Some of us were devastated when we woke up to the news that Fabiani was bought by TFG (The Foschini Group). As some may know, the Fabiani brand has been a trend setter in tailor made suits for men and other luxury items for over three decades and as such many of us young men who dare dream of success always aspired to one day, just when we crack our first management post we would flock into a Fabiani Store in Nelson Mandela Square, sip on some smooth Chivas whiskey while the elegantly dressed store staff, tailor fit that perfect navy blue suit for you to wear in your first management meeting. Now that dream for some has become a nightmare since Arie Fabiani sent out that bitter sweet email/press statement stating that; "although Fabiani will operate under the Markhams division and offer store credit cards for customers, they will still offer the excellent service, signature detailing and premium quality"
That being said one can’t help but dread the day when we will witness SlidingDoor Operators(taxi conductors) also famously known as oSicapha, taxi drivers and young flashy entry level employees wearing Fabiani outfits that they bought on credit and paying them over 6 months, I mean this will be persecuting the Fabiani brand or wont it?
As painful as that may sound and some may even go and say Arie is a sell out; we all need to look at the business side of things. I mean who wouldn’t be tempted to sell out to a bigger retailer who will offer you financial muscle to expand your foot print while you sit dandy as a creative director and still get a fat pay cheque? After all Foschini has released good interim results for their half year ending 30 September 2011. Showing that:
* Retail turnover is up 18,5% to R5,4 billion
* Headline earnings per share up 25,6% to 341,9 cents
* Interim dividend up 37,7% to 190,0 cents per share
With this in mind any small retailer would be foolish not to consider expanding their business since the back bone of retail is driven by IMU% (input mark up) which can only be sustained by buying volume which then needs higher sales growth. One just needs to look around and see that South Africa is retail heaven for both local and international investors.
Personally on a business view point well-done Arie and TFG, but I doubt I will want and aspire to own a Fabiani suit. For me it’s no longer an exclusive brand.
Tom Ford and Ralph Lauren here I come!!!
For more information on this you can follow this link: http://www.businesslive.co.za/southafrica/sa_companies/2011/10/05/the-foschini-group-buys-luxury-men-s-brand-fabiani
This is a great read.
ReplyDeleteQuality would be my first concern... Surely if they intend to have a presence in every Markhams store, their suits will begin to be "mass-produced". This will undoubtedly dilute the exclusivity we all(?) crave!
ReplyDeleteCould they not have perhaps introduced a different label, underwritten by Fabiani? Perhaps they didnt do it because it would not be viable.
Enjoy your Tom Ford.... Till it becomes available through lay-bye:)
Surely Fabiani's aim is to expand & it will definately reach a large number of customers by merging with Markhams. This equals to more exposure & a higher % on sales.
ReplyDeleteThis will add value both to Fabiani & Markhams.