零售店的設計師系列 For our aisles only

The trick to successful fashion retail is exclusivity. Traditionally, large stores sought to entice shoppers by securing limited-edition colourways and shapes from their designers’ collections. Browse the websites of Net-A-Porter or Bergdorf Goodman and you’ll find countless mainline products proudly branded “Exclusively Ours!” But delivering something novel has become increasingly challenging in the current retail environment. With fashion being presented on the catwalk months before the clothes go on sale, everything is seen online or in print months before it arrives in store. By the time products drop, shoppers are often already bored. So, to offer some element of surprise, retailers are now working directly with labels to produce one-off capsules and collaborations that sit outside the main seasonal calendar and are unseen anywhere until they arrive in store.

行之有效的時裝賣點就是突出其唯一性。一般說來，大店鋪吸引買家的招數，就是強調其獲得的是旗下設計師打造的特定顏色與外形的限量版時裝。諸位瀏覽一下Net-A-Porter與波道夫古德曼(Bergdorf Goodman)的網店，就會發現數不勝數自我標榜“限量版”的主流時裝。但在當前營銷環境下，推出新奇款式可以說越來越難。時裝上市前幾個月就已在T型臺上亮相，因此在實體店正式銷售前好幾個月，就早已在網絡和時尚類雜誌上“露臉”。待正式投放市場時，消費者往往已顯“審美疲勞”。因此，爲了達到某種出奇不意的效果，零售商們如今與品牌公司直接合作，推出一次性混搭系列與合作款式，這些時裝並不參展各大時裝秀，待實體店正式上架時才露出“廬山真面目”。

In the past year, online and boutique retailer Matches Fashion has released more than 15 exclusive capsules, with brands ranging from established luxury groups such as Balenciaga and Nina Ricci, to cult young labels Mary Katrantzou and Marques’Almeida. “Exclusive collaborations are a powerful way for us to offer our customers a sense of discovery — either digitally or physically,” says Matches buying director Natalie Kingham. “We’ve found it particularly effective to work with brands on delivering collections at points in the season that aren’t always catered for, such as high summer exclusives in May and June, when the customer is looking for newness.” In today’s cluttered fashion landscape, finding something no one else has is the true luxury, and it’s this exclusivity that savvy shoppers seek.

過去一年中，Matches Fashion網店與精品店推出了超過15款的限量版混搭裝，從巴黎世家(Balenciaga)及蓮娜麗姿(Nina Ricci)等知名品牌到瑪麗慍祓灲婑(Mary Katrantzou)及麥奎斯奧美達(Marques’Almeida)等年輕人青睞的品牌，應有盡有。“無論是在網店還是實體店，稀缺版合推款式是滿足消費者淘寶心態的有效方式。”Matches採購部負責人娜塔莉金厄姆(Natalie Kingham)說，“我們發現：與各時尚品牌在時裝季空檔期（如每年五、六月）推出盛夏限量版混搭款式後，市場效果非常好，因爲此時消費者正到處淘尋新奇款式。”在如今羣雄逐鹿的時裝界，淘到限量版時裝纔算真正奢侈大氣，而它們正是精明消費者苦苦追尋的愛物。

Dover Street Market, Comme des Gar’ Rei Kawakubo’s concept store (which has spaces in London, Tokyo, New York and online) has always made exclusivity its point of difference, working closely with designers on pop-up installations, window displays and one-off products from day one. Today, its model is the norm but back when it opened in 2004, with stock that included an exclusive furniture collaboration with Hedi Slimane and a Lanvin collection made entirely in white, the practice was revolutionary. “We are simply interested in creating exclusive products whenever we can,” says Adrian Joffe, president of Comme des Gar International. “It could be a celebration, a collector’s item, or a capsule. The idea is to share the spirit of the store and work closely with our brands.”

Comme des Gar創辦人川久保玲(Rei Kawakubo)打造了時尚概念店“丹佛街集市”(Dover Street Market)，一直推限量版時裝作爲自己的制勝法寶，它從一開始就與設計師們緊密協作，推出快閃版、櫥窗展示版以及一次性款式時裝。“丹佛街集市”如今在倫敦、東京、紐約以及網上都開設了門店。該模式如今大行其道，但2004年開業伊始，它實屬開天闢地之舉，當時上架的貨品還有與艾迪斯理曼(Hedi Slimane)合作推出的限量版傢俱以及與朗萬(Lanvin)合推的純白色時裝。“我們就是對推出限量款式樂此不疲，”Comme des Gar International總裁阿德里安約菲(Adrian Joffe)說。“合推款式既可能是週年慶版、藏家青睞款式，也可能是混搭系列款。我們的意圖就是與擁躉共享門店之時尚精髓以及與各大時尚品牌緊密合作。”

This notion of a collector’s item is central to the trend. All retailers want to make shoppers feel like their products have been created just for them. And retailers have realised that exclusivity can come from pushing prices. That’s the thinking behind Harrods’ current “Made with Love” campaign, a two-month promotion offering limited-edition products and bespoke personalised services. Harrods works with designers on special garments or one-off pieces which can be sold at higher price points than those brands usually occupy.

推藏家青睞款式對於流行時尚極其重要。所有零售商都希望買家覺得所推時裝只爲其精心打造，而且所有零售商都認識到高價位可造就稀缺性。這正是哈羅德百貨當前推出Made with Love活動的理念所在。這場歷時2個月的促銷活動推出了大量限量版時裝以及提供個人定製版服務。哈羅德百貨與設計師合推專款式或一次性時裝，其售價往往高於同類品牌的正常價位。

London designer Alice Temperley was drawn to the project because of its focus on higher prices — for her pieces, around 10,000 (most stores want dresses within the 800 to 1,000 range). “We designed a small collection featuring three exclusive eveningwear designs for Harrods,” she says. “The high price point meant they were lovely to work on and not something that fitted in our ready-to-wear plan.”

倫敦設計師艾麗絲映伯麗(Alice Temperley)喜歡上了這種合作模式，原因是它專注於高價位————就她設計的款式而言，價位約爲1萬英鎊（多數時尚門店理想的價位是800-1000英鎊）。“我們專爲哈羅德百貨設計了由三套稀缺款晚裝組成的小系列。”她說，“高售價意味着設計師在設計時身心愉悅，但它們並不包括在正常的成衣設計計劃中。”

Fellow London store Selfridges has made a niche of quirky themes and often invites designers to produce special items based around topics: “Agender”, for example, launched in March as a celebration of gender-neutral dressing, sparked much coverage in the fashion press — exactly as planned.

哈羅德的同城競爭對手塞爾福裏奇百貨店(Selfridges)則專門細分出了以怪異款式爲主題的專櫃，並且時常邀請設計師就特定主題設計專款：比方說，今年三月推出了頌揚男女無差別服裝的“Agender（無性別）計劃”，曾引發時尚媒體大肆報道，完全符合原先預期。

For exclusive lines, such as high-street retailers’ collaboration with high-fashion labels, sales alone are not the end game: press attention and social media awareness are other important components. And the attention generated elevates the rest of their stock. Topshop has collaborated with designers from JW Anderson to Marques’Almeida, and Kendall and Kylie Jenner. “These exclusive collections allow us to capture the energy and aesthetic of the brands we are partnering with,” explains Mary Homer, managing director of Topshop.

大型零售店與高端品牌合推限量版，銷售並非最終目的：平面媒體關注度與社交媒體認可度也是重要參考因素。更高關注度會進一步促進店鋪其它產品的銷售。Topshop與設計師（從J德森(JW Anderson)到麥奎斯奧美達(Marques’Almeida)）及名模肯達爾(Kendall Jenner)與凱麗礠娜(Kylie Jenner)姐妹進行了全面合作。“限量版可以讓我們乘勢獲得合作品牌的市場影響力以及借鑑其時尚風格。”Topshop總經理瑪麗霍默(Mary Homer)如是解釋道。

When Matches Fashion teamed up with Mary Katrantzou this spring to launch a 26-piece set of handbags (575 each) each marked with a letter of the alphabet, it made sure to utilise her social media presence — she has 264,000 followers on Instagram alone. Alongside the release, it hosted six events across London, LA and Dallas and encouraged attendees to share their “initial” online. The project reached 40m unique users and most of the alphabet had to be reordered within 24 hours.

Matches Fashion與瑪麗慍祓灲婑今春合作推出了26種款式構成的手袋系列（每件標價575英鎊，每款標識各對應字母表中的一個字母），這無疑利用了瑪麗慍祓灲婑葩社交媒體影響力————她光在Instagram上的粉絲數就達26.4萬。除發佈會外，Matches Fashion還在倫敦、洛杉磯以及達拉斯舉辦了六場造勢活動，鼓勵參與者分享首次網購該系列手袋的心得體會。這項活動吸引了4000萬用戶參與，不到24個小時，大多數字母對應的手袋不得不再次訂貨。

But while the stores benefit, keeping up with the demand for such products can be tough on designers, especially when it comes to production. Temperley admits, “When you already work on about 500 items a year it’s a lot of extra work, and when working with small units you have to bend suppliers’ arms.”

但是，儘管各大門店從中大獲其利，但時刻滿足擁躉對此類產品的需求對於設計師來說是個挑戰，尤以生產環節爲甚。坦伯麗坦承：“每年推出大約500種款式時，我們就得大量加班加點；因此與小型生產商合作時，就得想方設法討好對方。”

Often it’s young designers who get hit the hardest. Big retailers will sometimes demand a one-off piece, such as an exclusive T-shirt, but fail to place an order on the designer’s mainline collection, thus capitalising on the buzz of the brand without truly investing.

通常說來，年輕設計師承受的壓力最大。大型零售商有時需要設計師設計一次性款式（如某款限量版T恤），但並不訂購其主流系列，從而在不費真金白銀的情況下利用了該品牌的市場影響力。

“Some retailers would only take on a collection if they could have a separate piece of their own,” says Dominic Jones, who struggled with retailers’ demands when starting his high-fashion jewellery line in 2009. “I also experienced a relentless pressure to sign sale-or-return deals or offer ‘trade discounts’. They knew, as a young designer, it was good for me to sell with them.”

“有些零售商接納設計師主流時裝的前提條件是先給其另外設計專款。”英國設計師多米尼克瓊斯(Dominic Jones)說。2009年，他着手設計自己的高端首飾系列時，不得不設法滿足零售商的要求。“我因與零售商簽下剩貨保退協議以及給予批發價優惠而承受了巨大壓力。零售商清楚：藉助自己的銷售渠道大大利於年輕設計師。”

“Typically, at Matches, the cost structure works in the same way as buying the designers’ mainline collection,” says Kingham — in other words, designers cover the production charges while the retailer pays wholesale price for the item and profits from the price hike at retail. Dover Street’s arrangement is less fixed. “It’s a case-by-case situation. We often assist with costs,” says Adrian Joffe.

“在Matches網店，通常情況下，合作款的成本運作模式與購買該設計師的主流產品一模一樣。”金厄姆說————換言之，設計師負擔生產費用，而零售商以批發價進貨，其利潤來自零售環節的溢價。倫敦多佛街(Dover Street)的門店與設計師之間簽訂浮動性協議。“協議視具體情況而定，我們通常在費用上給予一定讓利。”阿德里安約菲說。

Retailers are adamant that the benefits of agreeing to do exclusives outweigh the disadvantages for designers. For Kingham, successful partnerships work when the designer is willing to listen and shape a product around shoppers’ needs: “Something that combines the DNA of the brand with our knowledge of our customer. We have our in-house content, communication and event team who can support the global outreach of the project,” she adds.

零售商堅持認爲：推限量版時裝對於設計師來說利大於弊。在金厄姆看來，當設計師願意傾聽、並根據消費者需求設計時，一種成功的合作關係就建立了：“合推的時裝要兼顧品牌時尚精髓與客戶特殊需求。我們公司有負責設計內容、溝通以及宣傳的團隊，能幫助全球市場的推廣。”她又補充道。

Likewise, Joffe insists communication is key. Just as the market is already saturated with product, too many exclusives can be time-consuming and costly. There’s no point collaborating for the sake of it, or tapping a designer for a range without having a relationship. Is there a trick? “Good, desirable product, not random gratuitous co-branding,” he says. You heard it here, exclusively.

約菲也強調良好的溝通是成功的關鍵。由於市場已呈飽和狀態，推出過多限量版時裝既費工又費錢。只是爲合作而合作、或是讓並無合作關係的設計師來打造限量版毫無意義。那麼合作款是個騙局呢？“必須得推出稱心如意的時裝，而不是心血來潮、無由頭的合作品牌。”他說。諸位聽明白了嗎？得是限量版。

Case study: Matches x Y-3

個案研究：Matches與Y-3

Matches’ collaboration with Adidas’s Y-3 on a capsule range featuring ink drawings by designer Yohji Yamamoto went on sale in Paris in June during men’s fashion week.

Matches與阿迪達斯(Adidas) Y-3品牌合作推出了混搭系列，上面畫有設計師山本耀司(Yohji Yamamoto)創作的墨水畫，該系列在今年六月的巴黎男裝週期間公開發售。

“Our menswear business has doubled in the past year and there’s an ever-increasing appetite for product,” says Damien Paul, head of menswear at Matches, who says men now account for 30 per cent of its business. “Exclusives are often a way of developing a relationship with a brand that we’re seeing a great reaction to. Our business with Y-3 has tripled over the past two years. Pieces were selling out within 24 hours and we frequently have waiting lists for the sneakers. This felt very relevant for us — especially as Yohji was so directly involved.”

“過去一年，我們的男裝銷售額翻了一倍，而且需求與日俱增。”Matches男裝部主管達明保羅(Damien Paul)說。他說如今男裝銷售額佔到了公司總銷售額的30%。“推限量版時裝是與熱門品牌建立良好關係的途徑。過去兩年裏，我們與Y-3合推的男裝銷售額翻了3倍。產品上架不到24小時，就已售完。而且我們的運動鞋訂單源源不斷，我們感覺意義非凡——尤其是山本耀司親自參與設計。”

Case study: Net-a-Porter x Chanel

個案研究2：Net-a-Porter與香奈兒(Chanel )的合作

Chanel made its e-commerce debut in April with an exclusive jewellery line for Net-a-Porter. The “Coco Crush” range featured just six designs — a cuff and five rings — priced between 1,400 and 13,500. In return for the debut, Net-a-Porter’s tech-team created a digital pop-up shop that mimicked the aesthetic of a Chanel boutique.

今年4月，香奈兒首次試水電商，在Net-a-Porter上銷售其限量版珠寶系列“Coco Crush”。該系列只推出了6款首飾——一款手鐲與五款戒指，定價介於1400英鎊-1.35萬英鎊之間。作爲回報，Net-a-Porter的技術團隊專門在網上創建了一家模仿香奈兒精品店時尚風格的快閃店(pop-up shop)。

The benefits? Chanel got to experiment with e-commerce and capture some online data, while Net-a-Porter landed the coup of being Chanel’s first etailer — and lots of press. “We felt the exclusive married Net’s pioneering technology within the luxury retail space, along with Chanel’s chic and timeless style,” says jewellery buyer Sophie Quy. “It was a dream partnership and, needless to say, our customers absolutely loved it.”

好處呢？香奈兒開始試水電商並獲取相關網購數據，而Net-a-Porter也有幸成爲香奈兒的首家電子零售代理商並且獲得媒體的廣泛關注。“我們認爲：香奈兒的限量版首飾、連同香奈兒的新潮和雋永時尚風格與Net-a-Porter的前沿科技在奢侈品零售環節成功實現了聯姻。”高檔珠寶買手索菲蓋伊(Sophie Quy)說。“兩者的合作可謂珠聯璧合，不用說，我們的客戶爲此也欣喜若狂。”

Case study: Dover Street Market

個案研究3：“丹佛街集市”

Dover Street Market (DSM) proved itself the original master of the innovative exclusive by getting a “who’s who” of fashion to produce one-off items to celebrate the store’s 10th anniversary last year. Among the items were a Nike tennis sneaker featuring the DSM logo and a Giambattista Valli limited-edition bag.

去年，“丹佛街集市”(DSM)用推出一次性時裝來慶祝自己的10週年店慶，從而有力證明了自己就是限量版時裝的原創者。在推出的諸多協作款中，就包括了帶有“丹佛街集市”標識的一款耐克網球鞋以及一款詹巴蒂斯塔瓦莉(Giambattista Valli)的限量版手包。

Simone Rocha, who offered two silver brogue designs, says it was her opportunity to thank the retailer for its continued support. “It was a special milestone for them and for me because I’m a part of the store. It was like my birthday present to them,” she says. Being smart with quantities allowed her to budget for such an undertaking. “We have only ever done a small run of special limited editions, so our team works with our factories to see if we can push it through with our regular schedule.”

推出兩款銀灰色布洛克鞋的西蒙娜圠躥(Simone Rocha)說自己得藉此機會感謝零售商一如既往的支持。“對於雙方都是里程碑式的紀念意義，因爲我如今儼然成了零售店的共同體。這就好比是自己送給對方的店慶禮物。”她說。正是科學統籌生產數量，自己才能合理安排、順利交工。“我們只是推了幾個限量版，所以我們的設計團隊與廠家協商，看看是否能在正常生產週期中趕完這批活。”