Publications

July 2023
Case

Crocs: Using Community-Centric Marketing to Make Ugly Iconic

By: Ayelet Israeli and Anne V. Wilson

In 2022, the Crocs Classic Clog was the best-selling item of clothing on Amazon, the brand was one of the fastest growing brands in the U.S., and global net revenue had increased to approximately $3.6 billion. By most accounts, Crocs had become the “it” shoe. Crocs... View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Product Development; Growth and Development; Customer Value and Value Chain; Digital Marketing; Digital Strategy; Segmentation; Advertising; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States

11 Feb 2015
News

Start-Up Takes on Victoria's Secret and Other Bigger Lingerie Rivals

Keywords: Clothing and Clothing Accessories Stores; Clothing and Clothing Accessories Stores

29 Aug 2022
Op-Ed

Income Inequality Is Rising. Are We Even Measuring It Correctly?

distributed. To illustrate why it’s important to consider other measurements, imagine what it’s like to buy trousers. You could go to the store and ask for trousers in size medium if that’s the size you... View Details

Keywords: by Jon M. Jachimowicz, Kristin Blesch, and Oliver P. Hauser

14 Aug 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, August 14, 2018

https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=54794 Harvard Business School Case 518-047 Armarium: Luxury Fashion Brands for Rent Armarium, a two-sided online platform that offered consumers the opportunity to rent the most coveted, current season high fashion View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

May 2013 (Revised March 2014)
Case

Benetton Group S.p.A., 2012

By: John R. Wells and Galen Danskin

On May 31, 2012, after 36 years on the Milan Stock Exchange, Benetton was officially delisted and taken private by Edizione, the Benetton family's holding company. Since 2000, Benetton shareholders had seen its market value fall from $4.3 billion to $720 million at the... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Fashion; Retail; Privatization; Family Ownership; Performance Improvement; Problems and Challenges; Management Teams; Globalized Firms and Management; Change Management; Restructuring; Competitive Strategy; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Italy

14 Feb 2014
News

Women in Business: Q&A with Cheryl Han and Elenor Mak, Cofounders of Keaton Row

Keywords: Clothing and Clothing Accessories Stores; Clothing and Clothing Accessories Stores

17 Mar 2021
Research & Ideas

Beyond Pajamas: Sizing Up the Pandemic Shopper

came true. Sales of pajamas more than doubled in 2020 compared with 2019, the fastest growth among clothing categories, while sales of suits and dresses fell. In contrast to popular opinion, sales of bras... View Details

Keywords: by Ayelet Israeli, Eva Ascarza, and Laura Castrillo; Retail

09 Dec 2015
Research Event

How Do You Predict Demand and Set Prices For Products Never Sold Before?

Ferreira was a doctoral student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Rue La La is a so-called flash sales business, offering deeply discounted, extremely-limited-time offers on designer clothes and... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Apparel & Accessories; Apparel & Accessories

September 2019 (Revised July 2021)
Case

Gap, Inc., 2019

By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock

In 2000, The Gap, Inc. (Gap) was the world’s largest player in specialty fashion retailing, and companies such as Inditex of Spain, H&M of Sweden, and Fast Retailing of Japan were less than a quarter of Gap’s size. But after two decades of growth, Gap’s progress... View Details

Keywords: Strategic Change; Fashion; Multinational; Brands; Fast Fashion; Competition; Multinational Firms and Management; Performance Improvement; Management Teams; Brands and Branding; Change Management; Strategy; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Sweden; Spain; United States