MONTREAL — Michael Kors is expanding its international business with a new division, Michael Kors Canada, headquartered here.
The unit is headed by Debra Margles, formerly president of Kasper and Anne Klein Canada, which were purchased by Jones Apparel Group.
The women’s line, now exclusively sold through an in-store shop at Ogilvy’s here, will be available in about 150 independent stores across Canada for fall. The men’s line will be sold in about 110 stores.
“It doesn’t make sense when you have a large country like Canada to run all operations out of the head office,” explained Anne Waterman, senior vice president of global communications for Michael Kors in New York.
The company is launching Michael Kors Collection and the midprice line, Michael Michael Kors, and will offer the full women’s ready-to-wear line for fall, Waterman said.
In addition, it has signed 15 licensing agreements for accessories including watches, eyewear, ties, swimwear, socks, belts, fragrances and tailored clothing.
Prices for the women’s collection are expected to range from $210 to $375 for jackets, $145 to $210 for dresses, pants from $120 to $160 and knitwear from $80 to $160. All figures have been converted from Canadian dollars at current exchange.
“Nobody is addressing the modern women out there,” said Margles. “People we’ve spoken to are excited about having a real designer behind a label in Canada.”
Lawrence Stroll, a native of Montreal who bankrolled Tommy Hilfiger before selling his stake in 1998, is co-chairman of Michael Kors. He said the market is missing affordable luxury.
“We have stated that we intend to make Michael Kors the next great American luxury designer brand and with the launch of Michael, in addition to efforts under way to strengthen the Michael Kors Collection, we’ll be one step closer to achieving that goal.”
Consultant Anthony Stokan of Anthony Russell Inc., Toronto, observed that while Michael Kors has a great collection, the big challenge is to get national exposure when going the independent store route. On the other hand, a brand can get instant recognition by being picked up by a chain, he said.
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“I assume they’re catering to a slightly more mature customer who is tired of the sexy younger look that so many retailers are offering today,” Stokan said. “It seems a lot of people are starting to pay attention to this slightly older segment of the market, which has largely been neglected.”