Store and Customer Service Analysis

DNA• Haute Couture, French chic• First fashion house to launch ready-to-

wear • Slimane altered DNA by imagining Yves

as young designer• Bold, Provocative, Edgy• Art & Pop culture influence

CODESYSL Logo, Tassel, Tuxedo, Smoking Jackets,

Trouser suits, Leather Biker Jacket, Androgyny, Safari Jackets, Floral,

Embellished Silk, Sheer, Black and White

STORE CODESMinimalist, Monochrome Black and White,

Contemporary, Marble, Mirrors

Best Practices

• Door opened by a smiling doorman• Security present and attentive• Uniform professional dress• Well lit display • Numerous sales associates available• Offering of refreshments • Eye contact with customers upon entrance

Worse Practices

• Demographic profiling of customers• Inconsistent greetings from security and

sales staff• Very few clients and many SAs at the

door: slight confusion as to who to approach.

• No immediate welcoming phrase, only a nod

• Bag and coat check not always present• Consistent language barrier

First impressions: entering the store

First approach by the Sales Associate

Best Practices• Open-ended questions:

“What brings you into the store today?”

“Do you see anything that interests you?”

“What kind of bag are you looking for?”

• Nice ice breaker: SA complimented our French after we said we were not fluent

• Another sales staff politely asked in English if we would like a drink

• Waited until we stopped at a section to start the conversation

Worse Practices• “Let me know if you need any help” then

walked away before we could answer

• SA spoke in French despite us stating we don’t speak French

• SA waited until a question was asked, only to reply “yes” and step back again

Best Practices

• Expert knowledge of the brand and materials: explained that tassel on handbags was a distinctive feature, “very YSL”

• Knowledgeable on how different product categories connect to the current season

• Able to provide detailed information on the style of the collection, the mood, different materials used, how Hedi Slimane brought the classic YSL pieces (eg. tuxedo jacket) to today's modern style

• Asked us relevant questions about the gift recipient, in order to provide appropriate suggestions

Worse Practices

• The answers seemed very ‘protocol’: she had limited information

• Couldn’t completely explain the difference between the materials: said calfskin was softer than regular leather but didn’t know why

• Knew only about the “it” bag in the collection but knew very little about the other bags

→ Thanks to the SA, we all left the stores having gained more information about the brand

SA professional knowledge

Best Practices• Immediate welcome, which eased any

intimidation• Professional look: dressed in black, hair

tightly pulled back• SA quickly found another SA who spoke

English• Went to the stockroom to get the color we

wanted• Offered us to try on the bags and observe

how it looked on us in the mirror• Stayed with us throughout the shopping

experience and escorted us to the door

Worse Practices• Sharp and condescending replies:

-Client: “Where is your new collection in handbags?”-Stoic SA:“Well that depends on your budget, which color you like, and what size you like.”

• Did not leave her post behind the counter• Very reticent to open any bags, did not ask us to

try any on• Awkward silences: the SA was waiting for

questions. We had to lead her • Did not escort us to the door, yet the store was

empty

SA attitude

→ Attitude largely dependent on demographic audience:Less polite to younger clients & more attentive to the African American male adults

Best Practices

• Confident and self-assured behaviour, in line with the company DNA

• Attentive• Constantly smiling• Polite, not judgemental • Patient: allowed us to look at all the

bags before taking them back• Provided helpful feedback

Worse Practices• Talked while we kept carrying bags in

both hands: we felt restricted• Blocked our view in the mirror• Laughed at us when we asked for

catalogue, telling us to check online• Only offered her namecard to one of us

(group of 2 people)• Clear discrepancy in service: offered

champagne to one customer vs. water/coke to another

SA human skills

Best Practices

• Enhanced desire (took price out of the equation)

• Built excitement (very famous YSL tassle)• Rapport building, connected on a personal

level• Played on emotion, spoke as though we

already owned the product by making us visualise it as part of our wardrobe

• Proactive: gave us options• Objection handling• Tactile• Expert Opinion

.

Worst Practices

• Mechanical, following protocol• Rushed• No personalisation• Not interested in the person, just the sale:

“Buy it or get out” mentality with the youngest group

SA selling skills

→ In most cases, the SA increased our connection to the brand and enhanced our desire to buy

When we said we were not buying

Best practices• Remained friendly • Tried to understand the reason and adjust the

offer (offered a cheaper bag)

Worse practices• Didn’t hide her disappointment: took a silent

pause • Tried to convince to buy by bringing up the

prestige of the brand and legitimize the price of the item: discomfort

• Lost interest in us right away, ran to get her namecard signalling that the conversation was finished

When we asked for a reservation

Best practices

• SA made me feel it was a wise decision to ask for a reservation, since it was a product worth reserving

Worse practices

• Showed that she didn’t believe it was a serious reservation

• Rushed me to make up my mind fast by telling me that a reservation only last a few days

• The service must be different with a regular customer

Staff reactions

Best Practices

• Offered to walk us out

• Sincere “Have a nice day”

• Insisted on the fact that I would be welcomed back to the store any time

• Showed some interest for a bracelet I was wearing and complimented on it

• The doorman was very nice, good eye contact

Worse Practices

• Made me wait when a more “regular” client came in

• Her farewell implied that she wasn’t expecting me to come back for my reservation

• I saw the SA acting in a better manner with a higher-buying potential client: frustration

Last impressions

APPENDICES

From Yves Saint Laurent

to Saint Laurent• Hedi Slimane eliminated some best-selling items from previous

collections and the animal prints that were signature Yves Saint Laurent pieces.

• Parisian refinement and sophistication was replaced with Los Angeles rock ‘n’ roll

• Approachable and wearable: Basic ‘everyday’ items such as tailored jackets, bikers, bombers, denims

• Classic “investment pieces” that don’t go out of style and are competitively priced

• Slimane opened up the brand to a younger clientele. The brand targets self-assured and strong-minded individuals.

Musical MusesCollaborations with musicians since 1971. Association with rock stars such as Marilyn Manson, Courtney Love, and Kim Gordon.

Store and Merchandising

When we asked a SA which one was “the Yves Saint Laurent colour”, she replied: the blue Majorelle, and explained to us the history behind it (see next slide).

Yves Henri Donat Mathieu Saint Laurent was born in Oran, Algeria in August 1936. Interested in visiting more of the Maghreb, he discovered Marrakesh with Pierre Bergé in the 1960s, when it was still secret to the French luxury industry.

They were appealed by the vibrancy of the colours (namely the Majorelle blue), the sophistication of the design, and the refinement of the Morroccan architecture.

Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé acquired the Jardin Majorelle (top picture) in 1980 to prevent it being turned into a hotel. Together, they created the only Berber museum in the world, inside Les Jardin Majorelle.

- Les Jardin Majorelle became a popular tourist attraction and had an influence on contemporary garden design, most notably for its key color: the blue of workmen's overalls

Yves Saint Laurent’s ashes rest in Marrakesh. There is a monument for him in the Majorelle gardens (bottom picture).

ReferencesBiography.com, Yves Saint Laurent Biography

http://www.biography.com/people/yves-saint-laurent-9469669#later-yearsBusiness of Fashion (2012) “Making Sense of the YSL Retrobranding”

http://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/intelligence/the-secret-of-saint-laurents-success-saint-laurent-hedi-slimane

Cartner-Morley, J. (2012) “Yves Saint Laurent to be renamed by creative director Hedi Slimane”, The Guardian, June 21http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2012/jun/21/yves-saint-laurent-renamed

Cole, S. (2015) “Saint Laurent, Yves (1936-2008)”, Encyclopediahttp://www.glbtq.com

Mellery-Pratt, R. (2015) “The Secret of Saint Laurent’s Success”, Business of Fashion, March 5http://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/intelligence/the-secret-of-saint-laurents-success-saint-laurent-hedi-slimane

Porter, L (2014) “YSL: Yves Saint Laurent’s Marrakesh”, The Telegraph, March 21http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/africa/morocco/marrakech/articles/YSL-film-Yves-Saint-Laurents-Marrakesh/

Shean, E. (2012) “Saint Laurent sparks consumer curiosity with punk rock campaign”, Luxury Daily, April 5 http://www.luxurydaily.com/saint-laurent-sparks-consumer-curiosity-with-punk-rock-music-campaign/ StyleFrizz (2012) “Saint Laurent Paris. New logo, same Helvetica Font”, July 25 http://stylefrizz.com/201207/saint-laurent-paris-new-logo-old-helvetica-font/YSL Company website, http://www.ysl.com/corporate/fr/saint-laurent-store-locator/