The document provides a SWOT analysis for the lingerie retailer Boux Avenue. It outlines the company's strengths such as providing high quality customer service and growing sales. Weaknesses include having similar offers to competitors and potential disruption from migrating distribution centers. Opportunities exist in expanding product lines and internationally. Threats include increased competition from department stores and needing to keep up with customers' digital demands.

1. SWOT Analysis
Zara Clark

2. Overview
• Founded: In the UK in 2011
• Brand Type: Multi-channel Retailer
• USP: Lingerie Specialist with a focus on
quality and supreme service
• Visual Merchandising Style: Chic
monochrome stores, uniquely displaying
products in drawers by size
• Founder: Theo Paphitis
• Flagship: Oxford Circus
• Number of Stores: 28 in the UK
• Number of Overseas Stores: Expanding
internationally across 10 countries.
• Sizing: 28-38, A-G cups
• Awards: UK Retailer of the Year at the 2013
Global RLI Awards
• Interesting Fact: Theo named the brand after a
waitress who was serving his family whilst on
holiday in France.

3. Consumer Profile
Name: Rachel
Age: 23
Occupation: Nurse
ACORN Classification: BC – Socialising Young
Renter
Reads: Elle Magazine, The Night Circus, Rainbow
Rowell Novels.
Listens to: Ariana Grande, Beyoncé, The 1975,
Taylor Swift.
Likes: Going to the cinema, reading, photography,
travelling, dinner with friends and date-night with
her boyfriend.
Style: Quality, vintage inspired pieces that fit well
and reflect her sophisticated yet playful personality.
Shops at: Little Mistress, Topshop, ASOS, Victoria
Secret, Figleaves.com.

4. Strengths
• The brand has been shortlisted for the “Fashion Retail
Business of the Year (between £30-£100m Turnover)” Award
from Drapers (Drapers, 2016)
• They beat their competitors in terms of providing a gold star
service to their customers. The in-store experience is well
thought out, offering customers free bra fittings with
knowledgeable fitting staff in luxurious changing rooms.
These rooms can be personalised with different light settings
so the customer is comfortable at all times. (Store Visit –
Interview with Manager, 2016)
• “Like for like increase in sales of 8.3%, building on 31.7% last
well as increased gross margin.” (Bouxavenue.com, 2016)
• Despite the tough A/W half in 2015, Boux Avenue resisted
discounting which resulted in an increase in margins across
(Bouxavenue.com, 2016)
• “Total UK sales increased by 35.5% from £27m to £36.5m.
continues on plan, with EBITDA loss reduced to £2.9m from
2014.” (Bouxavenue.com, 2016)
• They give consumers value with attention to detail. Small
touches such writing fitting information on the membership
complimentary wrapping services, free click-and-collect and a
range of sizes for smaller to larger busts ensure customers
Boux Avenue again and again. (Store Visit, 2016)

5. Weaknesses
• They have similar offers to competitors, for example,
Victoria’s Secret sells 5 pants for £19.81 and Boux
Avenue sells 3 for £12 and M&S has a 3 for 2 offer
on for their £6 knickers. Differentiating their offers
will help them to undercut the competition.
• Migrating to their new DC at Hemel Hempstead
while being a long-term solution, could be
considered a short-term weakness. This would have
taken a significant investment to set up both money-
wise and time-wise and would have disrupted stock
flow. In the Financial Trading Report of this year,
Paphitis is stated this initially set the company back.
• They do not currently stock any sportswear,
something that Victoria’s Secret, Marks and Spencer
and Figleaves offer. They are missing out on a big
sector of the market that could be tapped into by
offering sports bras etc. .
• They aren’t making the most of their British heritage.
Being founded in the UK could be a unique selling
point that would set them apart on the high street.

6. Opportunities
• They could focus more on the younger demographic as this is where the most growth is.
“21.6% of 16–24s say that they shop for underwear at underwear specialists, the highest
penetration of all age groups”. Therefore Boux Avenue could capitalise on this market
sector by providing a fun product range suitable for younger consumers, which could steal
sales from the likes of Topshop and New Look. (Verdict, 2016)
• They could expand on their swimwear range by offering all-in-one swim suits which they
do not currently stock. This would help the brand compete with other big rivals such as
Victoria’s Secret, Marks and Spencer's and Fig Leaves who offer this swimwear staple.
• They could open a pop-up store trailing a sportswear collection. This would then allow the
women’s range the opportunity to be more fleshed out and again be on par with the likes of
Victoria’s Secret who stock this product section. This could be a great selling point for
Boux Avenue as they could offer the same expert fitting services associated with the brand
to those wanting to buy sports bras, which are notoriously hard to buy with the right size
and support necessary.
• They could expand on the idea of the ‘Boux Belles’ as being a British equivalent to the
Victoria Secret Angels. They could rival this competitor by putting on their own showcases
each year. This could take place in their flagship store or in bigger venues such as
Westfield.
• Store expansion is a real opportunity for Boux Avenue, they could open stores in Ireland, as
they only currently have a store in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Similarly, international
expansion is a big opportunity to tap into (see chart), particularly the U.S. apparel market,
which is the largest in the world having a market value of about 331 billion U.S. dollars.
• They should consider expanding on their blog as a way of strengthening their online
presence. This will provide Boux Avenue the opportunity to interact more with consumers,
meaning shoppers will be inspired to stay loyal to the brand. This ties in nicely with the
brand’s handwriting and fun personality. It will also provide them with more publicity and
could increase add on sales.

7. Threats
• An external threat to consider is Department Stores and Clothing Specialists investing more into
their underwear ranges. This could potentially inhibit the market share Boux Avenue currently holds
and prevent the “underwear specialist channel from making gains in the five years to 2020 beyond
the 9.4% share forecast for 2015”. (Verdict, 2016)
• Competitors such as Victoria’s Secret offer a more diverse multi-channel shopping system that
includes a custom app, whereas Boux Avenue currently does not offer an app service to its
customers. Therefore to address the threat of not staying relevant for the 16-24 younger demographic
(which is the largest group to buy from specialist underwear stores), Boux Avenue may need to more
heavily invest in it’s technology. (Verdict, 2016)
• Bad Press could be considered a threat as it negatively affects the consumer’s perception of the
brand. For example, recently the brand’s visual merchandising came under fire and was accused of
objectifying women. While there are many who disagree with this view, it only takes one negative
opinion to stick out from the positive ones in the public eye.