BOF: Selling $800 Party Shoes During a Pandemic

BOF: Selling $800 Party Shoes During a Pandemic

Sales of expensive party frocks and eveningwear have largely “come to a screeching halt right now,” said retail consultant Robert Burke. Buyers say over the past few months most luxury shoppers have been swapping gowns and stilettos for cashmere sweats and linen summer dresses.

“Because of being at home, customer focus is more on comfort and quality. They will be shopping for things that have longevity as opposed to disposable luxury,” said Burke. “The idea right now of spending $5,000 or $2,000 on a dress you may wear once or twice is kind of far from their mind.”

REUTERS: Designers fashion a go-slow future for catwalks and collections

REUTERS: Designers fashion a go-slow future for catwalks and collections

Robert Burke, founder of luxury retail consultancy Robert Burke Associates, said the move towards fewer collections fits with a consumer shift away from disposable fashion.

“Buying things that you know you’ll only have for a short time period or go out of fashion immediately doesn’t seem attractive right now.”

BOF: The Secrets to Mytheresa’s Success

BOF: The Secrets to Mytheresa’s Success

“Brands have a very positive view of them, so they get a lot of exclusive product,” said Burke.

“They have a very clear point of view; a very strong positioning compared to the larger players,” explained Burke. “And because of their size, they are able to stay focused. They haven’t tried to grow beyond their ability. They have been very nimble, specific and thorough.”

And yet there are hurdles ahead. “They have very little brand awareness in the US and will need to really spend on customer acquisition to compete against larger players,” noted Burke.

NYT: Brooks Bros., ‘Made in America’ Since 1818, May Soon Need a New Calling Card

NYT: Brooks Bros., ‘Made in America’ Since 1818, May Soon Need a New Calling Card

The potential factory closures “seem like a dramatic move for a brand that has really hung their hat on ‘Made in America,’” said Robert Burke, founder of a namesake luxury consultancy. They suggest, he said, a last-ditch effort to achieve cost savings, given the effect that pulling out of the U.S. could have on the brand’s image.

“These are not people that create or position brands,” Mr. Burke, the luxury consultant, said.

BOF: Forty Five Ten's Future Is In Limbo After Cutting Staff and Closing Stores

BOF: Forty Five Ten's Future Is In Limbo After Cutting Staff and Closing Stores

“The concept of specialty retailers has always been, when it’s successful, about an owner or a proprietor that had a very specific point of view,” said consultant Robert Burke. “It’s a very personal business and a very personal selection of merchandise and on top of that.... It is, in many ways, the antithesis of the department store experience.”

VOGUE: As Neiman Marcus Navigates Bankruptcy, What Happens to Bergdorf Goodman?

VOGUE: As Neiman Marcus Navigates Bankruptcy, What Happens to Bergdorf Goodman?

“I think in many ways that being stocked at Bergdorf Goodman, for designers it kind of means they’ve made it,” says the store’s former senior vice president of fashion and public relations Robert Burke.

“The only thing I can liken this time period to is being at the store after 9/11 and during the financial crisis of 2008 and not knowing if it felt right to be selling, wearing, and promoting high luxury goods,” Burke recalls. “During both, especially the financial crisis, there was the feeling that luxury would never be the same and it would never come back. But I think that there is obvious luxury, there is gaudy luxury, and then there is tasteful luxury.” Bergdorf’s, by Burke’s estimation, falls in the latter camp. “I think that hopefully Bergdorf’s stands for taste and some sensitivity of what is going on today and can represent that,” he continues. “After the financial crisis and the recession, they offered to either let you walk out with a brown bag or a Bergdorf bag. That lasted for a while, but not for terribly long.”

VOGUE BUSINESS: What Come After Legacy Mid-Market Retail

VOGUE BUSINESS: What Come After Legacy Mid-Market Retail

Robert Burke, founder of consulting firm Robert Burke Associates, points to Vince as a brand that has seen good results by investing heavily in direct-to-consumer retail. The California “understated luxury” brand, whose dresses rarely pass the $450 mark, increased gross margins from 46 to 50 per cent in the last three years as a result of its direct-to-consumer investment.

#BoFLIVE: Is This the End of the American Mall?

#BoFLIVE: Is This the End of the American Mall?

BOF | LAUREN SHERMAN & CATHALEEN CHEN

Watch retail consultant Robert Burke discuss the future of the shopping mall and the role it will play in a troubled retail landscape, with BoF’s Lauren Sherman and Cathaleen Chen.

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NEW YORK, United States — For years, experts have been predicting the end of the American mall as we know it, but will Covid-19 finally put an end to this way of shopping?

“The mall was there to be really convenient to the consumer, and to be a gathering place,” said Robert Burke, chairman and chief executive of Robert Burke Associates, in a #BoFLIVE conversation with BoF’s Lauren Sherman and Cathaleen Chen, presented by Afterpay. “The mall is today, as ever, only as good as the brands it houses.” However, that’s not to say that malls themselves can take a back seat as retail spaces begin to reopen, albeit with health and safety measures in place. Developers need to think more like merchandisers, get creative in supporting their tenants, and break out of the formulaic slump that has struggled to retain the interest of the evolving customer for years.

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BOF: The Problem With the Online Luxury Model

BOF: The Problem With the Online Luxury Model

“Everyone’s exit opportunities have changed,” said retail and fashion consultant Robert Burke. “For them to get through this time period, and maintain their business, is really important. Or there will be a natural elimination of players.”

“It’s a very expensive venture,” Burke said. “They were working on very tight margins, very narrow margins — and that was pre-pandemic.”

FP: Sorry, ma'am, that dress is in quarantine: How clothing stores are prepping for a strange new reality

FP: Sorry, ma'am, that dress is in quarantine: How clothing stores are prepping for a strange new reality

Robert Burke, chief executive of New York-based consultant Robert Burke Associates, thinks some retailers may even begin to book appointments to use their fitting rooms or to take customers into a private area where they can browse certain collections.

But he said shoppers must be allowed to continue to use change rooms and return items, because both are critical for the industry. Without them, consumers would be more hesitant to shop, which would likely result in another dip in sales.

It’s the luxury retailers that Burke expects to rebound the quickest once stores reopen.

A specialist in retail and fashion, he has been working with Taubman Centers Inc., a U.S. real estate investment trust that has interests in malls, including ones in Xi’an and Zhengzhou, China. Both have been open for more than a month and he believes the trends he’s noticed in the luxury space will be duplicated here.

Part of the reason could be related to another pattern Burke has noticed. Although fewer people are leaving their homes to visit malls, those who do are spending more. It helps that the consumers who can afford luxury goods are likely the ones least affected by job losses in the economic shutdown.

“If they do go out, they’re serious about making a purchase and they’re making more and higher purchases than before, so there’s some encouragement,” he said. “But you’re not going to have the volume.”

FORBES: Neiman Marcus Needs To Court The Millennial And Gen Z Customer. Can It Succeed?

FORBES: Neiman Marcus Needs To Court The Millennial And Gen Z Customer. Can It Succeed?

Robert Burke, of retail consulting group Robert Burke Associates, agrees, but notes that many of Neiman Marcus’s competitors—Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom’s, and even sister store Bergdorf Goodman—have been more embracive of the new mindset. “Start with social media, which is key to this generation. Nordstrom has 3.3 million Instagram followers; Saks has 1.7 million, and Neiman Marcus 1.5 million,” Burke says. Bergdorf Goodman, which only has two New York stores, also beats the nationwide retailer with 1.8 million followers.

Burke said, “Barney’s kept everyone else on their toes when it came to cool and fun, but Bergdorf is shaking things up, too,” citing recent collaborations with Kith as “unexpected,” as well as the recent Rihanna and Bergdorf Goodman Fenty party. “Nordstrom is approachable and non-intimidating, and Saks revamped its’ flagship with a strong ground floor and innovative beauty department,” he adds. (Saks’ upgrades include FaceGym and a New York outpost of L’Avenue.)

Store events can help create the buzz Neiman’s needs right now, but as Burke pointed out, “When you have that much debt, it’s hard to focus on newness and to make those changes. To my knowledge, Geoffroy (van Raemdonck, NMG CEO) was doing that until the pandemic stalled the progress.”

Burke also feels that while the same could be said of Seattle-based Nordstrom to attract the die-hard New York designer-level fashion employee, the Neiman Marcus group had a more significant challenge headquartered in Dallas, making it difficult to often attract the same level of talent as New York.

Despite its strong DNA, Neiman Marcus needs to expand outside its comfort zone to embrace newness and a creative approach by offering luxury at all price points, according to Burke. “Take the new Saint Laurent store on Rue St. Honoré in Paris. They sell yoga mats, books, Bic lighters, too; it’s buzzy and fun.”

One aspect ripe for updating is the payment process. “This generation needs the process to be seamless,” said Burke.

BOF: Can Neiman Marcus Survive Bankruptcy?

BOF: Can Neiman Marcus Survive Bankruptcy?

Neiman Marcus also needs new customers, which means offering exclusive products and services, said retail consultant Robert Burke.

“The big issue with the stores is that so many of them have so much of the same products that they start to look alike,” he said. “But there is a reason for department stores to exist, if they… can offer newness.”

Burke pointed to Selfridges in London and LVMH-owned Le Bon Marché in Paris, which are adept at offering store concepts and exciting new labels every season. These European stores often work with brands on a concession model, where labels set up shop-in-shops and employ their own associates, with the retailer taking a fraction of the purchase. They also have merchants who are always looking for new brands, Burke added — a strategy that US retailers have not been able to fully pursue because of their financial restraints.

“Neiman Marcus has always kept a very loyal customer, and they’ve been good at catering to that loyal customer,” Burke said. “But they haven’t brought in many new customers, and that’s what freshness is for.”

FT: Debt and hubris: the demise of the US department store

FT: Debt and hubris: the demise of the US department store

Debt has “paralysed” Neiman’s potential growth, adds Robert Burke, the chief executive of retail consultancy Robert Burke Associates. Burke, who previously oversaw luxury and fashion brands for Neiman Marcus’s Bergdorf Goodman, says the company had been hamstrung by its financial obligations as luxury brands and rivals such as Nordstrom were investing heavily in their online businesses and finessing supply chains to allow for in-store pickup and same-day delivery.

“While we all talked about the importance of omnichannel, few of the department stores actually offered that, even though they said they did,” he says. “And to the consumer it’s all the same, whether they buy online or in store. That was a hard pill for the department stores to swallow.”

WWD: Tailspinning Toward Bankruptcy, J. Crew Once Had It All

WWD: Tailspinning Toward Bankruptcy, J. Crew Once Had It All

“There was a time when women bought a J. Crew jacket for the office, it was cool enough to wear at night, too, and a guy could get a blazer at an affordable price, but it had a cool factor,” said Robert Burke, chairman and ceo of Robert Burke Associates consulting firm. “It was very color-based, with whimsy, a touch of Americana, and there were those good core items — little jackets, coats, skirts,” as well as a flair for pattern mixing, quirky styling, bright colors, mixing prints and stripes. “It all had a reason for being,” said Burke. “In its heyday, you had Michelle Obama wearing a J. Crew twinset or a J. Crew coat on TV,” on “The Tonight Show.”

“It stood for dependability and had enough newness to make it fresh and exciting,” said Burke. “At the same time, Madewell was targeting a younger, cooler customer, was more vintage-inspired and it, too, resonated. But then J. Crew lost its cool, its reason for being, and a lot more competition emerged — the Everlanes, Uniqlos, Bonobos, fast fashion.”

“Madewell does have its own fashion voice,” Burke observed. “It does seem more ‘downtown.'” It wouldn’t be first out of the gate with a look but it would be on trend with items like long-tiered dresses or jumpsuits. Being rooted in denim, Madewell has stayed within its lane, Burke suggested.

BARRON'S: Virus Pushes Iconic American Department Stores To The Brink

BARRON'S: Virus Pushes Iconic American Department Stores To The Brink

“I think we will see bankruptcies," said Robert Burke of retail and fashion consultancy Robert Burke Associates. "It will greatly change them.”

One way or another, Burke foresees the number of major department stores in a given area shrinking greatly, with the survivors having found new ways to get their clothes to customers.

"People want to shop physically and online. There is room for both in the luxury category," Burke said. "We don't need as many stores."

WWD: Tipping Point – Fashion Weeks Tilt Toward Coed, Buy-Now Formats

WWD: Tipping Point – Fashion Weeks Tilt Toward Coed, Buy-Now Formats

“The calendar has been broken for some time,” said luxury and retail consultant Robert Burke, citing earlier deliveries and an intensifying race to markdowns at the behest of American department stores that led to gross misalignment between customer needs and what was in stores. “Everyone knew it was out of sync, but no one was willing to take a pause.”

The consultant Burke agreed it would be best to have the industry aligned on a new cadence of deliveries and markdowns — more closely aligned to consumer demand and weather patterns — before tinkering with the show calendar.

“Retail, online, direct-to-consumer all have to be aligned for this to work, that’s they key,” he said. “This has become a mandatory reset because the stores have been closed, and you’re not going to have fall delivered until fall. There’s an opportunity, if everyone bands together, to not mark down so early.

“If the online retailers embrace it, there’s a real opportunity to be able to sell product in-season,” he added.

“The brands are really going to call the shots, as opposed to the department stores calling the shots,” Burke stressed.

He also underscored how fashion shows, small showroom affairs for professionals only up until the mid-Nineties, have evolved into entertainment spectacles — while not straying far from their traditional timing in February/March and September/October for women’s wear.

VOGUE BUSINESS: Can Concept Stores Survive the Pandemic?

VOGUE BUSINESS: Can Concept Stores Survive the Pandemic?

For Robert Burke, of New York-based fashion consultancy Robert Burke Associates, the store’s New York location was its biggest challenge. “There are a lot of tourists, the food is good and it’s an attractive development,” he says. “But within any kind of luxury retail, it’s important to have alike brands surrounding it so that the customer isn’t going to have to travel in Manhattan just for one store. This co-tenancy of luxury brands is really important, which 10 Corso Como didn’t have.”

“Ultimately it was a very large store that was in the wrong location. They got the distribution of many of the designer brands, but the customer didn't go there,” says Burke.

For the property, a 28,000 square-foot space, the retailer struck a deal with real estate developer The Howard Hughes Corporation, who had been working to revitalise the former Pier 17 into an experiential destination. “Their goal in having 10 Corso Como was to attract other high-end retailers and brands to come to the development,” says Burke.

But the Dallas-based developer didn’t have extensive experience in operating retail. “When you go up the food chain of high fashion, it becomes a very specific consumer and specific market. If you have someone who is not well versed in that world, it can be very challenging,” says Burke. “[Howard Hughes] was a real estate company, not a retail operator.”

“The key here is to have operators that are extremely experienced in the luxury fashion sector,” says Burke. “When you have someone who’s doing a licence, it’s a very difficult proposition if they don’t have a significant amount of experience in fashion and luxury retail.”

“The concept was a little esoteric for the US, particularly for that area within New York,” says Burke. “With any concept, when you take it internationally, it needs to be adjusted to the local consumer’s mentality and taste level. You don’t want to change it so much that the store does not reflect the DNA, but sometimes the concept can be limiting in its appeal globally.”

The culmination of these factors represents a precariousness for highly curated, concept retail that predates the spread of Covid-19. Burke is optimistic for a rebound in luxury spend and believes there are still opportunities for multi-brand specialty stores. The Webster, Kith and Ssense, which “closely control their designer assortments, DNA and brand image”, have demonstrated this, he explains. “After the virus passes, it's going to go back to being about personal service and having connections with sales people.”