IntroductionELIE SAAB (also known as ES) is a high fashion brand founded by Lebanese designer Elie Saab in Beirut in 1982. (FMD, n.d.) In the 1980s the His creations featuring embroidered lace, precious fabrics, beads, crystals and other rich details began to attract royalty from around the world, which had a positive impact on his label's reputation. (FMD, n.d.) Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In the 1990s, Elie Saab gained considerable recognition outside Lebanon after presenting his haute couture and ready-to-wear creations in Rome, Milan and Monaco. (FMD, n.d.) However, it was not until 2002 that ELIE SAAB became an internationally established luxury brand, when African-American actress Halle Berry received the Oscar for Best Actress in an ornate red dress designed by the designer Lebanese.To date, Elie Saab has a showroom in Paris and a limited number of flagship stores and boutiques in Europe, Lebanon and Dubai. (Shuayto, N. and Kayyal, H., 2013) As a result of its distribution strategy that mainly focuses on Europe and the United Arab Emirates, Elie Saab has a very weak presence in the Asia-Pacific region, which has already been targeted by most of its competitors due to its high potential and growing number of high net worth individuals (hereinafter HNWIs). (Capgemini Lorenz Curve Analysis, 2013a) In light of these considerations, this essay will analyze ELIE SAAB's business model using a combination of theoretical frameworks and socioeconomic data that will be used to gain insights into its current strategy. Then, the information gathered about the company's strengths and weaknesses will be used to devise a distribution strategy that should help it expand and increase brand awareness without jeopardizing its luxury status. As pointed out by Shuayto and Kayyal (2006), ELIE SAAB's main goal has always been to attract and retain customers who appreciate and demand unique, high-end fashion designs made from the finest materials. As a luxury fashion brand, one of the main challenges faced by ELIE SAAB is to meet diverse consumer needs and achieve consistent revenues without losing its prestigious status. (Okonkwo, U., 2007) Regarding distribution, Orlovic (2003) observed that those who manage luxury companies must pay close attention not to ruin the image of their brand when choosing key distribution channels, as they are apparently Advantages such as partnerships and licensing agreements could end up devaluing even the most successful luxury brands. Indeed, to be perceived as exclusive and extraordinary, a luxury fashion brand should be built in such a way that it is associated with wealthy individuals who belong to the highest strata of society and can afford extremely expensive and unnecessary goods. (Kapferer, J., 2012) In light of these observations, it can be deduced that the strategic plan adopted by ELIE SAAB has certainly proved effective because, thanks to the limited number of single-brand stores, a reasonable licensing strategy and the association featuring royalty and celebrities, the Lebanese brand is primarily associated with rarity, exclusivity and fine materials and evokes desirable and captivating lifestyles. As highlighted by Osterwalder and Pigneur (2013), there are a number of elements that should be analyzed to evaluate a company's business model and to provide a clear picture of its current market position, such as value propositions, key resources,key partners, cost structure, revenue, key activities, distribution, customer relationship and customer segments. The following table uses the “blocks” outlined by Osterwalder and Pigneur (2013) to analyze ELIE SAAB's business model. ELIE SAAB aims to create exceptional, high-end designs made from fine materials and to offer competitive prices without sacrificing quality or exclusivity. (FMD, n.d.) • Flagship stores, salons, fabrics, materials, sewing tools and design (physical assets) Website, brands (intellectual assets) Talent, skill and creativity of designers; sales force in flagship stores (human resources) Equity (financial resources). Retailers and department stores, including Harrods (Elie Saab. 2014)Pronovias (Pronovias.com, 2014)Beaute Prestige International (Elie Saab, 2011)Fabric and material suppliersProducers of ready-to-wear clothing, accessories and footwearCompanies investing in hotels (Commercio Arabia, 2008) Shipping Companies - Oceanco and Weyves International Ltd (Lorie, A., 2010) Key Activities Cost Structure Revenues High Fashion Design Ready-to-wear, Accessories and Footwear Design Bridal Design Luxury flagship store design Website maintenance Materials Fabrics Selling, general and administrative expenses (salaries, commissions, marketing, advertising, travel costs) Manufacturers Fashion shows Direct sales Indirect sales Licensing agreements Partnerships Customer segments Customer relationships Distribution channels Key target customers of ELIE SAAB are: elegant, wealthy women who appreciate unique, high-end clothing, accessories and footwear made from the best quality materialsCelebrities (natural target)Royalty (natural target) ELIE SAAB's main objective is to retain existing customers by attracting more new. Their customer management strategy revolves around: Dedicated service support in flagship stores Personal and exclusive services offered to selected customers (mainly royals and celebrities) Excellent customer support offered by carefully selected partners Distribution has certainly played a vital role in the creation of specific emotional associations with ELIE SAAB, as the Lebanese designer's creations are distributed only through the following channels: The company's flagship stores A limited number of multi-brand retailers such as Pronovias Exceptional concessions Fashion shows Being a growing company operating in different markets, ELIE SAAB cannot be analyzed only in relation to its internal strengths, strategic plan and objectives. Indeed, as Bamford and West (2010) noted, a company's management, operations and ability to achieve its objectives are influenced by a variety of internal and external factors that can be analyzed through a very common management tool known as SWOT (an acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats). The main advantage of the SWOT analysis is that it allows management to determine whether strategic objectives have been achieved and at the same time to develop a new strategy that maximizes a company's strengths, minimizes or eliminates its weaknesses, reduces its vulnerability to external aggression. threats and helps him exploit new opportunities. (Bamford, CE and West, GP, 2010) From an analysis of ELIE SAAB's operations, business model and internal/external environment via SWOT, it was found that one of the weakest areas of the company is its poor presence in markets with high HNWIs, particularly Asia, which means that an appropriate distribution and branding strategy should be developed for this particular area. (Appendix A) In light of the data and observations illustrated so far, it can be deduced that one of the main weak points of ELIE SAAB isits weak presence in Asia, the potential of which has already been recognized by numerous luxury brands already established in several countries in the Asia-Pacific region. (Daedal Research, 2013) Therefore, this section will present a new strategy aimed at minimizing the distribution-related weaknesses of ELIE SAAB that emerged from the company's business model assessment and SWOT analysis. (Appendix A) The above strategy will revolve around company-owned flagship stores which are expected to help increase the brand's reach in the Asia-Pacific region, without making it lose its luxury status, exclusivity or credibility. As Chevalier and Mazzalovo (2012) noted, there are several dynamics and factors that should be taken into consideration when developing a distribution strategy for a luxury brand. First of all, a luxury brand should embody timelessness, rarity, continuity, stability, rich lifestyles and prestige since without these associations it would not be perceived as luxurious, otherwise it would be considered a normal fashion brand. (Chevalier, M. and Mazzalovo, 2012) Indeed, the difficulties faced by companies such as Burberry, Gucci and Chanel suggest that when a luxury brand is managed in such a way that it becomes too available through uncontrolled licensing agreements and inefficient management control , its image would be seriously damaged, which would cause it to become diluted, suffer losses and even lose its luxury status. (Kapferer, J., 2012; Moore, C.M. and Birtwistle, G., 2004) In this regard, ELIE SAAB's distribution strategy has helped preserve its exclusivity and qualitative rarity by making its lines available through a limited number of channels, including a few flagship stores, department stores, concessions and fashion shows. (Elie Saab, 2014) However, to date, ELIE SAAB's haute couture line can only be purchased in its flagship stores in France, Lebanon, while its ready-to-wear line is distributed through a limited number of boutiques in North America, Mexico, Hong Kong, Europe, Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates. (Elie Saab, 2014) Thanks to special concessions and licensing agreements, however, the brand's ready-to-wear collections can also be found in South Africa, South America and Russia. Considering that the global distribution of wealth has changed significantly over the last decade, it follows that ELIE SAAB's initial distribution strategy should be adapted to the latest socio-economic phenomena so as not to prevent it from becoming a strong brand in markets with high potential where competing luxury brands are already well established. (Daedal Research, 2013) Indeed, ELIE SAAB has a very weak presence in the Asia-Pacific region, where the number of HNWIs increased by almost 13% in 2012, reaching 3.68 million people whose total wealth amounts to approximately 12 trillion dollars. (Capgemini Lorenz Curve Analysis, 2013a) To be more precise, China is an ideal target market where ELIE SAAB would certainly benefit from the creation of a new flagship store and the implementation of a brand strategy aimed at increasing the awareness of the brand and strengthen its presence. The main reason why China was chosen as the area to focus the company's distribution strategy on is because its HNWI and GDP statistics are very promising and numerous competing luxury brands have already identified it as a high potential market. (Daedal Research, 2013; Capgemini Lorenz Curve Analysis, 2013b) Furthermore, as highlighted by Kapferer (2012), the luxury sector is still experiencing notable growth in Asia, despite the negative effects of the 2008 financial crisis, which suggests that launching a new flagship storein China, ELIE SAAB would become less vulnerable to financial crises and other potentially negative economic phenomena. Although there are various distribution channels that ELIE SAAB could use to enter the Chinese market, the launch of a company-owned flagship store combined with a suitable promotional campaign would increase brand awareness in the above-mentioned area, giving the company full control over customer service and pricing strategy without diluting the brand. Indeed, cases like Gucci and Burberry suggest that, as advantageous as they may seem, licensing agreements and concessions, mainly due to lower expenses and easier manageability, can easily lead to brand dilution and decreased sales when partners are not chosen very carefully (Moore, C.M. and Birtwistle, G., 2004) In light of these considerations, it should be noted that the current ELIE SAAB brand strategy has allowed it to maintain and strengthen its association with royalty, celebrities and luxury and that its position in the Asia-Pacific region is not strong enough to risk being perceived as a diluted brand. Therefore, the best way for the company to expand into China would be to open a new flagship store displaying the brand's couture, ready-to-wear and accessories lines, in order to increase brand awareness and ensure that consumers in the Asia-Pacific region consider it an exclusive and prestigious brand before considering more convenient distribution channels. As for China, an analysis of the country's GDP distribution across different provinces combined with more practical considerations, such as strategic positioning, wealth concentration and geographic distribution/international relevance, revealed that Beijing would be the most suitable for the new ELIE SAAB flagship stores. (The Economist, 2011; Lu, PX, 2011) As reported by MacPherson (2013), Wangfujing is a commercial area in Beijing, known for its wide range of department stores, shops and high density of luxury shops. Therefore, a flagship store in Wangfujing would increase the awareness of the ELIE SAAB brand in China, placing it on the same level as other famous luxury brands, including Chanel, which has a boutique in the same area. (Chanel, n.d.)Both interior design and architecture play a vital role in ELIE SAAB's flagship store strategy, to the point that Elie Saab has personally contributed to the design and decoration of most of its boutiques. (Elie Saab, 2012) The company's existing flagship stores share a number of common characteristics, such as simplicity, luxurious atmosphere and modern details, which should be preserved to ensure continuity and consistency. As can be seen from the images above of ELIE SAAB's flagship stores in Dubai and Paris, travertine, leather furniture, dark wood and warm lighting are also part of the company's overall approach to interior design, which should be respected when designing its new flagship store in China. Unlike most ELIE SAAB stores around the world, the new flagship store will feature not only the Lebanese designer's line of accessories and ready-to-wear, but also his haute couture creations. It would therefore be appropriate to divide the internal space into two separate sections, one for the brand's ready-to-wear and accessories line and one for high fashion, in order to create a slightly different atmosphere for the latter that can emphasize the higher value, luxury and exclusivity of Elie Saab's high fashion designs. As for the translation of the brand name, most people in China do not speak English, which means the company should have a Chinese version of the ELIE SAAB logoin its new flagship store to allow local people to understand and familiarize themselves with the brand name. (Zou, S. and Fu, H., 2011) As pointed out by Hines and Bruce (2007), marketing plays a very important role in the creation and growth of luxury fashion brands and launching flagship stores can help create brand awareness while increasing customer loyalty in a given area. By opening a new flagship store in a strategic business district in China, ELIE SAAB will position itself as a luxury brand and be able to strengthen its brand image in the Asia-Pacific region. To do this, however, the company will have to support its flagship store strategy with a series of promotional activities aimed at raising consumer awareness of the brand's expansion. First of all, three fashion shows could be organized in the new flagship store to attract the attention of consumers and make commentators aware of the brand's offering. It would be ideal if local celebrities were invited to participate to strengthen ELIE SAAB's connection with famous people and glamorous lifestyles. According to Kent and Brown (2009), another great way to promote a newly opened flagship store would be to attract the fashion press by offering free products to local fashion icons so they can be photographed leaving the store. Overall, the company should ensure that local fashion magazines and newspapers dedicate special sections complete with articles and images to the launch of ELIE SAAB's new flagship store and the fashion show that will be held to promote it. As for international promotion, the company could use the news section of its website as an economical means to inform visitors about the upcoming flagship store and to publish photos and videos of the aforementioned fashion show. Administrative expenses, salaries and other costs are among the main expenses associated with the construction of a new flagship store. In this regard, Kent and Brown (2009) pointed out that flagship stores are usually quite expensive to set up and operate, which is why most luxury brands can only afford to have a limited number of company-owned boutiques all over the world. Furthermore, the company would face a number of potential obstacles, such as cultural differences and tax barriers, which would force it to invest in relevant research and investigations. For example, most of the promotional activities needed to launch ELIE SAAB's new flagship store could not be undertaken without the knowledge and experience of one or more marketing professionals who can help the company understand and enter the Chinese market . Last but not least, the company may find it difficult to fully manage and control its Beijing-based flagship store, mainly due to geographical and administrative reasons. Considering that excellent customer service is crucial to offering people a unique and luxurious shopping experience, ELIE SAAB will want to pay particular attention to the selection and training of staff who will work at the Beijing flagship store. As Kent and Brown (2009) noted, employee availability and knowledge play a very important role in helping a company convey a certain message through its flagship stores. That is why ELIE SAAB should evaluate its current sales staff in order to identify at least two people who have been working for the company for at least two years and who have distinguished themselves by their ability to assist customers and carry out operational tasks related to the store in in line with the philosophy of the brand. The above people should then be invited to travel to Beijing to train.