Ann Taylor steps it UP!

Ann Taylor is one of those classy, sophisticated stores for middle-aged career women & it seems to have been lost in the mix the past couple years. With nothing to really make it STAND OUT with designs and lines made...it's tough to stand out against rivals Banana Republic & Talbots & J Jill...who also have been hurting throughout the recession.

GOOD NEWS! Ann Taylor designs were recently seen strutting down the aisles of NY Fashion Week's runway. Here is a great quote from the Canadian Press article I found: "We've all been working really hard to reinvent the brand," Lisa Axelson, senior vice-president of design, said in an interview before the show. "We want to get the news out that Ann Taylor is changing. ... We're breaking the myth of what we used to be. A lot of the feedback we heard from market research was that the impression was that we were clothes my mom would wear. Now we're for the crazy, busy stylish working woman."

Read more @ the article in The Canadian Press & looking forward to seeing a more trendy/chic/stylish Ann Taylor soon!

Abercrombie...finally cooling down its prices

FINALLY A&F has decided to drastically lower its prices because of the recession. Great idea but hello where have you been the past year! Wall Street Journal Online really tears apart this brand with the numerical data to back up how badly this retailer is doing. For example, this past quarter A&F was "at a loss of $26.7 million".

If that wasn't bad enough....one year ago Abercrombie got in a bit of trouble for an ex-worker who was discriminated against because of her prosthetic arm.

A&F has always tried to be on the edge but don't you sometimes come to a point where you actually fall off the cliff?

Let's RE-BRAND our company! (copycat copycat copycat...who isn't following this strategy today?)

So if we RE-BRAND our company/product/line...we will increase sales & redefine ourselves in the marketplace today. This is a nice thought if you're the only one out there doing this & you will most
likely stand out in the marketplace.

But, with SO many brands doing this today, things are getting a bit confusing out there! 2 previous postings were devoted to G (used to be called Gatorade) which have confused consumers out there in the grocery shopping world.

Other examples include:

• Radioshack is now The Shack
• Starbucks is rebranding its Seattle locations to give a localized feel by un-Starbucks-ing the store (removing the logo, changing the overall feel of the store)
• Wal-Mart Save money. Live better. - new tagline, updated its logo with a sunburst & is hoping to attract upper income consumers
• Stop & Shop's new logo (no more stoplight..now a bunch of bowls replace it)
• Kraft Foods make today delicious (new logo & tagline to make the everyday brand more of a luxury/modern feel)
• Nickelodeon's new logo...BORING if you ask me!

So...what's all this mean? Some brands will be successful with the rebranding strategy & some will not. After getting hyped up & excited to have a new experience at a nearby Wal-Mart because of the print & tv ads I've seen....I was hugely disappointing by the lack of changes onsite in the store. Why bother rebranding a store if it still looks the same inside? Wal-Mart is still Wal-Mart & the prices are great and affordable but it's not a Target. People don't look forward to the shopping experience...they look forward to saving money (so at least they are correct with the new slogan they've put forth...just not with the target market they're "attempting" to reach).

To end with some food for thought...interesting mini article with logos/info about other companies rebranding themselves lately & some which are fictional. Can you tell the difference on CNET?