Assignment 2:
Customer Profiling
Barbour and Urban Outfitters
Emily Rathbone 201219903
OVERVIEW
Fig. 2: Urban Outfitters Logo, 2019.
Fig. 1: Barbour Logo, 2019.
Fig. 3: Barbour Classic Bedale Wax Jacket
Fig. 4: Women’s Tartan: Carolyn Stritch, 2019.
Fig. 5: Barbour X Battersea, 2019.
• Luxury Outerwear Brand • Only has 30 official stores but has stockists all over the world (Barbour, 2019). • Clothing catering to men, women, children and dogs • Offers traditional, heritage clothing for five generations (Barbour, 2019). Fig. 9: Forsyth Modern Heavy Weight Tartan Fabric, 2019.
Fig. 6: UO Victoria Floral Shirt Dress, 2019.
Fig. 6: Gettin’ Hot in Here Bath Mat, 2019.
Fig. 8: Tommy Jeans USA Shadow White Long-Sleeve T-Shirt, 2019.
• High-street, lifestyle brand selling trend-led clothing • Sells their own brand as well as stocking other in-trend brands, such as Champion, Tommy Hilfiger, etc. • Only stores and shipping to Canada, U.S.A and Europe (Urban Outfitters, 2019). Fig. 10: Peaches removable wallpaper, 2019.
RESEARCH METHODS Primary
Purpose: To consolidate secondary re-
search and support accurate representation of segmentation criteria for consumers.
Secondary
Purpose: To gain a greater appreciation
and understanding of the brands’ history, ethics, values, etc. and customer behaviour. Fig. 2: Urban Outfitters Logo, 2019.
Fig. 1: Barbour Logo, 2019.
Primary Methods
• Customer Questionnaire (googleforms) -15 responses - 14 questions (demographic, geographic, psychographic and customer behaviour) • Observation of customers in Regent’s Street Barbour store, London, and Accent Store stockists in Leeds. - 1 Official store visit and 3 visits for 2 weeks to the Leeds stockist. • Informal interview with London store sales assistants and managers. - 4 questions relating to demographic and geographic and behaviour)
Primary Methods
Fig. 11: This study, 2019.
Secondary Methods
Secondary Methods
External Secondary Research Sources: • Trade information/Sales information provided by reliable news sources and sites (e.g. Drapersonline, BBC). -psychographic and behavioural data Fig. 13: This study, 2019.
• Customer Questionnaire (googleforms) - 51 responses - 13 questions (demographic, geographic, psychographic and customer behaviour) • Observation of customers in Oxford Street store, London, Brighton store and Leeds Store. - 3 Store visits per week for 2 weeks
Fig. 12: This study, 2019.
Internal Secondary Research Sources: • URBN (Brand portfolio) - demographic and psychographic data • Sales Figures -behavioural data External Secondary Research Sources: • Trade information/Sales information provided by reliable news sources and sites (e.g. Forbes). • -psychographic and behavioural data Fig. 14: This study, 2019.
Fig. 2: Urban Outfitters Logo, 2019.
Segmentation Criteria
Demographics • Men and Women • Single (56%) • 15-28 (over 70% of respondants are university students) • ‘College-age customers’ (URBN, 2019)
Fig. 15: This study, 2019.
• Culturally understanding and creative (URBN, 2019) • Usually between working class and upper-middle class
Geographics • Urban/semi-urban areas
Fig. 16: This study, 2019.
• Main customer base is from Europe., North America and Israel.
Fig. 17: Mapchart, 2019.
Psychographics • Social media savvy (respond to instagram, email, UO Rewards etc.) • “Creative, independant, tech-savvy” (ewMarketing and PR, 2015) • Students and young adults moving into their own places (Petro, G. 2015) • Interested in trends, social status and brand names
Fig. 10: Peaches removable wallpaper, 2019.
Behavioural • Motivation to buy a particular item and social media are popular reasons for visiting the store • Customers own multiple items from the store
Fig. 18: This study, 2019.
• Regular shoppers-purchase 1-3 items per month • Relatively price sensitive- increase shopping habits during sales periods • Impulsive buyers- Buy in quantity • Spend more money on designer/expensive shoes and accessories than clothing • Other stores: Asos, Topshop/ man, Champion, Nike, Adidas, Nastygal, Gymshark,PLT, Zara, Brandy Melville, Depop
Fig. 9: Forsyth Modern Heavy Weight Tartan Fabric, 2019.
Segmentation Criteria
Demographics • Men and Women • Aged 40-55
Fig. 19: This Study, 2019.
• Married/Engaged • White, upper-middle class • British, and Asian • Majority employed, most in full-time work
Fig. 20 :This Study, 2019.
• Relatively high (disposable) income
Fig. 1: Barbour Logo, 2019.
Geographics
Psychographics
• Majority of customers • High quality of life are British but Bar• Enjoy traditional bour is also popular sports and activities amongst Asian tourists. 100% of questionnaire respondants are British
Behavioural • Not regular shoppers (60% purchase less than 1 item per month) • Prefer ‘safe’, neutral colours • Past experience and motivation to buy a particular item
Fig. 23: This study, 2019.
• Little tendency to browse • Rely on the store- own more than 1 item • Slightly price sensitive- shop more during sales • Other shops:
• Majority of customers live in countryside
Fig. 21: This study, 2019.
Fig. 22: This study, 2019.
• Values practicality and functionality over trends. Fig. 24: This study, 2019.
Gen Y/Z 90s Babies
Heritage
Authenticity
Quality
Durability
Trend
Detail Fig. 25: This study, 2019.
Streetstyle
Slide References • Urban Outfitters. 2019. Urban Outfitters Store Locations. [Online]. [Accessed:26 February 2019]. Available from:https://www.urbanoutfitters. com/en-gb/stores#?viewAll=true • Barbour. 2019. Barbour Store Locator. [Online]. [Accessed:26 February 2019]. Available from:https://www.barbour.com/uk/storelocator • EW Marketing and PR. 2015. Customer Brief-Urban Outfitters. [Online]. [Accessed:26 February 2019]. Available from:http://ewmarketingandpr. blogspot.com/2015/02/urban-outfitters.html • Petro, G. 2015. Urban Outfitters Finds Its Identity - What It Means For Investors. [Online]. [Accessed:26 February 2019]. Available from: https:// www.forbes.com/sites/gregpetro/2015/09/22/urban-outfitters-finds-itsidentity-what-it-means-for-investors/#6032baf65b28
Image References for Slides • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Fig. 1: Barbour. 2019. Barbour Logo. [Online]. [Accessed:26th Feb 2019]. Available from: https://www.barbour.com/uk/ Fig. 2: Urban Outfitters. 2019. Urban Outfitters Logo. [Online]. [Accessed:26th Feb 2019]. Available from: https://www.urbanoutfitters.com/en-gb/?ref=logo.com/uk/ Fig. 3: Barbour. 2019. Barbour Classic Bedale® Wax Jacket. [Online]. [Accessed:26th Feb 2019]. Available from: https://www.urbanoutfitters.com/en-gb/?ref=logo.com/uk/ Fig. 4: Barbour. 2019. Women’s Tartan: Carolyn Stritch. [Online]. [Accessed:26th Feb 2019]. Available from: https://www.barbour.com/uk/blog/tartan-carolyn-stritch-highlands/ Fig. 5: Barbour. 2019. Barbour X Battersea. [Online]. [Accessed:26th Feb 2019]. Available from: https://www.barbour.com/uk/barbour-dogs Fig. 6: Urban Outfitters. 2019. UO Victoria Floral Shirt Dress. [Online]. [Accessed:26th Feb 2019]. Available from:https://www.urbanoutfitters.com/en-gb/shop/uo-victoria-floral-shirt-dress?category=dresses&color=040&type=REGULAR Fig. 7: Urban Outfitters. 2019. Gettin’ Hot in Here Bath Mat. [Online]. [Accessed:26th Feb 2019]. Available from:https://www.urbanoutfitters.com/en-gb/shop/gettin-hot-in-here-bath-mat?category=home-gifts-bestsellers&color=018&type=REGULAR Fig. 8: Urban Outfitters. 2019. Tommy Jeans USA Shadow White Long-Sleeve T-Shirt. [Online]. [Accessed:26th Feb 2019]. Available from:https://www.urbanoutfitters. com/en-gb/shop/tommy-jeans-usa-shadow-white-long-sleeve-t-shirt?category=mens-graphic-tshirts&color=010 Fig. 9: Burnetts&Struth. 2019. Forsyth Modern Heavy Weight Tartan Fabric. [Online]. [Accessed:27th Feb 2019]. Available from:https://www.burnetts-struth.com/forsyth-modern-heavy-weight-tartan-fabric/ Fig. 10: Urban Outfitters. 2019. Peaches Removable Wallpaper. [Online]. [Accessed:27th Feb 2019]. Available from:https://www.urbanoutfitters.com/shop/peaches-removable-wallpaper Fig. 11: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. Fig.12: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. Fig.13: Rathbone, E. 2019. Photograph of Regent’s Street Barbour Store, London. [Photograph] At: Leeds: Leeds University, School of Design Fig.14: Rathbone, E. 2019. Photograph of Urban Outfitters Store, Leeds. [Photograph] At: Leeds: Leeds University, School of Design Fig. 15: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. Fig. 16: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. Fig. 17: Mapchart.net. 2019. World. [Online]. [Accessed:29th Feb 2019]. Available from:https://mapchart.net/world.html Fig. 18: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. Fig. 19: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. Fig. 20: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. Fig. 21: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. Fig. 22: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. Fig. 23: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. Fig. 24: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. Fig. 25: Rathbone, E. 2019. Moodboard for Urban Outfitters and Barbour, Leeds. [Original Image] At: Leeds: Leeds University, School of Design
Appendix A: Written Analysis Word Count: 1582 words My chosen brands are Urban Outfitters and Barbour. Before embarking on this assignment, I was aware that Barbour is a brand that appeals to my parents demographic, whereas Urban Outfittes appeals more to a younger generation. Moreover, I had an understanding that the brands served different purposes to the customers, with Urban Outfitters providing a range of lifestyle goods that change with the trends, and Barbour producing classic, durable clothing intended to last. With further research it became apparent that the brands have different market positionings and distinct customer bases, hence this was the reason for my choice. Urban Outfitters is a high-street lifestyle brand, catering towards young male and female adults across Europe, North America and Israel (Urban Outfitters, 2019). The products are trend-led clothing and homewares, with the brand stocking their own label as well as other in-trend brands. Contrarily, Barbour is a luxury outerwear brand, selling products for men, women, children and dogs. Despite having stockists all around the world, a level of prestige is maintained through the selective number of physical stores. For this reason, Barbour may be classed as a ‘global brand’. Alongside their differing market levels(see diagram 1), the brand’s have different positions to appeal to their customer base. In Diagram 2, two criteria were chosen to distinguish the brands; price and style (trendy/fashionable and traditional/classic). Urban Outfitters position is determined by its high-street status, and comparatively low-middle range price point. Alternatively, the Barbour brand prides itself in heritage clothing, and has a relatively high price point, hence is situated in the traditional/classic area at a relatively high price point.
Diagram 1 Fig.1: This study, 2019
Diagram 2 Fig. 2: This study, 2019
Research Methods To gain an understanding of the brands customers, I carried out primary and secondary qualitative and quantitative research, in the form of customer questionnaires, observations, informal interviews, and through internal and external research sources. To gather an initial appreciation for the brands, I also conducted commercial research into the history, ethics and values of the brands that may affect customer choices.
Barbour Research Methods The questionnaire for Barbour consisted of 14 questions that would provide information on their demographic, geographic, psychographic and customer behaviour. Conducted on Googleforms, the survey was estimated to take approximately 2 minutes, and was completed by respondants who viewed the weblink on Facebook, and randomly selected people on Instagram who had tagged ‘Barbour’ or hashtagged ‘BarbourWayofLife’ were also sent a weblink to the questionnaire. For qualitative research, I conducted store visits three times a week for 30 minutes between 10th-24th February, visiting the Regent Street official store and Accent Store stockist in Leeds. I looked at the clothes customers wore, their shopping bags, the amount purchased,expenditure, browsing tendency, etc. Furthermore, I also conducted a short, informal interview composing of 4 questions with the manageress and sales assisatant at the London store, asking about the typical customer demographic and their shopping habits (e.g. do customers need assistance, do customers know what they want before entering the store, what nationalities to they commonly serve). To consolidate my findings and learn factors affecting sales, I researched trade and sales information provided by reliable news sources and sites, such as Drapersonline and BBC.
Urban Outfitters Research Methods I conducted a 13 question questionnaire comparative to the Barbour questionnaire, making it available to respondants in the same manner. The questions focused on age, gender, occupation, interests, appeal of the store and shopping habits. Similarly, I conducted observations of the customers during three 30 minute store visits a week for two weeks between the Brighton, London and Leeds stores. Through observing multiple stores, I have ensured accurate customer representation. For internal secondary research resources, I made use of the brand portfolio (URBN) and sales figures, and for external sources, I gathered sales and trade information from resources such as Forbes.
Barbour Research Results With a total of fifteen responses from seven females(46.7%) and eight males(53.3%), the results showed the 45-55 age range was the largest group at 73.3%, and the second largest group is aged55+ (13.3%). My store observations supported this statistic, with all customers appearing over 45. Interestingly, the divide between geographic occupancy of the respondants was relatively even, however, the majority of respondants resides in the countryside(see Fig.3).
Fig. 3: This study, 2019 Moreover,fourteen respondants(93.4%) married/in a relationship.100% of the questionnaire respondants were British, and 80% amount employed. I was informed by the manageress at Regent Street that the second largest customer base is from Asia, particuarly upper-class Korean and Chinese (Anon., 2019). All Barbour respondees are returning customers who know the brand, with 73.3% currently owning 1-3 Barbour products, and the remaining 26.7% owning 4-6 items. The most common reason for the respondants to return to the store was due to past experience with Barbour, and motivation to buy a particular item, suggesting Barbour’s marketing efforts play little role in their sales.
Fig. 4: This study, 2019
Furthermore, 8 respondants (53.3%) know the item they want to purchase upon entering the store/website, reinforcing the notion that the customers are accostomed with the brand. One should also note only 1 respondant said they prefer to browse the store before purchasing, and 6 (40%) chose ‘both’. These behaviour aligns with my observation of customers in the store. Relatively infrequent shoppers, 60% buy less than one item per month and 40% buy 1-3items per month (on average), and they are slightly price sensitive as 8 respondents (53.3%) change their shopping habits during sale periods. In spite of this, their shopping habits indicate or their potential disposable income, as the majority (66.7%) spend over £45 in one checkout, 26.7% spending £30-35, and only 16.7% (1 respondent) spending under £30. Primary and secondary research drew light on customer aspirations and traditionalism, showing endorsements, such as royal appearances in Barbour, affected sales (Brown, H. 2018). The interests of the respondees support notions of outdoors and traditionalism, with popular interests being dog walking, skiing, family, cooking, etc. Other popular shops for Barbour customers (from the questionnaire and observations) include: Joules, Timberland, Crew, Gant.
Urban Outfitters Research Results The 51 total questionnaire responses were answered by 45 females (88.2%)and 6 males(11.8%).The most common age range was 15-2.0 (82%), and the second most popular was 21-25 (12%).Supporting this, 72.5% of customers are university students, 17.6% are secondary school students,and only 15.7% in full or part-time work.The brand portfolio also suggests the brand appeals to “college-age customers” (URBN, 2019). Interestingly, 23 respondanst are married/in a relationship and 28 customers are single. The majority of respondants live in semi urban/urban areas, with 76.5% living in a city centre or subrubs, and only 23.5% live in the ‘countryside’. As the brand is only present in the Europe, North America, and Israel (UrbanOutfitters. 2019), inferrably this is where the majority of customers reside. A multiple-choice scenario showed motivation to buy a particular item was the most popular reason for shopping(58.8%),followed by social media(39.2%) and sales promotion(31.4%). 36 respondees(70.6%) said their shopping habits change during sales periods, suggesting they are relatively price sensitive. Respondees experience a range of brand loyalty, as shown in Fig. 5.
Fig. 5: This study, 2019
Only 15.7% know the item they intend to purchase, whilst 35.3% browse, and 49% prefer to do both. This suggests the impulsive tendencies of the customer base, and is supported by the response showing customers tend to be regular shoppers, with 24 respondees buying between 1-3 items per month (on average), 7 purchasing 3-6 items, and only 20 buying less than 1 item. Other shops frequented by customers typically streetwear and highstreet brands, including Asos, Topshop/man, Champion, Nike, Adidas, Nastygal, Gymshark,PLT, Zara, Brandy Melville, Depop. I also observed that many shoppers wore designer shoes and accessories, suggesting they spend more on this than clothing. Overall, my findings show that Urban Outfitters customers have a variety of interests, with specific activities including fashion, sport, socialising, media, art, music and travel, being the most recurring interests amongst respondees.
Moodboard Supporting my research, I will provide a visual representation of the average customer base in the form of a moodboard. This will epitomize the lifestyle, interests, attitudes and behaviours of the typical customer, and will in term serve to highlight the differences between the respective customer bases.
Conclusion In conclusion, the combination of primary and secondary research provided substantial reliable information necessary to for me to gain an clear understanding of the brands respective customers and an accurate customer profile. The only limitation I encountered was a lack of internal secondary knowledge available for Barbour, however, one may argue the exclusion of internal secondary sources reduces the likelihood of bias and hence should not affect the customer profile. I have learnt that the contrasting purchasing intentions and interests of Barbour and Urban Outfitters customers provides the basis for their different market levels and positioning. The customer’s behaviours towards shopping are different, largely because of the different functions clothing serves to the customer bases. Barbour customers value durability and functionality, and hence shop less as they expect their clothing to last many seasons, whereas Urban Outfitters customers intend their purchases to have a shorter life-span, as their styles change with the season and thus make new purchases regularly. From what I have observed, this is because the style of Urban Outfitters customers is significantly influenced by external sources, including trends and celebrities, whereas Barbour customers purchase clothing when driven by a need. A key similarlity between the customers is that the majority of both customer bases are drawn to the store/website by motivation to buy a particular item, showing they are conscious of their own styles and are aware what they want to add to enhance their style.
Written Analysis References • Brown, H. 2018. Barbour profits lift as ‘Meghan effect’ fuels further growth.[Online]. [Accessed:20 February 2019]. Available from:https://www.drapersonline.com/news/barbour-profits-lift-as-meghan-effect-fuels-further-growth/7028345.article • Urban Outfitters. 2019. Store Locations[Online]. [Accessed:20 February 2019]. Available from:https://www.urbanoutfitters. com/en-gb/stores • Anon. 2019. Interview with E. Rathbone. 23 February 2019, London.
Written Analysis Image References • Fig.1: Rathbone, E. 2019. Market Levels for Urban Outfitters and Barbour. School of Design. University of Leeds. • Fig.2: Rathbone, E. 2019. Brand Positioning for Urban Outfitters and Barbour. School of Design. University of Leeds. • Fig.3: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. • Fig.4: Rathbone, E. 2019. Barbour Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds. • Fig.5: Rathbone, E. 2019. Urban Outfitters Questionnaire. School of Design. University of Leeds.
Self-assessment sheet –Customer profiling Student’s Name
Emily Rathbone
Assessment of
Representing customer profiles for retailers operating at different levels of the market
To demonstrate
Your understanding of different target markets for fashion-related companies
Final Mark
%
This is how I think the work that I have produced for assignment 2 relates to the marking criteria
Deliverables –Assessment Criteria C1 C2
C3 C4
Originality & Creative input Coverage of relevant context/ Evidence of understanding of the target customers
C6 C7
Oral execution
C8
C9
The use and understanding of the Harvard Referencing system Professional practices
69% 60%
59% 50%
49% 40%
39%
70 71
Evidence of understanding of the research process Research, analysis & interpretation -The level of critical analysis Relevant visual data/ Informative visual lifestyle concept Presentation of visual layout and structure
C5
70% +
69 69
68 69
71
85
Final Mark
On Reflection As I am yet to present the assignment, it is difficult to comment on my execution at this stage, however, I believe I have put in significant effort to this assignment over the past few weeks, and enjoyed learning how to research and represent different customer profiles. The analysis provides a concise summary of my extensive research and findings, and I think it helps highlight the brands different customer profiles, market levels and brand positioning. I have also considered the visual appearance of my slides to make it appealing to the audience whilst also supporting the content I am discussing (e.g. colour theme, using colours and symbols that represent the brands). I think my physical representation of the customer profiles is original, and I intend to present this whilst showing mood boards in my presentation to represent the target consumers in an engaging manner.