Pitching J.Crew Maternity Apparel to Mickey Drexler

Abstract

By mid-2012, Lindsay Murphy, a sales associate from an East Coast store, had repeatedly heard women wishing that J.Crew offered maternity wear. She thought it was an interesting possibility. After all, why should a woman have to leave the brand in order to find attractive clothes that fit while she was pregnant? To evaluate her idea, Murphy would have to determine whether a maternity line would help the brand and then sell her recommendation to CEO Mickey Drexler.

Excerpt

UVA-M-0854

Rev. Mar. 11, 2014

PITCHING J.CREW MATERNITY APPAREL TO MICKEY DREXLER

Mickey Drexler, the charismatic CEO of the J.Crew Group, Inc., visited at least five J.Crew stores a week. His unexpected visits to J.Crew retail stores were part of his efforts to create a small-company atmosphere. He also used them to get fresh insights from the front lines about ways to strengthen the brand's connection with its customers and solicit new product ideas. The idea for J.Crew's recently launched and tremendously successful bridal line had originated on the front lines of store employees.

Jenna Lyons, J.Crew's president and executive creative director, had spent the last several years trying to move J.Crew away from the preppy image it was known for and elevate it to a designer brand, positioning it for the more sophisticated, upscale consumer. Wedding gowns selling for $ 3,000 certainly had helped in that effort.

J.Crew promised consumers clothing to live, work, play, and get married in—options for every stage of their lives. It was constantly on the lookout for new opportunities, having tried many that, unlike the new bridal line, did not pan out: “Crewmutts” dog apparel and accessories, the “So J.Crew” perfume line, and the J.Crew “Intimates” line had all failed. But certainly there were new markets to explore.

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Keywords: new market, purchasing behavior, brand positioning