Talbot's Took Off the Red Door But Still Has a Long Way to Go To Change Its Image
Talbots' (TLB) management's aggressive campaign to dump the frump and attract new customers continues apace. The latest changes? Stripping stores of the iconic red doors that once heralded the entrance to all things granny-chic, revamping the interiors, and -- wait for it -- merchandising them based on location.
The strategy to switch from sameness in stock to mixing up styles, prices and categories seems to have come as an epiphany to Talbots' CEO Trudy Sullivan who told WWD, "The biggest opportunity for Talbots is to improve productivity on the square footage that it owns." Sales per square foot are only $250 currently.
But here's the rub. Amid all this talk of segments and targets, and the trotting out of new threads on Linda Evangelista's svelte frame, nothing really appears terribly innovative. Not the clothes and certainly not the "refreshed" stores. Talbots is proudly touting its new look at Tyson's Corner in Virginia.
Exhibit A: Talbots' all white look, including fixtures and mannequins. Exhibit B: Too bad Ann Taylor Loft was going for the same vibe â€" and made the conversion quicker. Even the mannequins are the same.
What's more, Sullivan and company have big plans for that bastion of Guidette-dom â€" the Garden State. Talbots "store of the future," to be fitted with such posh accoutrements as area rugs and étagères and five major rooms for "different merchandise stories," will open in Paramus, New Jersey in November. Again Talbots seems to be copycatting. This time it's swiping the in-store experience proffered by uber-successful Anthropologie (URBN) which has been peddling its apparel and accessories to the over-30 set for years in environs more like fanciful abodes than retail outlets. Exhibit C: Anthro's flagship in New York City's Rockefeller Center: étagères, area rugs, and niche nooks, oh my!
Still Sullivan maintains the brand is going through a "profound change" akin to Coach's (COH) thoroughly modern makeover and its Poppy line calculated to appeal to a younger shopper. (Sullivan also mentions Ralph Lauren (RL) but unless she's referring to the "Big Pony" not much at the iconic designer's house of Americana has changed in the last few decades).
What's next for Talbots? A denim launch. Le sigh. Talbots' design team will unveil a collection that encompasses 10 fits and 12 washes. Why? Why try and reinvent the wheel, when others are already doing it better (ahem, Gap 1969 Premium Denim) â€" without having to banish the specter of "mom jeans" to boot?
To her credit, Sullivan's not claiming victory yet. All these efforts have eked out small positives, namely a second quarter loss of only $4.4 million, or 8 cents a share, compared with 2009's loss of $23.6 million, or 44 cents a share.
With all its flash and folly, I still think Talbots is setting its sights on the wrong customer. Sure it's smart to appeal to the oft-ignored over-40 set. But those over 40, and over size 12? There's Lane Bryant (CHRS) and not much else, in other words: plenty of wiggle room in that market. 60 percent of American women buy apparel in sizes above 12, and you can bet they'd like the opportunity to purchase well-made, classic basics, too.
Image via Talbots
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