The comptoir des Cotonniers extends its marketing concept on the web April 29, 2007

The feminin ready-to-wear brand Comptoir des Cotonniers, created in 1995 is famous for its advertising campaign since 1997. Like a lot of other companies belonging to the fashion universe, The Comptoir des Cotonniers doesn’t sell only a product but above all a universe, which has taken more and more place in the speech of the brand. In order to let the consumers in this universe, the Comptoir des Cotonniers considers Internet like an incontrovertible resource for the image construction and customer’s relationship.

The web site of Comptoir des Cotonniers launched eighteen months ago in the purpose to utilize the theme Mother-daughter relationships. Its name is meresetfilles.com even if the address comptoirdescotonniers.com performs too.

The website is a privileged resource for dialog between brand and its customers. The forum, opened for several weeks is a place to debate about the mother-daughter problematic. A specific address is dedicated to questions concerning the brand in order to the product doesn’t enter in discussions. In order to take part to the forum, users have to subscribe to the Comptoir des Cotonniers Club, which would contain for the moment 500 members.

In addition to the collections catalog, the website suggests updates regularly. Internet represents around 10% of the annual budget of the Comptoir des Cotonniers communication  (around € 2 millions per year).

Many projects concerning Internet are studying : a chat, new games, games on line, an animated comic strip containing adventures of the website mascot and maybe the sell on line of accessories and exclusive collections.

Results of my survey about the brand April 19, 2007

I had realized a survey about the brand Comptoir des Cotonniers and its ad campaign. For that, I used Survey Monkey on Internet and my survey was composed of ten questions: five questions about the brand and five questions about the ad campaign. Twenty four persons have answered to my survey. There were only women because Comptoir des Cotonniers sales only female clothes.

§  The first part concerns the brand in general:All respondents knows the brand Comptoir des Cotonniers.54.2% of respondents like it quite good, 41.7% like it very much and 4.2% like it just a little bit. So we can say that this brand is famous and appreciated by women aged between 16 and 60 years old.66.7% buy clothes from this brand. The frequency changes according to people but the majority buys more than 9 clothes per year. Even if the clothes of the brand are a little expensive, women buy and keep on buying.

Concerning people who don’t buy clothes from this brand, they find products are too expensive. Nobody don’t buy because of the style. Comptoir des Cotonniers products are fashionable.

§  The second part was about the ad campaign:A majority (91%) knows the advertising campaign of Comptoir des Cotonniers and 87% appreciates it, 13% have no idea about this ad campaign. This brand doesn’t use models in order to do promote its products; it uses “real” people, who are very natural. And I think people appreciate that particularly in this ad campaign.They appreciate it and they choose only positive adjectives in order to describe the ad: pleasant, beautiful, original, friendly, attractive.Concerning the idea of calling mothers and daughters, they find it very original for 43.5% of the respondent, quite good for 35% of the respondent and researched for 22% of the respondent.

An accelerated production process to chock the last trend April 8, 2007

The family organization of the Comptoir des Cotonniers has been an efficiency security since the beginning. But risk is the following thing: “like all family firms, which grow, the risk is not to succeed in crossing the cape” notably to succeed the internationalization. In order to answer to this challenge the brand engaged for four years a process of intern reorganization destined to adapt its mechanism to its ambitions.
Firstly in realizing informatics and logistic investments, which allow 240 European shops to be delivered in day +1 every day and to be restocked automatically and in improving the process of clothes creation too. Faster than before, it allows to create very late in the year. It is in fact the key of the current success of this brand.

“Mères et filles” : a new collection of short stories March 29, 2007

The brand has just published by the redact Cherche Midi its second collection of short stories called “Mères et filles”  in partnership with the magazine Elle.

After the success of the first collection published in 2004, the brand has launched a new collection; whish is enriched by graphical creations. This new collection comprises fourteen short stories selectionned by a panel of writers, journalists and publishers among more than 2000 answers received at the end of the examination initiated by Comptoir des Cotonniers. In this new edition stories are amusing, affecting or sharp in a liberty of  voice and style about this strong and singular link which units mothers and daughters.

Answer to a survey March 22, 2007

You can answer to this survey about Comptoir des Cotonniers on the right of the screen. It targets women and it is very short. Results will be put on the blog in a couple of week, so you will be able to read them if you are interested in.

Casting March 16, 2007

The casting for Comptoir des Cotonniers is going to begin next saturday in Paris. You can find the different places and dates on the Comptoir des Cotonniers website.

There are a lot of date in several countries, so you can go to this different meetings with your mother or your daughters.

You will be able to do a fashion show and photo sessions.

There is none condition of age or size, every mothers and their daughter can try.

An original idea March 13, 2007

The brand use mothers and their daughters to do advertising and the last season, that is to say winter 2006, the Comptoir des Cotonniers aked them certain songs. Thus mothers and daughters sing together on this CD.

That is the jacket of the CD:            

The brand gave this CD to the close customers and certain specialized supermarkets sold it too.

Final industrial costs perfectly controlled February 26, 2007

In addition to a strong relation with customers, another reason explains the success of the brand: all of the production processes are very well thought. 

Firstly a production team develops the product until its finalization.

Then a technical card is realized, which details with precision the needed material quantity and the needed time for the fabrication. The Comptoir des Cotonniers realises itself its tissu purchase, so it recovers 20 % of margin, which is taken from usuallly. But it can send the exact tissu quantity, which it needs.

Finally a quality controller is present in the plant in order to make certain that all are made without wastefullness. The final industrial price is purely controlled.As a consequence of its great rentability comfortable marginsplace the brand amoung the best of the sector.

According to Frédéric Biousse  “H&M and Zara have great operational margins. The first thanks to huge volume and the second thanks to a basic position: very classical or very fashion.” The Comptoir des Cotonniers has a position between the very simple and the very fashion: “It is not for nothing that we haven’t really basic tee shirt in our shops, we couldn’t suggest them for reasonnable prices. We are the best for the cochineal union and we know find the “plus” which gives  a spirit to a simple clothes.This positionning, more top of range than H&M and Zara satisfies the women, who have money ( in a medium range) and the women who have not a lot of money (in the top of the range) ”.

 

A mother and her daughter for Comptoir des Cotonniers February 21, 2007

A concept based on a strong link with customers February 21, 2007

The real rise of the brand was two years after its launching in 1997 whereas it had only two shops : one in Toulouse and one in Paris. The start of it story is the observation of mothers and daughters, when they do shopping together.Since that, the brand has founded all of its communication on the mother-girl relationships. Exit  the chilling look mannequins and place to the ”real people” in orde rto represent the brand. Its purpose is each one has to find her hapiness in the shop.

   An exemple of a Comptoir de Cotonniers shop

 The Comptoir des Cotonniers had choosen small shops in the street, in the center of town. This kind of shop is realised for a top of range customer, who don’t go to the shopping center.This choice narrows again links between the brand and customers.In addition to this, these small shops enable a great profitability per square meter.