Banana Republic has signed a five-year deal with Italian eyewear manufacturer Safilo to produce a collection of prescription optical frames and sunglasses.
The branded eyewear will likely be carried in Safilo’s 80 Solstice specialty boutiques in North America and in independently owned optical boutiques, which command about $3 billion of the $5 billion prescription eyeglass frame industry. The collections are to launch late in 2007, and a selection of sunglasses will make their debut in Banana Republic’s 500-plus locations in spring 2008, said Marka Hansen, president of Banana Republic, which is owned by San Francisco-based Gap Inc.
It is the first time the Banana Republic brand name will be carried outside its own stores.
“It’s a huge opportunity to transfer high-end design and creative solutions that [consumers] may find in high-end luxury designs, but at a price that is lower,” said Claudio Gottardi, chief executive officer of Safilo.
Though Gottardi said it is too early to speculate on product design, he noted, “We expect that with Banana Republic, the product will be somewhat less top-heavy than what we do with Christian Dior and Gucci. You will still have that fashionable look, but not too much. This transfers into a longer life for the product. Very often we only have a six-month life span on a pair of sunglasses. They get worn for a certain period of time, then you can’t give them away. Banana Republic [styles] will have a more friendly, easy-to-wear look, while staying trendy. We will be able to sell them for a year, or even more.”
The companies declined to disclose financial terms of the deal, but the agreement includes a three-year, performance-based renewal option requiring Safilo to meet certain undisclosed sales goals.
“It’s a huge move for us,” Hansen said. “What’s so opportune about this is taking the whole Banana Republic lifestyle brand and making it available in channels that were” previously unavailable. “Safilo has the opportunity to sell in their points of distribution…and in [its] fully owned stores.”
Padua, Italy-based Safilo holds an estimated 29 percent market share of the luxury eyewear category in North America, manufacturing licensed branded collections for luxury companies such as Gucci, Alexander McQueen, Bottega Veneta, Christian Dior, Stella McCartney, Valentino and Yves Saint Laurent. The company also has a growing portfolio of moderate brands, including Fossil, Nine West, JLo by Jennifer Lopez and Marc by Marc Jacobs. Safilo is expected to reach $1.4 billion in sales this year, Gottardi said.
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Hansen added, “They do [a] very quality product, and we think we’re in very good company. We were looking for someone who respects design, loves design and believes in quality. We’re very concerned with protecting our brand aesthetic….We had a very successful collaboration with Inter Parfums Inc. Between the two of us, we came up with something even more spectacular than we would have [alone]. I think this can be the same thing.”