CHAPTER 3: BURBERRY

Chapter 3
Read & Listen

A: Focus on READING, sharing and presentation

Reading tasks for sharing and presentation

BURBERRY – COMPANY PROFILE

1.
Group work: Burberry website1¹ **
Go to www.Burberryplc.com:
Check out the meaning of words you need in an online dictionary.

Group 1:
Select About Burberry and then click on Company History. Choose a year + photo that you find interesting. Be prepared to account for your choice here in class.
Group 2:
Select About Burberry and then click on Group overview which contains information about: Channel mix, Regional mix and Product mix. Be prepared to account for the information found here in class.
Group 3:
Select About Burberry, go to Our strategy and click on Leverage the franchise. Be prepared to account for the information found here in class.
Group 4:
Select About Burberry, go to Our strategy and click on Intensify accessories. Be prepared to account for the information found here in class.
Group 5:
Select About Burberry, go to Our strategy and click on Accelerate retail-led growth. Be prepared to account for the information found here in class.
Group 6:
Select About Burberry, go to Our strategy and click on Invest in under-penetrated markets. Be prepared to account for the information found here in class.
Group 7:
Select About Burberry, go to Our strategy and click on Pursue operational excellence. Be prepared to account for the information found here in class.
Group 8:
Go to http://www.Burberryplc.com/corporate_responsibility. Select Burberry Foundation and present your findings as to the idea behind the Foundation, its goals and the Burberry Foundation Grant.
Group 9:
Select Ethical trade and study Burberry's code of conduct. Be prepared to account for the information found here in class.
Group 10:
Select Our People. Be prepared to account for the information found here in class.

¹In October 2013 Angela Ahrendts was headhunted by Apple and Burberry named Christopher Bailey as chief executive officer to succeed her while retaining his former job as chief creative officer.

2.
Burberry versus the Chavs *
Burberry’s distinctive beige check, once associated with A-listers, became the uniform in the 1980s and 1990s of a rather different social group: the so-called Chav.
Read the article here, for example, and present your findings.
628 words

3.
In The Trenches with Burberry's Christopher Bailey **
Ahead of the opening of its new London flagship, chief creative officer1 Christopher Bailey discusses balancing tradition and innovation. Bailey’s larger vision for Burberry is to be more than just a fashion brand. He believes the company is now just as much a content generator as it is a design house, and as such is responsible to provide a context for the consumer experience. Read the article e.g. here, and present your findings.
1,333 words
¹In October 2013 Burberry named Christopher Bailey as chief executive officer to succeed Angela Ahrendts while retaining his former job as chief creative officer.

4.
Is ethical shopping headed for the mainstream? *
Ethical buying decisions will soon be made easier and consumers' demands to know the journey of the products they buy are getting louder - but will consumers' actions match their intentions? Rebecca Taylor from Responsible Trade Worldwide discusses the gaps between industry progress on sustainability and consumer buy-in.
Read the article here, for example, and present your findings.
475 words

5.
Copenhagen fashion summit: seven things we learned *
Seven lessons from Copenhagen fashion summit, April 2014 - one of the world's biggest sustainable fashion events.
Read the article here, for example, and present your findings.
856 words

6.
Cheap knockoffs and counterfeits can be hazardous to your health **
Talking about knockoff jackets with Kevin Spreekmeester, the global marketing vice president for outdoor clothing company Canada Goose, is like chatting with a detective. Soft-spoken, Spreekmeester is surprisingly calm, even when discussing illegal and distressing subjects.
Read the article e.g. here, and present your findings.
1,033 words

7.
UK launches new police unit to tackle online piracy and counterfeits *
A new police unit aimed at targeting intellectual property crime has been announced by Intellectual Property Minister, Lord Younger. The unit will be dedicated to tackling online piracy and other forms of intellectual property crime such as counterfeit goods. It will be one of the first units of its kind in the world, ensuring that the UK stays at the forefront of intellectual property enforcement.
Read the two articles, this first and this second, for example. Include a comparison with the corresponding initiative in Denmark here, and present your findings.
732 words

8.
Burberry engage consumers with acoustic music project and fashion collections *
Burberry show how a brand can engage consumers with social media content that is not directly related to their field of expertise. By running Burberry Acoustic music alongside content on the Burberry clothes collections, Burberry succeed in engaging consumers with the wider culture of the brand.
Read the article here, for example, and present your findings.
545 words

9.
We will know everything about you: retailer **
One day you'll be able to walk into a store and the sales assistant will already know you and everything about you because of social media. That is the Minority Report scenario facing consumers and retailers as businesses become more social, according to Angela Ahrendts1, chief executive of fashion retailer Burberry. Read the article here, and present your findings.
739 words
¹In October 2013 Angela Ahrendts was headhunted by Apple and Burberry named Christopher Bailey as chief executive officer to succeed her.

B: Focus on LISTENING, summarising and commentary

Listening tasks for comprehension, summaries and discussion in writing or verbally

A.
Christopher Bailey introduces Burberry Acoustic
by Burberry - 01:03
Go here, for example. Listen, and account for the reasons why Christopher Bailey introduces Burberry Acoustic and comment on the way in which he relates to us, his customers. Add your personal opinion.

B.
The story behind the fashion designer Burberry

by Huffingtonpost - 03:05
Go here, for example. Listen, and account for the main points. Add your personal opinion.

C.
Ethics and compliance: 'clean business is great business'
Alstom - 06:13
How can a company with a significant global presence ensure that its ethical code is respected and followed worldwide? Go here, for example. Listen, and answer the question asked above. Add your personal opinion.

D.
Child labour in supply chains
ILOTV - 02:25
With rapid globalization, the world is getting smaller, but supply chains are getting longer. How can businesses ensure ethical production, free from child labour and supportive of decent work for adults, in this rapidly changing environment? How can consumers react to the risk that children may have been involved in the production of the food we eat, the clothes we wear, the consumer products we use? There are no easy answers to these questions, but check out this short video for an introduction to the topic. Go here. Listen, and account for the introduction given here. Add your personal opinion.

E.
The secret lives of our clothes
by GreennovateChina - 09:38
There's a price tag that's being hidden from us every day. Not the one that tells us how much money to pay but the underlying costs of every outfit's life cycle. It may uncover the lives that our clothes led before they got to the store and you may discover your voting power as a consumer towards a fairer, healthier and more sustainable planet.
Go to this or this. Listen, and account for the secret lives of our clothes. Add your personal opinion.

F.
Ideas matter: Intellectual property
by BASCAP - 05:00
Counterfeiting and piracy is everyone's problem

BASCAP (Business Action to Stop Counterfeiting and Piracy) video with Jean-Guy Carrier, ICC (International Chamber of Commerce) Secretary General. How can companies be more innovative and successful? One important factor is effective protection of intellectual property.
Go here, for example, and select Fakes cost more. Listen, and account for Jean-Guy Carrier's pieces of advice. Add your personal opinion.

G.
Burberry wins 100 million dollar lawsuit against counterfeiters
by ModaMob - 00:55
Go to this, for example.

H.
How to deal with copycats
by Entrepreneur - 02:56
If you're first to market with a successful product, it's not unusual for others to steal your idea.
Go here, for example. Listen, and account for entrepreneur Michael Aiello's story, plus tips from Pinterest investor Brian Cohen on how to handle imitators. Add your personal opinion.

I.
Burberry is changing the 'entire value' chain of retailing with video and Facebook

Watch the video here
by BeetTV - 05:08

Erich Joachimsthaler, CEO of Vivaldi Partners Group, explains the classical model of the value chain and how Burberry's is changing the value chain completely.
Go here, for example, and account for the two versions of the value chain. Add your personal opinion.