The first company I researched was Zara. The Zara website is easy to navigate and has great visuals of their clothing. They have stores in the United States but not in Minnesota. Their clothes are fashionable and trendy and very reasonably priced. They have a great reputation from word of mouth. I have seen a lot of Zara's clothing in the press and media. Recently Kate Middleton wore a dress from Zara and I am sure that helped drive sales for the brand. I have heard of the brand on the E! network and the Style Network. The brand is talked about in blogs and business articles such as Business Week. http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_36/b3999063.htm
The looks have also been seen in Elle. http://www.pressbook.com/Marc-Kayne/book/24136/fashion_summer_2011/12
The company uses social networking such as Facebook,http://www.facebook.com/Zara
Twitter,http://twitter.rs/ZARA_US
and YouTube http://www.youtube.com/user/zara
With Zara being a leader in the fashion industry in Europe, They now are available in the United States and I know that the brand will only drive large numbers in sales over time. If you want quality fast fashion, Zara is the place to shop! I think they are missing opportunities by not having at least one store in all states, but I am sure the company will continue to grow in time.
The second company I researched was Forever 21. This fast fashion retailer has a lot of variety with a cheap price tag. The clothing is kind of cheap I think, and doesn't last long. I still shop there if I need something for a few uses. Their website has flash visuals and easy to navigate. You can purchase online or in stores. They have stores all around the world including here in Minnesota. Their stores can be too cluttered and busy at times. Some things are not always organized. It always takes me a while to shop through the store. If they were more organized I think more people would like to take the time to shop there. They do market themselves on social networking sites as well such as Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/Forever21, Twitter,http://twitter.com/forever21 and Youtube http://www.youtube.com/user/Forever21Inc.
They have also been featured in Business Week, http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/11_05/b4213090559511.htm.
They are featured on many fashion blogs and have been in a lot of fashion magazines. They are well known around the world for their clothing and accessories at very affordable prices.
Forever 21 did come out with a plus-sized line to add, and there was an article I read that was not the best marketing and Kim Kardashian responded! http://kimkardashian.celebuzz.com/2009/04/16/dear_us_weekly_i_love_forever/
Also part of the Kardashian clan, the two youngest daughters Kendall and kylie, modeled for the brand and even promoted. This is good marketing for the company since they were just named the most fashionable young stars.http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-style/news/kendall-kylie-short-shorts-20111811
I think Forever 21 has great brand awareness and they do market themselves pretty well.
The third company I researched was H&M. This is also a fast fashion retailer that has a reasonable price tag. They have a website but do not allow you to shop and purchase which I think has a negative affect on the company. http://www.hm.com/entrance.ahtml?orguri=/ I would purchase a lot more from them if I could online shop because they don't offer everything on the website, in the stores here in Minnesota. They also have stores all over the world. They do have better quality and are more organized in the stores. H&M is worn on a lot of celebrities and I hear about them in media and on television a lot. They are also featured in fashion magazines for their great fashion pieces for less!
They market on social networks as well, such as Facebook http://www.facebook.com/hm, Twitter http://twitter.com/HM and Youtube http://www.youtube.com/hm. They also started having commercials on television but are not that eye catching.
H&M also collaborates with big name designers in the fashion world. This is great publicity and marketing for the brand and shows they are a leader in the fashion industry. They have collaborated with Versace, Lanvin, Roberto Cavalli, and Karl Lagerfeld, to name a few. These are designs for the company at a reasonable price.
I think that H&M has a great reputation and have good quality merchandise. I think that they should provide customers to purchase online as well as in stores.
The fourth company I researched was Express. Express has great trendy fashions but can be priced higher than the previous brands. They have good quality clothing and they are known for their great denim and sexy trendy items http://www.express.com/home.jsp. Their website is visually appealing and you are able to purchase on line from the website. They also offer a charge card and send out catalogs in the mail with great coupons to use. This is something the other companies do not offer and I think that it is good for the customer to have these options. Express is located all over and they have a lot of stores in Minnesota. I found that they have a Facebook page,http://www.facebook.com/express?sk=app_6009294086 but I did not find them to have a twitter page. I think they are missing an opportunity here to update the brand to followers. They do have a Youtube channel as well http://www.youtube.com/user/express.
They also market by having commercials on Television. Their commercials are always high fashion and fun to watch. I think this is great for the brand. Express has great brand awareness but think they could market more in the media and entertainment industry.
The last company I researched was Arden B. I frequent this store as well and the quality is good for the price. They are priced a little higher as well. They have a website that is informative and easy to navigate and shop and purchase as well. http://www.ardenb.com/home.jsp
They use social networking site just like the previous companies. They are on Twitter http://twitter.com/ardenb, Facebook http://www.facebook.com/ardenb and Youtube http://www.youtube.com/user/ardenB.
They do not offer catalogs or commercials. I also do not see much of their brand in media or fashion magazines. I like the store set up and they are organized and fit for their amount of merchandise. They have a few locations in ?Minnesota as well as other states. They are not international. I think if they offered stores around the world and advertised more, they would get more brand awareness.
These stores all offer fast fashion, trendy affordable merchandise. Some are cheaper than others in cost and quality.
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