Interview Transcript

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Yes, a $650 stock is pretty tough.

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That was something I consistently heard. The 30 somethings, younger moms or even early 40s, still want to wear Dior, Chanel and Valentino, and brands with more color, prints and a little more sex appeal. But there is a solid customer base in the 50 plus demographic, committed to purchasing their whole wardrobe for the year, for their multiple homes. They would pick one sweater in five colors and send it to all their different houses. There is quality over quantity when it comes to their customer base, for sure.

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It’s no-logo ultra luxury. I know there is a lot of great, intangible branding around the products; the whole humanistic capitalism, Brunello’s personal philosophy on how he runs the business, his relationship with labor and dignity across everything that the brand touches. He wants to bring a fair working relationship, fair economic split, and dignity to everyone in all roles. Is that something that resonates with the customer base, the confidence that people aren’t getting exploited when they buy Brunello?

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I definitely think it had a positive impact on the customers’ experience with the brand. It is part of the romance of the story and creates that emotional connection. The story and concept of what Brunello has created in the headquarters of Solomeo create a desire to want to see it themselves. Many of his clients and customers interested in the area go to see it, and then they're die-hard fans. They see it is beautiful and feel so great about investing in a company treating people the way he does.

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Why is Brunello specifically sensitive about fragrance?

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Knowing what I know about Brunello, and he’s chairman of the company now, I don't know how much he’s involved day-to-day, as he has CEOs in place. I would have expected more time between the two, because they’re both licensing agreements. One of the CEOs came from Luxottica and has a wealth of knowledge of the licensing world. But from a messaging and marketing perspective, you know they’re very quiet with those sorts of things. The company often doesn't have a ton of news, so it seemed close in time in terms of what I was used to. When it came to any big announcements, products, moments and milestones, things moved slowly. I don't know how things have internally changed. Maybe they’re moving quicker, because they have a more youthful team excited about generating these new projects. I think the fragrance is exclusively available in a few stores.

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