investor
group from Qatar.
A Milan-based source said
that “over the past few weeks,
Permira has entered the negotia-
tions [for the Versace stake] in a
significant way, at the expense of
the Qatar-based funds.”
Last month, industry sources
discussing who might buy the
stake in Versace pointed to a
short list that included the IQ
Made in Italy joint venture,
formed by global investment firm
Qatar Holding LLC and Italy’s
Fondo Strategico Italiano, the
holding company controlled
by Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, or
CDP, a financial company con-
trolled by the Italian Ministry of
Economy and Finance. Another
investment fund, this one from
Qatar, was also named. These en-
tities, said a source, may no lon-
ger be looking at Versace. Earlier
this month, New York-based fund
Blackstone Group emerged as a
possible investor, and it is under-
stood it is still in the running.
A source said the Versace
family considers taking on an
investor as “an opportunity, not
a necessity,” and for this reason
is seeking a partner that will
help expand the firm, but not
interfere “in strategic decisions
or change how it operates.”
Versace had no comment on
Tuesday.
As reported, the Milan-based
firm is looking at selling a 15
to 20 percent holding by the
end of the year to finance fu-
ture growth. Siblings Santo and
Donatella Versace, who hold a
30 and 20 percent stake, respec-
tively, and Donatella’s daughter,
Allegra Versace Beck, who owns
50 percent, want to maintain
control over the company.
Rumors about a possible sale
emerged last year when Versace
tapped Goldman Sachs and
Banca IMI to evaluate growth
opportunities.
A market source said the com-
pany’s management is “pleased
with how things are proceeding
as nobody has valued the entire
Versace company for less than 1
billion euros [or $1.38 billion at
current exchange].”
Eventually, an initial pub-
lic offering may be in the cards
for Versace. Last spring, chief
executive officer Gian Giacomo
Ferraris set a target for a pos-
sible IPO: when the company
hits sales of 500 million to 600
million euros, or $676 million
to $811.2 million at current ex-
change. Last year, Versace re-
ported group revenues of 408.7
million euros, or $523.1 million
at average exchange, up 20 per-
cent compared with 2011.
By SHARON EDELSON
LULULEMON ATHLETIC on
Tuesday named Tara Poseley
chief product officer.
Poseley, who most recently
was president of the multichan-
nel, multicategory Kmart apparel
business, will be responsible for
merchandising, inventory, allo-
cation and strategic planning. In
her new role, Poseley will over-
see Lululemon’s global design
strategy, working with the senior
vice presidents of women’s and
men’s design. She will report to
Christine Day, Lululemon’s chief
executive officer. Day plans to
step down as ceo and leave the
retailer as soon as a successor
can be found.
Lululemon split the posi-
tion of chief product officer into
two jobs earlier this year. The
other responsibilities are being
handled by Poseley’s counter-
part, Jennifer Battersby, senior
vice president of sourcing. “As
a growing and more global or-
ganization, we needed to ex-
pand and bolster product op-
erations,” a spokeswoman said.
“The Luon were a symptom of
that area not being as strong
as it had to be,” she said, refer-
ring to the black yoga pants that
were recalled in March because
they were too sheer, forcing the
company to take a significant fi-
nancial writedown.
In her 25-year career, Poseley
has run men’s, women’s, acces-
sories, kid’s and intimate ap-
parel businesses as an executive
at Bebe Stores, Disney Stores
North America and Design
Within Reach.
“The multichannel agenda at
Lululemon is so strong,” Poseley
said. “I’ll be upgrading the site
and experience and social and
digital channels. Lululemon has
a good intimate apparel busi-
ness. They have Ivivva, a girl’s
brand. I’m excited about the glob-
al expansion. I’m looking to bring
expertise on assorting different
areas of [North America] and
new countries we’re going into.”
Lululemon’s first store in
London will open in 2014. The
brand connects with local com-
munities through showrooms,
which it opens as a precursor
to stores. There are showrooms
in the U.K. and units in the
Netherlands, Germany, Hong
Kong, Singapore and, soon,
Shanghai. The showrooms oper-
ate for 18 to 36 months and then
can be replaced by stores.
A Versace
spring
runway look.
PHOTOCOURTESYOFAYR/BONOBOS
A look
from AYR.

6. MICHAEL KORS
“It’s true: I am an optimist,” declared
Michael Kors, sipping on his favorite
beverage, iced tea, as he addressed
the dinner crowd at the WWD Apparel
& Retail CEO Summit on Monday eve-
ning. “And on that level, I swim in the
opposite direction of a lot of those in the
fashion industry.”
That attitude is generating sunny
results at Michael Kors Holdings Ltd.,
which has delivered sizzling financial
results quarter after quarter since going
public in 2011. Driven by vigorous de-
mand for its accessories, shoes and ap-
parel, the company has been opening
stores at full tilt around the globe and
attracting droves of investors to its envy-
inducing growth story. Wall Street now
values Michael Kors in excess of $15.5
billion, and on Friday the stock will be
added to the S&P 500 index.
Apart from optimism — and the Kors
brand has always been, in part, about
an upbeat attitude in contrast to the
moodier ethos of some European labels
— what’s been the formula for that explo-
sive success? Much of it has been about
marrying pragmatism and accessibility
with luxury and glamour, explained Kors.
It’s an adept combination that has so far
proved golden.
“I’ve always treated my customers like
we’re in this together. I try to figure out
before they know what they want, what’s
going to make their closets look new but
still at the same time have longevity,” he
explained. “When I’m putting a collec-
tion together and designing it, I always
try to have a balance: It has to function,
it has to be pragmatic enough to work in
life — but it still has to change your spirit
and your mood.”
Great design takes everyday life into
account — but is also aspirational, he
noted. “If the most fabulous handbag in
the world is so heavy that all you want to
put in it is a feather and a credit card, it’ll
never be the bag you grab for. If the pants
you love only work with a tunic and your
ass looks enormous in it, you’re never put-
ting them on again,” reasoned Kors. “So
I’m always thinking about the practical
side of things. At the same time, if it’s only
about practicality, it takes all the joy out
of fashion and all the joy out of getting
dressed — it takes the escapism out of it.
And frankly, escapism is key.”
Hitting on the “Transformers” theme
of the summit, Kors likened that escap-
ism to the transformative nature of fash-
ion in general. “I’ve always held onto
the idea that fashion can transform you
and transport you. It has the potential
to change you, your mood and your life,
quicker than anything else,” he said.
To wit: As a teenager growing up in
Merrick, Long Island, Kors earned money
doing caricatures at Sweet Sixteen and
bar mitzvah parties, saving up for his first
big luxury purchase, a Cartier Tank watch.
“That watch changed everything that I
wore. Somehow that watch seemed to take
me places. When I wore it, suddenly I was
transformed into a global jet-setter, living
in a New York penthouse and dancing the
night away at Regine’s,” he said.
Those early memories of the interna-
tional jet set remain with Kors today and
he still uses the phrase as a signifier for
modern glamour. While air travel isn’t
the singular experience it once was in
the Fifties and Sixties, to Kors the jet
set still conjures up the magic of Jackie
Onassis in the South of France. It’s the
essence of the dream he sells in his de-
signs and his advertising. The company
even sprinkles “jet set” into its Securities
and Exchange Commission filings.
“When we started rolling out stores we
wanted to create a jet-set experience that
mirrored my design ethos. The jet-setters
of the Sixties were really the first people
that lived that fast life. They were the first
people who needed clothes that could
actually switch climates in a matter of
hours,” said Kors. “They were the precur-
sors to the supersonic lifestyle that pre-
vails all around the world today. Now, you
don’t have to live in the city today to live
a fast life. Everyone is so wired up you
can, in fact, live in Pocatello, Idaho, and
still be on the move and always plugged in
and know what is going on. Jet set means
dressing for a quick, fast life. And that
could entail a private plane, a bus or a
subway. It just depends on who you are.”
That democratic view of the equality
of transport modes hasn’t yet come to
Kors’ advertising — which tends to stick
with private-jet scenarios rather than
mass transit — but the designer empha-
sized the importance of mixing high and
low in his stores, as long as the low main-
tained an element of the Kors magic.
“When we opened our first lifestyle store
in Dallas, everyone said, ‘You guys can’t
put a flip-flop and a crocodile handbag in
the same store. And I said, “Well, why not?
It’s in your closet, why should it be any dif-
ferent in a store?’” rationalized Kors. “As
a designer, I have to say I spend as much
time designing something that’s accessible
as I do something that’s over-the-top. It
should be just as fabulous when it’s $89 as
it is when it’s $8,900. It’s never about talking
down to the customer. I’ve said before that
the product is king. Well to me, consistently,
the customer is always royal.”
Kors’ common touch and ebullient
charisma have played a crucial role in
developing the Michael Kors business.
The designer credited his star turn
as a judge for 10 seasons on “Project
Runway” with bringing his appealing
persona to a massive audience — and
making consumers understand what the
Michael Kors brand was all about.
“Seeing and hearing me on ‘Project
Runway’ let people know how I think
about fashion,” explained Kors. “You
hear the person speaking, you know who
they are, it connects the dots. It’s not just
this magical garment or accessory that
somehow arrives in your house from a
stranger. You actually feel connected to
the person who designs it.”
Since saying “auf Wiedersehen” to
“Project Runway” last year, social media
has only magnified Kors’ former real-
ity television fame. “With people follow-
ing me on Twitter or as Facebook fans
or Instagram-ing, now it seems like I’m
doing a trunk show in millions of homes
worldwide every day,” said Kors. “And
you know what? It’s as personal as when I
do an actual trunk show on Fifth Avenue,
Madison Avenue or Rodeo Drive. I’ve al-
ways had that connection to people. Now
I just have it in a broader sense.”
It’s debatable whether an Instagram
“like” is as personal as a face-to-face fit-
ting in a Fifth Avenue trunk show, but the
Internet and reality television have un-
doubtedly brought Kors a legion of younger
fans to supplement his traditional Upper
East Side-Palm Beach-Beverly Hills axis. “I
think this generation of teenagers is going
to start shopping very differently when they
reach their 20s. I think they are going to
have an aversion to the idea of disposable
fashion,” predicted Kors. “We are going to
see it circle back to a very old-school term,
the idea of fashion as an investment.”
In his own youth, Kors was on the
early fast-track to fashion fame. He oper-
ated his own “boutique” in his parents’
basement, dubbed “The Iron Butterfly,”
where he sold his own handicrafts. As
a teenager, he worked as a buyer for the
pro shop at a Long Island tennis club,
persuading lady clients to buy colorful
outfits despite the all-white dress code.
“I convinced all the women who were at
the club that these clothes were great for
wearing to the grocery store. And I have
to say, to this day nothing thrills me more
than seeing a woman in a tennis dress
with a fur coat,” he reminisced.
While still a student at the Fashion
Institute of Technology, Kors began working
in 1978 at an upscale store on 57th Street,
called Lothar’s — a shop he once dubbed
“The Gap for Guinnesses.” Recognizing his
talent and enthusiasm, the owners tapped
Kors to design a full lifestyle range for the
store, in addition to “helping Jackie O get
her boots off and handing jeans to Nureyev
in the dressing room.”
What followed is now Seventh Avenue
lore: Dawn Mello, then fashion director at
Bergdorf Goodman, spotted some of those
Kors designs in Lothar’s windows and
told him to come see her if he ever started
his own line. “I literally ran home that
night, started sketching out a collection
and I whipped the whole thing together in
three weeks and I took it up to see her,”
said Kors. Needless to say, Bergdorf’s was
soon carrying the new Michael Kors label
and the rest is fashion history.
“I learned along the way. I waited
three years, in fact, to have a fashion
show. I wanted to make sure that I knew
how to ship the clothes properly, that they
fit well, that I had a clientele and that the
quality was there. I wanted to work out
the kinks — though you really never actu-
ally work it all out,” recalled Kors. “That’s
how fashion progresses. You keep trying
things and sometimes you’re right and
sometimes your wrong. You’ve got to keep
moving forward and you’ve got to try.”
John Idol, chief executive officer of
Michael Kors, has been instrumental in
steering the growth of the company. “The
simple truth is we are all in the business
of creative commerce,” said the designer,
highlighting the virtues of cooperation
between the financial and design coun-
terparts of fashion firms. “If both parties
realize that, then it’s symbiotic and that’s
when it works. And when it works, fash-
ion can be very big business.”
He should know. For fiscal 2014,
Michael Kors is projected to ring up sales
somewhere between $2.8 billion and $2.9
billion, up 27 to 32 percent from a year ago.
As of June 29, the company operated 328
retail stores, including concessions, com-
pared to 253 units a year ago. License part-
ners operate another 114 retail locations.
On Tuesday, Michael Kors stock closed
at $77.38, up 287 percent from its IPO
price of $20 in December 2011.
— DAVID LIPKE
6 WWD wednesday, october 30, 2013
’’
’’
2013 WWD CEO SUMMIT
Transformers
Editor's Note: This is the second of two parts of coverage of the WWD Apparel & Retail
CEO Summit. Part one appeared in Tuesday's edition.
ALL SuMMIt pHOtOS by JOHn AquInO
WhenI’mputtingacollectiontogetherand
designing it, I always try to have a balance:
It has to function, it has to be pragmatic
enough to work in life — but it still has to
change your spirit and your mood.
— Michael Kors

7. WWD.COM
ANNA WINTOUR
The task before Leslie Moonves,
the chief executive officer of
CBS Corp., was to interview
Anna Wintour, the editor in
chief of Vogue and artistic direc-
tor of Condé Nast.
Moonves, whose portfolio
includes the CBS broadcast
network, the Showtime cable
channel and Simon & Schuster,
as well as a bevy of other
major media outfits, described
Wintour as “a leader of a great
brand, and someone who shapes
our culture in a very positive
way.” And “someone who’s pret-
ty famous for not suffering fools
gladly,” he said, adding, “I’ll do
my best to avoid that fate today.”
The ceo credited Vogue’s lon-
gevity to Wintour’s attention to
detail. But he wondered if her
new title of artistic director,
which gives her oversight of all
of Condé’s titles, would allow
her to be as hands-on.
“I don’t think I am that
hands-on,” she said. “I’m much
more of a believer in finding a
great team of people and trust-
ing them to follow their in-
stincts. They work better when
they feel they have freedom
and they are trusted. Nothing
gives me greater pleasure when
a great shoot or a great article
comes in and it’s absolutely got
nothing to do with what we dis-
cussed but it’s much better.”
Later on, Wintour expanded
on her views about management
now that she’s in a position of
even greater influence within
Condé to alter the direction and
leadership of magazines other
than her own.
“In my new role, the thing
that is most important to me
is to protect and support the
editors, because it is a vision of
the editor that creates a great
magazine and if you don’t have
that vision working at its fullest
strength, the magazine is going
to suffer.”
The school of management
according to Wintour is fairly
straightforward, she said, and is
derived from her father, Charles
Wintour, the former editor of the
Evening Standard of London.
“I think possibly what people
working for one hate the most
is indecision. Even if I’m com-
pletely unsure, I’ll pretend I
know exactly what I’m talking
about and make a decision,” she
said. “The most important thing
I can do is try and make myself
very clearly understood.”
Wintour was named artis-
tic director in March, a devel-
opment that had been in the
works by Condé senior manage-
ment for some time, as WWD
first reported.
Echoing the remarks at the
time by Condé ceo Charles
Townsend, Wintour also looked
to last year’s WWD CEO Summit
as the place where the idea of a
broad title like artistic director
took root.
“A group of us were at The
Plaza listening to Karl Lagerfeld
talk about what it was to be
the artistic director of Chanel,
and as he was describing his
role as being a free thinker,
creative force, someone who
roams the corridors of the world
and bringing everything back
to Chanel in a way only Karl
can. Fortunately for me, some
lightbulb went off in Chuck
Townsend’s head, and very soon
after that he talked to me about
a similar role at Condé Nast.”
As executives of legacy
media companies upended
by the Internet, Wintour and
Moonves share some common
concerns — and run in the same
social circle.
“How do you deal with the
Barry Dillers of the world?”
Wintour asked Moonves.
Diller, the chairman of IAC/
InterActiveCorp, has been en-
gaged in a fierce legal battle with
broadcasters like CBS over a ser-
vice he’s backing called Aereo
that delivers broadcasters’ signal
as a stream online without pay-
ing the lucrative retransmission
fees. Diller, so far, has the upper
hand, but the legality of the ser-
vice is far from settled. Moonves,
simultaneously, won a high-pro-
file battle in September against
Time Warner Cable to raise the
fee the cable operator pays to re-
transmit CBS’ signal.
“Barry, who is a close friend
of both of ours, is trying to steal
our signal and send it out for
free without paying for the con-
tent,” Moonves said. Neither
CBS nor Vogue, he continued,
should be giving away their
goods for free. “The key for both
of us is we create great premi-
um content.”
Wintour said magazines too
have benefited from the Internet
and the explosion of distribution
platforms because those disrup-
tions have expanded their reach,
though several times she under-
lined it’s still the print product
that pays the bills.
“If you talk about the digital
world, it’s the Wild West. The
important thing to realize is that
what works for print doesn’t
necessarily work for digital.
What we’re all doing is creating
more content that is specific for
different channels,” she said.
“What we’ve all learned is that
if you create similar content for
your print magazine as you do
for your Web site, it’s going to be
much less successful.”
Moonves, addressing the
impact of the Internet, added,
“The difference in our business
today is that we used to have one
means of revenue, which was ad-
vertising. Now, we’re paid in so
many different ways — we sell
our product all over the world.
We’re streaming online. We’re
selling to Netflix. The same
product now is spread out a
great deal and more people see
it. The great reason people are
no longer denigrating what we
do is we’re getting paid in a lot
more different ways, and guess
what, our revenues are rising.”
Wintour said Vogue has re-
mained relevant because it’s
stretched the traditional defini-
tion of a magazine.
“We have to speak with au-
thority, we have to speak with
confidence, we have to under-
stand who our reader is and we
have to be a real friend to the
industry. We have to be in touch
with all the designers. We have
to keep in touch with our retail
friends. We have to be in touch
with all the big companies and
understand what they’re think-
ing and how we can help them.
Although the print magazine is
by far the most important and
most profitable part of our busi-
ness, there’s endless extracur-
ricular parts of the job now that
also fit into the power and au-
thority of Vogue.”
Could she imagine a day
when the print magazine won’t
be the centerpiece of the Vogue
universe?
“Like I said, it’s a Wild West
out there. I would not dream of
pretending that I understand
where we’ll be in 25 years, but
for the foreseeable, print is by
far the most important part of
our business.”
Moonves lobbed one free-
bie question about Wintour’s
interest in tennis — “I went
to Wimbledon before I could
walk. It’s just been a lifelong
passion,” she told him — be-
fore asking her for parting ad-
vice to the magazine and fash-
ion industries.
“It’s very important to take
risks. I think that research is very
important, but in the end you
have to work from your instinct
and feeling and take those risks
and be fearless,” Wintour said.
“When I hear a company is being
run by a team, my heart sinks,
because you need to have that
leader with a vision and heart
that can move things forward.”
—ERIKMAZA
7WWD wednesdAY, OCTOBeR 30, 2013
’’
’’
’’
’’
Themostimportantthing
Icandoistryandmakemyself
veryclearlyunderstood.
— AnnA Wintour
Whatwe’vealllearnedisthatifyou
createsimilarcontentforyourprint
magazineasyoudoforyourWebsite,
it’sgoingtobemuchlesssuccessful.
— AnnA Wintour, Condé nAst
For complete video coverage
oF the Summit, pleaSe See
WWD.com/summitsondemand
Leslie Moonves

8. TERRY J. LUNDGREN
Terry J. Lundgren, chairman,
chief executive officer and
president of Macy’s Inc., sees a
bonus ahead, and he’s not talk-
ing about one for himself.
“We are finally at a time
when women’s apparel is start-
ing to look more interesting
again, and it’s definitely not in
her closet, because she hasn’t
shopped for women’s in three
years,” Lundgren said.
“With all of our billions of
dollars of growth, women’s ap-
parel has not participated in
that growth. To me, that’s actual-
ly a bonus. We are going against
the generally weak women’s ap-
parel business.”
While certain market and
private Macy’s brands have
been performing, “In general,
the market has been soft for
a few years. Now I am feeling
that a movement is occurring,”
Lundgren said, whereby some
consumer spending could shift
back to apparel after years of
more dollars being spent on
handbags, shoes and jewelry.
At a recent board meeting,
Lundgren displayed new Macy’s-
designed product that is selling
well and told the directors that
what Macy’s trend and product
people do is really hard. “We
forecast what customers are
going to want six or eight months
from now. They identify fashion
trends. They have zeroed in on
this Millennial customer, and
they are right. This is hard, and
that is our business — trying to
understand what the customer
is going to want next season,
and it’s not necessarily what
sold last season. In fact, it’s
rarely what sold last season.
That’s forever the challenge of
our business.”
Lundgren also riffed on
Macy’s “engines of growth,” say-
ing the company is betting big
on mobile and on recruiting
and training young talent. He
also responded to provocative
comments from Leslie Wexner,
chairman, ceo and founder of
L Brands Inc., on Oct. 16
that department stores are
irrelevant. Lundgren said
he has a lot of respect for
Wexner and the brands
he built, like Victoria’s
Secret, then stood up for
Macy’s and its accomplish-
ments, including corporate
restructurings, localizing the
offering to the store level and
growing by $1.2 billion in sales
in each of the last three years on
average. “That means custom-
ers are finding us attractive and
interesting and obviously very
relevant,” Lundgren said. “We
are growing and adding people.
We are continuing to invest.
Department stores are doing a
lot of business collectively, so
customers are choosing us.”
Lundgren listed his men-
tors and he has several, citing
first his father who taught him
the meaning of hard work. “My
father didn’t go to college. He
worked two jobs. He worked ex-
tremely hard.” Lundgren also
cited the late Gene Ross, head of
college recruiting for Bullock’s,
who identified Lundgren as a
student at University of Arizona
for executive training and hired
him into the company. Lundgren
rose to ceo of Bullock’s Wilshire,
ceo of Neiman Marcus and even-
tually returned to Federated
Department Stores, running
Federated Merchandising.
After Federated merged with
Macy’s, he became president
and ceo of Macy’s in 2003 and
added the chairman title a year
later. Lundgren regards Allen
Questrom, Michael Steinberg, the
late Stanley Marcus and the late
Sy Stewart, a legend in the home
furnishings industry, all as men-
tors. “Sy would grab me by the
throat and say, ‘You think you are
tough. You think you are good?’”
For Macy’s, the number-one
engine of growth, Lundgren
stressed, is product, particularly
unique product. “We are very
fortunate we have the scale to
be able to place bets with certain
market brands and our own pri-
vate brands. If you like Tommy
Hilfiger, it’s only sold at Macy’s
and his own stores. Rachel
Rachel Roy is only sold at Macy’s.
Sean John is only sold at Macy’s.
I could go on and on with prod-
uct only sold at our stores.”
When a private brand reso-
nates with consumers, it’s a
windfall. On the other hand, “I
always tell my team, the worst
idea is to have exclusive prod-
uct that doesn’t sell,” Lundgren
said. “There is nowhere for it to
go. It’s stuck. You have to have
merchants that have a nose for
product and can say this is what
my customer wants.”
With the Internet, Lundgren
said Macy’s saw its importance
and potential right away. “What
I don’t think we got right away
was the interconnectivity of the
omnichannel consumer,” like
how consumers research prod-
ucts on a mobile phone first and
shop stores second. “Technology
and online shopping have en-
abled our business and made us
a stronger and better retailer.”
He said Macy’s made a major
capital structure shift from
building new stores and remod-
elings to pouring a “tremendous
amount of capital into infra-
structure and technology.”
“I have always been con-
cerned about investing in
technology that could be ar-
chaic and is not going to be
used by customers in three
to five years, and yet if you
have that mentality, which I
used to have, you just won’t
invest. You just don’t know
where things are going. For now,
we are betting big on mobile. We
are believing some version of
mobile is going to continue, and
in an aggressive way.”
Of those starting their shop-
ping journey on their desktop
or iPad, a big percentage will
finish that journey on their
desktop or iPad, Lundgren said.
If they start on a cell phone,
a small percentage will actu-
ally finish the transaction on a
phone, Lundgren said, though
he believes “customers will get
more and more comfortable
pushing a button and finishing
the transaction on the phone.”
“We don’t really care about
how you choose to shop. We
are agnostic about whether
you want to use your phone,
or your desktop or your iPad,
or come in and touch the prod-
ucts in the stores. We just want
to enable you to shop with us
and make it a positive, pleas-
ant experience.” Customers
who shop Macy’s via multiple
channels are “significantly
more loyal and generate much
more productivity than if they
touch us in one way.” The mul-
tichannel shopper is “by far
our most engaged and most
productive customer.”
On talent, Lundgren said
Macy’s actively recruits on col-
lege campuses and invests in its
training program. He said this
year the company hired 1,000 col-
lege graduates. “Investment in
people is first and foremost.” He
said the average age of a macys.
com employee is 29 years old.
Lundgren has a “breakfast
club” every month where he
meets 14 young, up-and-coming
Macy’s employees for an hour,
learns about their lifestyles
and job and career concerns,
and encourages them, particu-
larly those who relocated to
the city, to “go out and experi-
ence New York and have fun.…
It’s our job to make sure young
people are engaged with one
another and help them figure
out their life skills while they
are in New York.”
Macy’s is also investing
heavily in renovating the
Herald Square flagship. “We’re
spending $400 million. It’s the
largest remodel in the history
of retail,” Lundgren said. One
major objective is to impress
tourists. “We know the Chinese
are going to be traveling to
America and that we are going
to get this visa thing sorted
out,” Lundgren said, referring
to the difficulties and delays
the Chinese have getting visas
to travel to the U.S., which
means they often opt to vaca-
tion in other countries.
Asked about the possibil-
ity of taking Macy’s interna-
tional, Lundgren replied, “I
do believe at some point in
time both brands [Macy’s and
Bloomingdale’s] will have an
international footprint. There is
nothing to announce at the mo-
ment.” Bloomingdale’s has one
store abroad, a leased unit in
Dubai, which he said started out
slowly but is now “on fire,” add-
ing, “We tweaked it, worked on
it very closely. The primary rea-
son [for opening the store] was
to learn how to do business in a
foreign country.
“I would be the first to say
there have not been a lot of suc-
cess stories out there” with U.S.
retailers going abroad. “You
could put you name on a leased
operation. But if you want the
store to portray your brand the
way you believe it should be
portrayed, you got to put some
money up,” said Lundgren.
“You’ve got to put your people
up. That’s hard and challenging,
to think that through.”
— DaviD Moin
8 WWD wednesday, october 30, 2013
’’
’’
’’
’’
Thatisourbusiness—tryingto
understandwhatthecustomeris
goingtowantnextseason,andit’snot
necessarilywhatsoldlastseason.
— Terry J. Lundgren, Macy’s Inc.
Wearebettingbigonmobile.
Wearebelievingsomeversion
ofmobileisgoingtocontinue,
andinanaggressiveway.2013 WWD CEO SUMMIT
Transformers

9. WWD.COM
Patrizio di Marco
In its 90-plus-year existence, Gucci has
seen quite some change, the most re-
cent one strategically implemented and
spearheaded by current president and
chief executive officer Patrizio di Marco.
In a candid presentation, di Marco,
who joined Gucci in 2009 after an eight-
year stint as president and ceo of Bottega
Veneta, outlined some of the company’s
past transformations, highlighting both
the ups and the downs in the brand’s sto-
ried history, as he and creative director
Frida Giannini work in tandem to keep
the label on top today.
Part of their plan has been to evolve
Gucci from its prior incarnation (and
powerful comeback) under Tom Ford
and Domenico de Sole. That comeback
came after, in the Eighties, the house’s
fortunes started to flounder with the pro-
liferation of the famed GG logo invented
by Aldo Gucci in the Sixties.
“In Aldo’s intention, the GG pattern
had to be the cool, somewhat hip part of
the brand offering, just a part of the offer,
not the whole brand,” di Marco explained.
“Nobody, not even Aldo, could imagine
then that the GG pattern was going to be-
come the way the brand would be mostly
or only recognized. To some extent the
brand fortune and the brand nemesis.”
That point became clear in the
Eighties, when Gucci’s fortunes as a lux-
ury house began to suffer.
“The infights and the greed of some of
the family members brought the brand
away from its core values,” di Marco
noted. “There was a push on fabric and
GG-pattern Gucci products could be
found anywhere. Some of the manufac-
turing happened outside of Italy to the
detriment of the quality and image of
the brand. The family crumbled and fell
apart, and so did the myth of Gucci.”
Ford and de Sole reinvented the
myth with the designer’s iconic fall 1995
collection that heralded a breed of sex
and desire.
“All of sudden Gucci was cool, was
glam, was sexy, was jet set,” di Marco
said. “There’s no doubt that Gucci be-
came the authority in fashion it is still
now thanks to Tom’s extraordinary job
during the 1990s. However, the message
that the brand sent out to the world was
one-dimensional: fashion-sexy.”
And that’s although leather goods,
the lion’s share of business, were still
based strongly on the GG logo — so much
so that it provided a risk for the brand’s
long-term success. And so executives de-
cided to tap into the house’s heritage.
Di Marco recalled Gucci’s origins al-
most a century ago when Guccio Gucci,
then a porter at The Savoy in London,
saw the Beautiful People checking into
the hotel with their chic luggage, and
dreamed up his own idea of a luxury firm
— “The dream of going back to his native
Florence, open his atelier and create
beautiful products,” he said. “Products
that could be respectful of traditions and
craftsmanship — products that could be
fashionable and yet endure the test of
time and last forever.”
Initial attempts to balance fashion
and heritage in the post-Tom Ford era
were timid. “In fact the company did not
have enough confidence to believe that
this change was the right one,” di Marco
noted. “For sure you could find in Gucci’s
showroom beautiful products, exquisite
craftsmanship, exotic skins, but all this
was nowhere to be found in the most im-
portant communication vehicle that a
brand-as-retailer has: the stores. On top
of that — perhaps because of the pressure
to achieve always-greater results — the
company started to give more and more
emphasis on opening price point and as-
pirational consumers. The end result was
a worsening in the perception of the posi-
tioning of the brand. Consumers and opin-
ion formers felt that the brand was trading
down. Some even started to believe that
Gucci’s products were made in China.”
So, when di Marco joined from
Bottega Veneta, the need for change was
pressing. “I definitely had a sense of anx-
iety,” he admitted. “The brand position-
ing — its perception, the product offering
were not that good.
“To make things worse, we were fac-
ing the worst economic crisis since
the end of World War II,” he added.
“And at the same time, consumers had
changed, trading excess for excellence
and focusing more on discretion and
individuality.”
The heritage transformation began
with a return to brand values, from
Guccio Gucci’s dream to celebrating the
artisanal nature and craftsmanship, to
house icon Grace Kelly, whose grand-
daughter, Charlotte Casiraghi, featured
prominently in the brand’s ad campaign
— drawing an axis between the house’s
past and its future.
“Someone said that when you get lost
you really begin to understand your-
self,” di Marco said. “We were somewhat
lost, and we had to find ourselves and
our values back. Sometimes the great-
est transformation happens when you go
back and rediscover who you really are.
And for us that meant to go back to the
vision, the dream and passion that gave
birth to the brand in the first place and
restart from that.”
Included in the equation was a dis-
tinct Made-in-Italy ethos based on the
artisan expertise to punctuate “a brand
that is responsible towards the environ-
ment and the society we live in. To ex-
plain to the world that Gucci is not just
about a logo; that Gucci products do not
come from a conveyor belt; that we are
made nowhere else than in Italy, and that
our heritage is not a marketing gimmick
but something legitimate.”
Gucci also opened a museum in its
hometown of Florence “to honor our city
and the history of our craftsmanship,” di
Marco said.
Giannini upgraded the product too
— reworking house icons such as the
Jackie, the Bamboo and the Horse Bit
Loafer, for example.
“We knew that some would criticize
our going back to the archives as a sign
of creative weakness,” he said. “We knew
that some would criticize our talking
about craftsmanship and heritage as a
pure marketing strategy. And most impor-
tantly, we knew that to reposition a brand
takes time — because you need to change
the consumer perception, and that is very
difficult after years of erratic positioning.
We knew all the challenges. But we also
knew that branding is about storytelling,
and storytelling is about engaging and
touching consumers’ hearts. We are far
from having completed our journey. But
somehow we have managed to touch the
consumers’ hearts and started to change
their perception of the Gucci brand.”
Among those initiatives was a major
push in corporate social responsibility
programs. “We as Gucci have been try-
ing to change a bit the world and to help
make it a better place,” he said. “Our CSR
approach goes beyond pure compliance
and philanthropy. It is an approach that
implies a change of the way we do busi-
ness, from sourcing to the end product.”
This includes seeking an ethical sourc-
ing of raw materials and working toward
reducing CO2 emissions by 25 percent.
“Our entire supply chain— that in-
volves about 50,000 people — is certified
by the international SA8000 standard,” di
Marco said. “That means full compliance
with all labor, health, safety and freedom
of association laws. Sounds obvious, but
trust me, very few companies in this in-
dustry are doing this.”
For the past nine years, the company
has also had a partnership with UNICEF
that mostly focuses on children, their
health and education, as well as other
programs focused entirely on women and
girls. In February, Gucci launched the
Chime for Change campaign with the goal
of raising awareness on issues affecting
girls and women, and helping the funding
of nonprofit organizations and their pro-
grams on health, education and justice.
“Why has a leading luxury brand like
Gucci, that is constantly under financial
market pressure for results and higher
profit, voluntarily decided to embark on a
mission that is costly and time consuming?”
Di Marco said. “Is this for marketing rea-
sons? Not at all. For sure, in the long term
our commitment toward social responsibil-
ity will enhance our brand reputation, and
eventually consumers will buy more into
the brand. But that is in the long term.”
The brand does this for a simple rea-
son — “because it is the right thing to do.
It is our ethical obligation,” he noted.
“Either you feel this or you don’t. And we
as a brand do.”
During the QA session, a member of
the audience asked the executive to talk
about the similarities and differences
between his transformation at Gucci and
his previous gig at Bottega Veneta.
“There are a number of similarities
and some major differences,” di Marco
said. “When I took over Bottega, there
was no one that could actually spell the
name. In America, it was written with
three Ts and five Gs, and in Italy, it was
mistaken for Bottega Verde, which is ac-
tually a fragrance in low-level perfum-
eries. No one knew anything about the
brand.” That was beneficial. “We basi-
cally created a myth and legend that was
somehow true but wasn’t actually based
on many years of history,” he said.
Gucci was a different animal alto-
gether. “You are one of the largest luxury
brands in the world,” he said. “You are
an incredibly profitable brand.
“When I took over at Gucci, the brand
had grown 45 percent over the previous
three years, so you basically take over a
bullet train, you have to change the en-
gine, you have to keep the bullet train be
a bullet train.”
He has clearly enjoyed the ride, and
as he put it, “I am not done with Gucci.”
—MarcKariMzadeh
9WWD wednesdAY, OCTOBeR 30, 2013
’’
’’
Sometimesthegreatesttransformation
happenswhenyougobackand
rediscoverwhoyoureallyare.
— Patrizio di Marco, Gucci

10. ROBERT KRAFT
WWD’s executive editor Bridget Foley in-
terviewed Robert Kraft, owner of the New
England Patriots, on leadership, 20 years
of ownership and coach Bill Belichick.
WWD: You are indeed a transformer. You
took over a team that was last in every cat-
egory and paid a record price for it. Why?
Robert Kraft: In life I believe, as I am sure a
lot of people in your audience do, in fol-
lowing your dreams and passions. I dreamt
about owning my home team in my home-
town. I had a greater chance of being a start-
ing quarterback in the NFL, because there
are 32 [quarterbacks] than own a team. I
planned over many years to figure out a way
to do it. Fortunately, I was very successful. In
life, when you are doing things you love usu-
ally they work out pretty well.
WWD: Is it the same feeling owning a team as
it is being a fan? Is one more intense or is it
more dispassionate because it’s a business?
R.K.: First of all, when you own a team
your seats are better. I went to four ven-
ues [for games]. The Patriots were cre-
ated in 1960. They played in Fenway
Park, Boston University field, Boston
College and Harvard Stadium, and then
they built a stadium for $6 million in
Foxborough in 1971. I used to go there
and sit on the five-yard line on the metal
benches. And in November, your tush
would freeze to the seats. And now wher-
ever I go — I have a lot of commentators.
When I go to get coffee at Dunkin’ Donuts
or anywhere else, everybody has an opin-
ion. Everyone really believes that they
know better than the owner or the coach.
WWD: How do you deal with that?
R.K.: It’s great because in the end you want
people engaged in your business. We’re liv-
ing in a world today where technology has
taken over in many ways. People are tweet-
ing, texting and e-mailing, and not connect-
ing. There are very few ways for communi-
ties to come together. It happens at concerts
and at sporting events. It’s pretty cool that
every Sunday we have 70,000 people come
into the Kraft family home in Foxborough
and all pull together. It doesn’t matter what
background everyone comes from whether
it’s factory workers, hedge-fund managers,
greats artists in the design and fashion com-
munity — we’re all pulling for the team.
WWD: Do you think that sense of communi-
ty is maybe strengthened today when it’s
an actual physical community because we
talk about community so much as being
Twitter, online and social media?
R.K.: The game of football requires atten-
tion constantly. If you miss one play, you
can miss a lot of action — unlike some
other sports. We’re privileged to have
20,000 parking spaces around our stadium.
People come as early as 9 in the morning.
Our games are at one, are done at four
and people stay until six or seven. For
people who have never been exposed to
it.…I have a great girlfriend [Ricki Noel
Lander] who was never exposed to football
before she met me. She couldn’t believe it
but then she saw a whole different side of
Americana. It’s really captured America
every Sunday [afternoon] and Sunday
night. We have over 100 million people
watching our games by appointment televi-
sion. There is no other way for advertisers
to reach a vast market other than that.
WWD: You had to transform the team on
and off the field. What steps did you take
to transform the team off the field?
R.K.: We have to change every year the bot-
tom third of our team to keep up with the
other teams that are trying to knock us
down every year. The real story lines each
year are the teams and what happens off
the field. When we bought our team we re-
alized no one was buying our merchandise.
We were the lowest in sales. In 34 years,
we had never sold out. Our games were
blacked out [not shown on local television
because of low ticket sales], so I took over
and paid a very high price. People thought
it was nuts. I tried to figure out, “How can
we get people to connect with us?” You put
a quality product on the field, but then you
want people to brand with the people who
are part of your team. We were the first
team to put in players’ contracts that they
had to do 10 public appearances every
year for noncommercial return whether
it’s visiting a homeless shelter, a hospital
or home for abused women. What’s beauti-
ful about that is a lot of the young men who
play for us come from modest homes and
they haven’t had a chance to give back. I
think people started liking our brand be-
cause they thought we stood for good val-
ues on and off the field. They bought our
tickets and we sold out.
WWD: How big a village does it take to
make the New England Patriots function?
R.K.: As probably a lot of people know,
whether you are in retail, fashion or design,
how you win and how you generate the
sales or profits you like, is about building a
sense of team and getting everybody to put
the team first. We compete in a business
where there are a lot of stars. You probably
have that in your business, very creative
people but they can’t connect and become
part of the team. It just doesn’t happen.
The first time we won the Super Bowl, we
definitely didn’t have the most talent but we
were together from top to bottom. Everyone
was on the same page making people un-
derstand that there was enough credit to go
around if everyone put the team first, does
their job, doesn’t look for extra credit or
get into the politics of undercutting some-
one else in the system, we might do well. I
personally spend a lot of time not allowing
any politics in the system to allow our team,
which might not have the most talent, but
works together collectively.
WWD: How do you keep politics out? Isn’t
that almost human nature?
R.K.: It is human nature and the more suc-
cess you get, it becomes a bigger problem.
But I like to try to win every year, and to
sustain something that’s pretty special
you have to work pretty hard at it. You
have to set an example yourself. Look, we
have a coach Bill Belichick, who with a
lot of the success he has is actually pretty
modest. I chose him because he is an un-
derstated guy. And his sense of fashion
is… [laughter] Reebok has the exclusive
and my marketing team said, “You’ve got
to get Belichick to change what he’s wear-
ing. He’s got the greasy hair and he’s got a
gray hooded sweatshirt with cut-off arms.
We’ve got all this fancy garb that we put
in his locker. He never wears it.” I said,
“As long as he wins, he can wear what-
ever he wants.’ And Reebok’s ceo started
calling. I said, “Look, fine us.” Long story
short — that gray hooded sweatshirt after
we won our second Super Bowl became
our number-one seller. Just want to say
on the other side of that you know you’ve
got Tom Brady and Gisele [Bündchen]. So
you’ve got Bill Belichick and Tom Brady
and Gisele, so it all balances.
WWD: Does Bill Belichick converse at din-
ner in sentences that are more than two-
or three-word phrases?
R.K.: Um.…When I hired him, I took so
much heat. For those of you who are not
fans, he coached at Cleveland for five
years and had four losing seasons. Like
we talked about, his garb is not going to
get him on the cover of GQ. I had people
sending me tapes in Cleveland telling
me you shouldn’t hire him. Leadership
is about having the courage to go against
the advice of the so-called experts and
doing what your instinct tells you is right.
I developed a simpatico with him when
he joined us. He spent a year being a
coach of our secondary backs. I just real-
ly related to him a lot. A year later, when
I decided to make a coaching change, I
gave up the number-one pick to the Jets,
we got Belichick and I got hosed. He
went 5 and 11 the first year…our starting
quarterback Drew Bledsoe got knocked
out by Mo Lewis of the Jets and a young
man by the name of Tom Brady came in.
Our quarterback coach died, our wide re-
ceiver went AWOL. Belichick, when you
talk to him, he says what he has to say
and no more. I’ve got to tell you, I love
him. The media is not as crazy about him.
WWD: You have emerged as a leader
among the NFL owners. You were given
credit for making the negotiations work
and finalizing the collective bargaining
agreement. What did you bring to those
talks that no one else could?
R.K.: I think we had a great team of people,
the commissioner of the NFL, a whole
committee, the New York Giants owner
John Mara, we were a team effort. One of
my beliefs about leadership is it’s not how
many followers you have, but how many
people you have with different opinions
that you can bring together and try to be
a good listener. We could use a bit more of
that in Washington. Again, technology has
hurt our ability globally in every way to ne-
gotiate. I don’t think people build relation-
ships. I think there is a breakdown in trust.
We see it in Washington. I had the privilege
of Nancy Pelosi calling me yesterday and
we spoke for 20 minutes. We talked about
the same things we talked about in our
NFL bargaining discussion: How do we get
the other side that has opposing views to at
least feel we’re listening to what they have
to say and that their problems are a con-
cern? And [to let them know] we will nego-
tiate where we can and we will draw the
line. When I got out of Harvard Business
School, I thought I was the cat’s meow
being very tough doing deals. Then I re-
alized it’s really good to let the other side
have the edge. If you think long term and if
anyone who does business with you does
well, they’ll keep bringing deals to you.
WWD: The NFL has had its share of con-
troversies. Right now head trauma is part
of the national discussion. Was the league
too late to acknowledge it and to get on it?
R.K.: That’s a very good question. We made
a settlement of a little over three-quarters
of a billion dollars to roughly 13,000 to
14,000 players from the past from before I
owned our team. I don’t know how much
was understood about it before I got into
the league, but I can tell you this there is
no higher priority than in players’ safety. We
just committed $100 million in research to
that area with the union. Our focus on play-
ers’ safety is the number-one focus we have.
My sons all played football and three of my
grandsons do. You really learn life lessons
playing football. Teamwork, hard work,
preparation, getting knocked down and
getting up, surrounding yourself with great
people are great lessons for life.…My con-
cern is that mothers today won’t want their
kids to play football if they don’t feel we are
dealing with this issue properly.
WWD: In your 20 years of ownership, what
has been the most wonderful moment for
you and the toughest?
R.K.: The most wonderful moment hap-
pened right down the street here after 9/11
when we played the Jets. We had a player,
Joe Andruzzi, whose three brothers were
New York firemen and his dad was a police
detective. I asked him if they would join
the coin toss. That’s the only time I can re-
member a Boston crowd cheering for New
Yorkers. It was just something wonderful.
We were a blue-collar team. We weren’t
very talented but we were very fortunate
to go to the Super Bowl and play the St.
Louis Rams, who were the “Greatest Show
on Turf.” We were the largest underdogs in
that Super Bowl point spreads — not that
I’m supposed to talk about or pay attention
to point spreads — and we won right at the
end with a great kick. For me to accept the
Super Bowl trophy having been a fan for 43
years dreaming about that moment and to
talk about 9/11 and how our team wears red,
white and blue and is named the Patriots.
I said, “Tonight we are all Patriots and the
Patriots are world champions.” I had goose
bumps. The worst moment was another
New York connection. We were 18-0 in 2008
playing the New York Giants. We were a
minute from winning the Super Bowl…and
we lost it, but things happen for a reason.
WWD: Is leadership often a conflict be-
tween owner and coach?
R.K.: Never in public. Sometimes coaches
in all sports, and I’m sure it’s proven in
fashion with artists who are very great at
what they do, they have to have blinders
to see things a certain way. Leadership is
about having core values and getting ev-
eryone on the same page, whether it’s your
players or the people in your organization.
If the icon leaders aren’t on the same agen-
da, then you won’t be having success. But
the key is to do whatever is the philosophy
and to keep it private and of course the ego
always likes to get in the middle and cause
some problems and competition.
10 WWD wednesday, october 30, 2013
2013 WWD CEO SUMMIT
Transformers
’’
’’
Leadershipisabouthavingthecouragetogo
againsttheadviceoftheso-calledexpertsand
doingwhatyourinstincttellsyouisright.
— RobeRt KRaft

11. WWD.COM
NICK ROBERTSON
What one buys shouldn’t be dictated by
where one lives.
That is the laser-like focus that has fu-
eled the growth of global online retailer
Asos.com, according to Nick Robertson,
its chief executive officer and cofounder.
Robertson told the audience that his
site has more than one million unique
visits a day, with more than 30 percent of
those visits from a mobile device. The com-
pany, which also does Twitter campaigns,
boasts 260,000 social media contacts and
has fielded 4.2 million customer service e-
mails since launching in June 2000.
The company is primarily aimed at
the twentysomething consumer, both
men and women. Why twentysomethings?
That age group is part of the structural
shift where they are spending their
money online. And whether male or fe-
male, they are both spending the same
amount of time online, whether reading,
sharing, buying or talking. As for shop-
ping, about 40 percent of their fashion
budget is spent online, Robertson said.
Most purchases are by women.
“She has 10 to 20 brands in her closet.
If she is online, is she going to go to 10 to
20 Web sites?” asked Robertson. His point
was that when the consumer wants one
brand, the individual shouldn’t have to be
dictated by the brands that are available
based on where the person lives.
While Asos sells its own brand, it also
has partnered with other retailers to sell
their products, such as River Island and
Whistles of the U.K. Robertson’s point
was that Asos is a “platform” that can
serve as a one-stop shop for twentysome-
things to find all the brands they desire.
It gives retailers a global reach they
otherwise would not have unless they
launched their own brick-and-mortar
stores or introduced their own local lan-
guage Web sites. Asos buys all the prod-
uct from them and owns the inventory.
That attitude and focus has pushed
Asos to become the fastest-growing online
fashion retailer, with language-specific
Web sites in France, Germany, Russia,
Australia, the U.S., Spain, U.K. and Italy.
The company in May launched a Russian
language site and is on target to launch
a Chinese site shortly. Mobile sites have
been launched in France, Germany, Spain,
Italy, Australia, the U.S. and Russia. Asos
has seven million active customers world-
wide. Its distribution center in Barnsley,
England, employs 3,500 people.
Robertson also spoke about the rise
of fashion democracy, and how the high
street is no longer the sole arbiter of
fashion where choice is limited.
“The high street’s presence is being de-
mocratized. Twentysomethings have better
things to do than go to the high street. The
world’s largest brand is in their pocket [via
a mobile device],” said Robertson.
While he said somewhat tongue-in-
cheek that he can visualize the day when
younger consumers reminisce about
their parents going to the high street as
a destination place to shop, his key point
was really about the fundamental shift
taking place due to digital.
“Digital is highly complex. Few have
cracked it. Fewer have even made a prof-
it,” Robertson said, a nod to his firm’s
profitability in a channel where many e-
commerce players are thinking more of
profitability as something down the road.
The company broke even back in the
2003-04 time period.
He also noted that he’s seeing a huge
shift in the way men shop for fashion,
and that’s in part due to mobile as the
“gateway to the world.” According to
Robertson, “The Internet is enabling
guys to catch up with women.”
The other reason is that there’s not
much choice for men, and they are defi-
nitely as interested in fashion as their
female counterpart. While most of the
sales are currently by women, Robertson
sees the possibility of the Asos business
as being evenly split between men’s and
women’s down the road.
— Vicki M. Young
EmIly WhITE
Mobile is changing the way fashion is
being created and consumed.
That’s the conclusion of Emily
White, senior director, business oppor-
tunities, at Instagram, who points to
the sophistication of cameras on smart-
phones as one reason for ushering in
the transformative change.
White spoke of attending a Burberry
fashion show and seeing the large cam-
eras being replaced with iPhone 5s,
with the videos quickly being uploaded
after they were shot. “That’s better than
sitting in the audience,” White said.
She also spoke of a footwear firm in
Kenya where a team showed how the
shoes are created.
Given that mobile is everywhere —
it’s with us all the time — how else is it
changing the world?
According to White, industry data
show there were just 4 billion photos
taken by analogue cameras in 2011, com-
pared with 380 billion using a mobile
device. The sophistication of the screen
resolution on the camera in mobile devic-
es has changed dramatically, and people
are using services such as Tumblr and
Pinterest to share their experiences.
Companies such as Rebecca Minkoff
and Oscar de la Renta are using mobile
to provide “content that one wouldn’t
have access to,” such as showing the
creative process, whether it’s how a gar-
ment is designed or backstage before
the start of a fashion show. On a more
personal level, consumers are in store
fitting rooms taking photos of them-
selves and sharing looks with family and
friends to get feedback before they buy.
“That’s a democratization of fashion.
It’s giving people more access to what
they like,” White said.
She pointed to three key ele-
ments of digital that help foster the
dialogue between fashion brands and
their customer.
First, content is king. For White,
great content is the high bar. She cited
J. Crew providing great images to show-
case design, and Adidas creating an art
gallery while also allowing consumers
to click and buy the products. Another
example is footwear designer Nelissa
Hilman, who shows the design process
from the creation to the styling of the
shoe. “I own the shoe before it sells,”
White said, in a testament to the emo-
tional bonding that can be created be-
tween the consumer and the brand and
its products.
Second, engage your community.
“Digital has to be a two-way conversa-
tion,” White explained. She cited Alice
+ Olivia’s Instagram account, where
the company showcases its collection
and asks followers for their favorites.
“That’s real-time feedback,” White said.
Another example was the two-week
contest on Instagram from Michael
Kors at #MKTimeless in August 2012
where users were asked to share pic-
tures of people wearing their favorite
Kors watches. The content drove the
number of Instagram users, as well as
generated thousands of user photos.
Third, engagement can be inspira-
tion. And it has to be authentic and real.
“You know it when you see it,” White
said. She cited Hermès’ photos of leath-
er being rolled as an example. “You can
see it. You can smell it,” White noted.
“Fashion connects with you emotion-
ally,” an important element, White said,
because “people buy things they con-
nect with emotionally.”
— V.M.Y.
11WWD wednesdAY, OCTOBeR 30, 2013
’’
’’
’’
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Digitalishighly
complex.Few
havecrackedit.
Fewerhaveeven
madeaprofit.
— Nick RobeRtsoN,
Asos.com
Fashion
connectswith
youemotionally....
Peoplebuythings
theyconnectwith
emotionally.
— emily White,
iNstAGRAm