WWD Nautica Milestone at 30

MODEL: THIJS M AT FUSION; STYLING BY ALEX BADIA
WWDMilestones
SECTION II
NAUTICA
AT 30
The company built on an
affinity for a rugged,
seafaring life has evolved
into a full lifestyle collection
with product from tailored
clothing and women’s wear
to accessories and home
goods — but has never lost
its love of the water.
PHOTO BY ELI SCHMIDT
Nylon jacket,
polyester polo
shirt and cotton
and nylon pants.
KAREN MURRAY AT THE HELM ■ THE LICENSING JUGGERNAUT
■
DAVID CHU’S NEXT CHAPTER
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Captain’s
Log
David Chu in 1987.
Swimwear,
1998.
A look at Nautica’s
three-decade voyage.
1984: Nautica hits $2.5 million
in sales.
■ State-O-Maine purchases the
Nautica brand for $500,000.
1991: Brand expands into men’s
sleepwear and loungewear.
1993: State-O-Maine is renamed
Nautica Enterprises.
1994: Eyewear is introduced.
1996: Men’s jeans, Nautica
Competition and Nautica Kids
make their debut.
■ Nautica Voyage, a men’s
fragrance, is introduced.
1997: Women’s swimwear and men’s
tailored clothing are launched.
1998: Nautica expands into home.
1999: Women’s sleepwear and
Latitude/Longitude fragrance
are introduced.
2000: Women’s jeans are added.
2001: The company
opens a flagship
in Rockefeller
Center in
New York.
2002: Men’s
underwear is
launched.
2003: VF Corp.
purchases
Nautica for
$600 million.
■ Chris Heyn is
named president of
Nautica Sportswear.
2004: Chu exits
Nautica. Rockefeller
Center store closes.
2005: Infant and juvenile
bedding is introduced.
■ Navigate Life campaign
launches; 20th store in
Italy and 150th store in
China open.
2006: Women’s
sportswear and Voyage
fragrance are added.
2007: Karen Murray
is named president
of Nautica.
■ My Voyage fragrance
is introduced.
A beach look from
summer 2001.
2011: Pure Nautica
Discovery fragrance
is added.
■ The brand
sponsors the
Prudential Center
in Newark.
■ The Keys
furniture collection
is added.
2008: E-commerce site
is launched; luggage
is added.
2009: Oceans fragrance
launches.
■ Outdoor furniture
is added and indoor
furniture is relaunched.
■ Men’s and children’s
footwear and women’s
outerwear are added.
■ Nautica becomes the
largest corporate sponsor
of Oceana. Advertising is
brought in-house.
2010: Pure Nautica
fragrance launches.
■ An interactive blog called
Nautica360 and social media
platform make their debut.
■ The company launches
Ocean to Ocean
marketing campaign.
A look from 1993.
1993 PHOTO BY ROBERT MITRA; 2000 BY DAVID TURNER
PHOTO BY NICK MACHALABA
1983: David Chu launches Nautica
with six pieces of men’s outerwear.
The Rockefeller
Center store, 2001.
2012: Give Change
to Make Change
ad campaign is
launched.
■ Brand launches
in South Korea
and signs licensing
deal for India.
■ Nautica becomes
a sponsor of
Charity: Water.
■ Aqua Rush men’s
fragrance launches
with Coty.
Women’s
jeans,
2000.
2013: Nautica
marks 30 years in
business with a
special anniversary
collection.
SOURCE: NAUTICA AND WWD ARCHIVES
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WWD MILESTONES
Guiding the Growth
With a focus on performance, international
expansion and the relaunch of a women’s
collection, Nautica chief Karen Murray is
firmly at the helm. By David Lipke
NAUTICA IS MARKING 30
years on the oftentimes choppy seas of retail — and the
business is in ship-shape condition today, with sales on the
upswing and ambitious initiatives bolstering the brand.
The company, a unit of
mammoth VF Corp., continues
to expand its global footprint
with international partners
and ramp up its e-commerce
goals, and is relaunching a
wholesale women’s sportswear
business this season as well as
plotting a return to full-price
freestanding retail in the U.S.
The multiprong growth
plan comes against the backdrop of a yearlong marketing
campaign that will celebrate
Nautica’s three-decade anniversary, which the company
is heralding as “30 Years on
the Water.” The achievement
will be touted in everything
from advertising and window
displays to shopping bags and
Nautica product itself that
bears special markings on labels and hangtags with the rubric “Since 1983.”
“It’s a true testament to
the strength and relevance
of the brand. Nautica is internationally recognized and
worn — and it also incorpo-
Today, Nautica rings up $1.5
billion in annual retail sales
in 75 countries, including all
licensed categories. According
to VF estimates, Nautica is
the third-largest men’s sportswear collection brand in U.S.
department stores.
“It’s a wonderful milestone for the brand. What
it speaks to is that it stands
the test of time,” said Karen
Murray, president of VF’s
sportswear coalition and the
executive with direct oversight of Nautica. “At the end
of the day, it says a lot about
this type of product and look.
Whether you call it nautical or
red-white-and-blue, this clean,
classic, colorful and bold look
really resonates with men.”
For the past four years,
Nautica has posted compound annual growth of about
6 percent a year, mostly from
the men’s sportswear business, according to Murray.
“We’re planning more accelerated growth for 2013. Our
outlet business is really gaining momentum, as well as ecommerce. Overseas, growth
in international territories is
being driven by China, Latin
America and Israel in the
Middle East,” she added.
··
We’re planning more accelerated
growth for 2013. Our outlet
business is really gaining
momentum, as well as e-commerce.
··
Nautica will crown its anniversary publicly on Friday
with a big-budget runway
show at Lincoln Center during
New York Fashion Week.
“We usually do a smallerscale presentation. This is a
bit bigger and more of a celebration. It’s been five years
since we did a runway show,”
said Murray. “We’ve had great
momentum with the brand for
the past three to five years.
Every year gets better. We are
proud of what we achieved.
That will come across loud
and clear when anyone looks
at the runway.”
According to VF’s most recent 10-Q filing, operating margin in the sportswear coalition
improved to 10.3 percent in
the first nine fiscal months of
2012, up from 9.7 percent, on
the strength of a greater percentage of revenue from higher-margin direct-to-consumer
sales and a declining percent-
age of sales from lower-margin
distressed product.
“The charge when I came
in was to really make sure
that this core men’s product
line was reestablished,” said
Murray, who joined VF Corp.
as president of the Nautica
business in 2007 and was
promoted to president of the
sportswear coalition in 2008.
“I would say each year it’s
improved. We’re at the point
right now where for the past
two to three years, we are putting on nice sales increases
PHOTO BY KYLE ERICKSEN
— KAREN MURRAY
rates the latest design technologies while still staying
true to its roots and maritime heritage. That’s what
consumers responded to 30
years ago, and still do today,”
said Eric Wiseman, chairman
and chief executive officer of
Greensboro, N.C.-based VF
Corp. “What began as a collection of outerwear 30 years ago
has become a leading global
lifestyle brand representing
the finest in men’s, women’s
and kids’ apparel and accessories, as well as a complete
home collection. From eyewear to swimwear, home to
watches, today Nautica has
58 licensed categories, all of
which reflect the brand’s commitment to quality, integrity
and service.”
VF Corp. acquired Nautica
Enterprises Inc. in 2003 for
$600 million, establishing it as
the anchor of a newly established sportswear coalition.
and we are more profitable.
Our department store business
is very strong and our global
business is very strong. Our
business online has traction
now and is growing at 50 percent gains each year. The reason that it’s got such momentum is that we have been very
consistent and offer strong
price-to-value on all our products. That’s key.”
Nautica’s key competitors
in department stores are Polo
by Ralph Lauren and Tommy
Hilfiger, with the trio usually
grouped together stylistically
as the traditional “red-whiteand-blue” brands.
“If you look at collection
floors in the U.S., we are always surrounded by Tommy
and Polo. The other brands
are more updated or contemporary, such Calvin Klein,
Kenneth Cole and Perry Ellis.
They focus on rope-taupe-andbeige and grays and blacks,”
explained Murray. “We all
share a space, but our lane is
with the classic brands.”
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Guiding the Growth
{Continued from page 4}
Nautica offers a value proposition
compared to Polo, with prices across
the board that are 20 to 25 percent
lower than the Ralph Lauren brand.
Pricing is on par with Tommy Hilfiger
in many product categories.
“Polo has always been the premium
position. We look at core categories
and we try to get the sharpest price we
can. We have a pair of jeans, a woven
and a knit shirt, each for $50, and we
have a sweater program at $45 yearround. Of course, we also have elevated product that sits above that.
But it’s about strong product,
quality made, at a strong price
value,” said Murray.
To differentiate itself further
from its competitors, Nautica has
embraced a performance stance
on many styles, incorporating
wicking properties and extradurable fabrics to its designs.
“We’ve added those characteristics in core product like pants
and woven shirts. They are wrinkle-resistant, they wick moisture,
travel easily and are comfortable.
We do this in wovens and knits,
our performance fleece and in
our outerwear. We call out all
these additional benefits, and
have been able to differentiate
ourselves from the pack and find
a ‘white space’ on the men’s collection floor,” said Murray.
Last year, Nautica made a
big change to its knit polo shirt
— which it calls a deck shirt —
switching from an all-cotton fabric to a performance fabric that is
60 percent cotton and 40 percent
polyester. It was a big gamble,
as the short-sleeve knit category
represents almost 30 percent of
all Nautica sales. The new shirt
looks and feels like cotton but has
the performance attributes of a
synthetic, such as moisture wicking, wrinkle resistance and holding up to washing better.
“It was a big leap for us, but
it worked. It’s been a home run,”
said Murray. “Continuing to deliver on the performance platform is
key. It differentiates the line, and
we know the customer really values these performance features.”
Knits, woven pants, fleece,
swim and denim have been top
category performers for Nautica
in recent seasons. Outerwear, an
important category historically
for the brand, has been more
difficult, due to macro weather
trends. Consumers are increasingly choosing lighter-weight
alternatives to heavy coats,
said Murray.
“Outerwear is a category that seems
to shrink a little bit every year, not just
for us but the entire marketplace, due
to global warming. That is a category
I wish were stronger,” she observed.
“Other businesses are infringing on
that and taking market share, like knit
active or performance fleece or sweaters or blazers or completer pieces. All
of those items are being worn as outerwear. The outerwear season is effectively November and December and
after Christmas those items are half
the price, so it’s not a money-making
proposition for anyone at this point.
It’s a tough business.”
In the U.S., Nautica is wholesaled
in about 1,500 department store shops
with partners including Macy’s, Lord
& Taylor, Dillard’s, Bon-Ton, Belk,
Boscov’s, Stage Stores and Peebles. In
Asia, the brand is sold at 397 points of
sale; in Latin America, 302; in Europe,
54; in India and the Middle East, five,
and in Canada and Australia, 153.
Macy’s is Nautica’s single largest
wholesale partner and has carried the
brand since its first season 30 years
ago, when it was founded by designer
David Chu. The collection is versatile
enough to sell in smaller as well as
larger Macy’s doors around the country, said Jeff Gennette, chief merchandising officer for the retailer.
business with. She is really rooted in
great product and she understands the
sell-in as well as the sell-through.”
The Nautica customer at Macy’s
tends to skew older, with more than 50
percent of sales to consumers ages 40 to
59. The customer base is multi-cultural, with brand appeal among AfricanAmericans, Hispanics and AsianAmericans, Gennette pointed out.
Outside of wholesale, Nautica operates 87 outlet stores in the U.S., with
that number expected to remain relatively stable in the near future.
“We don’t really have plans to grow
the outlet business in the U.S.,” said
Murray. “If there’s an opportunity here
and there in a premium center, we’ll
look into it. We want to grow the busi-
“It’s got very strong core items that
are unique to the Nautica brand that
work for smaller doors but it also has
enough fashion and breadth to work
in larger flagships. It’s a line that
works in many doors in all parts of the
country. It used to be mostly Eastern
Seaboard, but now it’s strong all over,
including the West Coast,” he said.
Gennette recalled that the brand
suffered somewhat years back when it
became too focused on key items and
thus too commodity oriented.
“Under Karen’s leadership, the
brand has gone back to its roots and
its reason for being,” he explained. “I
think the line is looking very fresh and
relevant. We just finished a strong year
together. I think Karen is one of the
smartest leaders of the brands that I do
ness overall but not necessarily open
many more stores.”
The company is planning to go into
full-price retail, according to an internal brand overview, but specific details
are unavailable at this point.
“I would tell you that we are constantly exploring the opportunity domestically and we’ll have much more
to share with you later this year,”
explained Murray, noting that she
believes full-price retail would benefit the brand. “We are a company that
does things methodically, and we want
to make sure we’re doing it right. We
are doing our due diligence, and we’ll
be ready to talk about full-price retail
in another quarter or two.”
Nautica previously operated a
14,000-square-foot flagship store at 50
Rockefeller Plaza, which it opened
with much fanfare in April 2001 but
shuttered in August 2004, following its
acquisition by VF. The store was originally expected to ring up sales of $10
million to $12 million in its first year,
Nautica’s 30th anniversary campaign.
but just six months after its debut,
Nautica was already reporting fullprice selling below expectations.
About 29 percent of total Nautica
sales are from international markets,
with that number growing from 20 percent four years ago.
“I think we should keep growing the
international part. The more we can
grow overseas the better it is. I would
have no problem if it was 50/50,” said
Murray. “But before we embark on
new territories and spaces, we do consumer insight work. Right now we are
doing consumer segmentation to help
us guide those decisions on which markets to enter.”
China, Latin America and the
Middle East are Nautica’s biggest markets around the world, in that order.
The company recently entered Russia,
Turkey, Brazil and South Korea for
the first time. In South Korea, the
brand has staked out a more premium positioning with local partner
Amanex, with a focus on technical
performance wear.
“It’s more elevated performance
product than what is in the U.S. They
have some of the sportswear from the
U.S. but the high-end performance
pieces that are $500 and $600 is exclusive to Korea now,” Murray pointed
out. “None of the product is in the U.S.,
but there is a conversation about us
reverse-selling it here. I think some of
these items would do very well online.”
Overseas, there are 62 freestanding
Nautica stores in Greater China, 38 in
the Middle East, 45 in Southeast Asia,
44 in Mexico and Latin America, 11 in
South Korea, two in Australia and two
in Europe. The stores are operated by
Nautica’s network of 21 international
license partners. Wholesale distribution internationally is in about 1,600
department and specialty stores.
In license categories, Nautica has 19
licensees in 58 categories, including:
Coty for fragrances;
ES Originals for footwear; Essex for umbrellas; Fishman and
Tobin for children’s
apparel; Fownes for
cold-weather gear;
Levy Group for men’s
tailored clothing and
topcoats, men’s mainfloor outerwear and
women’s topcoats; Raj
for women’s swimwear; Marchon for
eyewear; PVH for
neckwear; Randa for
luggage and backpacks; Royce for hosiery; S. Cohen for tailored clothing
in Canada; Li & Fung for dress shirts;
Swank for belts and small leather
goods; Timex for watches; Crown
Crafts for infant and juvenile bedding;
Lifetime Brands for tabletop; Louisville
for utility bedding; and Revman for
fashion bedding and bath. (For more on
licensing, see pages 28-30.)
Annual wholesale sales from all
Nautica licensees were approximately
$500 million in 2012.
This year, Nautica is relaunching
its e-commerce site with a focus on a
streamlined shopping experience and
richer brand storytelling. The company
has set a goal of generating 10 percent
of all sales via e-commerce within the
next three years. Asked where that figure stood today, Murray responded that
it’s “not where we want it to be.”
The company first launched its e-commerce business at nautica.com in 2008
with a full assortment of men’s, women’s
and children’s apparel and accessories.
{Continued on page 8}
Celebrating 30 years
o n t h e W AT E R
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Guiding the Growth
{Continued from page 6}
Growth is being driven in China and
Latin America. Here, a Beijing store
and, right, a Panama location.
tives, see page 34.)
“One of the brand’s greatest
strengths is providing a consistent
image of who the Nautica consumer
is, representing their deep connection
with the water,” said Wiseman. “The
brand has really solidified its position
around being a brand for those who
live their lives on or near the water,
and a big part of that connection with
consumers has been forged through our
Ocean2Ocean campaign.”
That campaign launched in 2010,
with storytelling that found inspiration from the people and places along
America’s coastlines. “Design and marketing teams traveled together — lit-
··
Nautica conducted a consumer intercept test to evaluate the performance
of the shoppable airport billboards,
learning that while consumers were
familiar with QR codes, they did not
like using them. It turned out the billboards did little to drive actual sales,
but were highly successful at driving
brand awareness and equity.
“This was something we would not
have been able to determine from sales
data alone,” said Murray.
Other recent research included a
listening lab to help guide the redesign
of the e-commerce site. This revealed
that consumers were surprised at the
breadth of offerings and competitive
prices on the site. Another shop-along
study found that men particularly like
mannequins as part of their shopping
experience to help them easily figure
[Nautica] incorporates the latest design
technologies while still staying true to its
roots and maritime heritage.
— ERIC WISEMAN, VF CORP.
PHOTO FROM WWD ARCHIVE
In another relaunch, Nautica is trying its hand at women’s sportswear
again, following two earlier failed attempts. The company already offers
some women’s sportswear within its
own outlet stores and via international
license partners in overseas markets.
However, the brand has had difficulty
gaining traction in the U.S. wholesale
channel in the category.
“It’s a bit of a sore spot as it was
launched twice unsuccessfully before,” said Murray. “I think we weren’t
priced competitively and the line was
the wrong expression of the brand for
the female audience — it was boxy
and men’s wear-oriented. Today, we
are using fluid fabrics that drape like
silks and Modals. It’s a big change.
Our offering is very feminine. It’s
quite sexy and fitted.”
This latest incarnation of women’s
sportswear is launching this month
at Belk, Dillard’s and Lord & Taylor,
with additional stores to come. “It’s
product that was available overseas,
but we are expanding it for the U.S.
market and making it more extensive,” said Murray. “It’s important for
any successful global brand to have a
dual-gender presence.”
The in-house sportswear will join
an existing in-house women’s sleepwear business and licensed women’s
outerwear and swimwear. An advertising campaign launches this month to
trumpet the reintroduction of Nautica
women’s collection sportswear to U.S.
department stores.
“We still have work to do to realize
the potential in women’s sportswear,”
said Wiseman. “We’re moving cautiously but deliberately here, but I’m really
encouraged by the progress we’re making and the success we’re seeing.”
While nascent, Nautica women’s
sportswear could eventually outsell
the men’s business. “At the end of the
day, a lot more women’s apparel is sold
than men’s in department stores, so I
can’t see why that wouldn’t be true for
Nautica,” said Murray.
The men’s focus of the brand up
until now has stemmed from its roots
in outdoor and sports, particularly
with connections to the sea. To that
end, the company today is the title
sponsor of two high-profile triathlons
— the Nautica Malibu Triathlon and
the Nautica South Beach Triathlon.
Since 2009, Nautica has also been
the largest single sponsor of Oceana,
the ocean conservation organization.
In 2012, Nautica became a sponsor
of Charity:Water, which raises funds
to bring clean drinking water to developing countries and communities.
(For more on philanthropic initia-
well as the North American business
of Kipling, with the latter comprising
about one-fifth of the group’s revenues.
“Eric Wiseman has given me a very
long leash, but at the end of the day, it’s a
financially driven company and we have
checks and balances to make sure that
I’m doing the right thing,” said Murray.
“[We utilize VF’s] corporate resources in
the areas of systems and strategy. There
is a consumer insights team there, headed by Stephen Dull, that helps me make
more informed decisions.”
Brands within VF are encouraged
to share best practices and innovations
with each other.
“We share all the time. I am welcome to fly out and sit in the fabric department of The North Face or fly up to
Timberland and talk about strategy. VF
has a huge denim capability, and I can
erally from ocean to ocean — finding
unique nautical inspiration,” explained
Murray. “The product reflected these
discoveries, and marketing focused
on real people that are truly living the
Nautica life. Their stories were told online, in print and through social media.”
Nautica launched an interactive blog
called Nautica360 in 2010 and became
active on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube
and Flickr. The brand now has garnered
three million fans on Facebook.
The company conceives and executes its advertising campaigns inhouse, having exited a relationship
with Laird+Partners in 2009.
“Nautica was so focused on ‘man on
a boat.’ It was a very lonely guy on a
boat. It’s not all the brand is about. We
are about families and dual gender and
friends and connection,” said Murray,
whose in-house team has guided the
brand toward imagery of men, women
and families together.
As president of the sportswear coalition, Murray overseas Nautica as
go down to Lee and talk about a denim
process. Conversely, we have a great
relationship with Macy’s, so they might
want to talk to me about that,” Murray
pointed out.
VF holds an annual internal conference dubbed VF Max, staged at locales
from the MIT campus in Cambridge,
Mass., to New York City, where leaders
from the company meet with outside
thinkers and innovators. “We’ve had
Robert Redford speak to us, and we
had Julie Taymor talk about the challenges of staging the Spider-Man musical. It’s about how to solve problems
and innovate and do something different and unique,” Murray recalled.
“Who would think that you could learn
something from Spider-Man?”
VF Corp. is known for a researchdriven approach to strategic and business decisions. At Nautica, market-research practices are leveraged across
the entire spectrum of business processes, including understanding consumers’
evolving needs, optimizing communications, maximizing the effects of spending and guiding innovation.
This past holiday season, Nautica
invested in shoppable billboards at
the two New York City airports, John F.
Kennedy International and LaGuardia.
Shoppers could scan items from the
billboard on their smartphones via QR
codes, which would bring up the item
from the Nautica e-commerce site.
··
out entire outfits.
A market-mix analysis showed the
strong benefits and synergy of spending on social and digital marketing in
tandem with more traditional advertising buys.
“It was fascinating to learn how the
multiple consumer touch points really
help to strengthen our connection with
our consumer,” said Murray.
As a unit of VF, Nautica is part of
a diversified portfolio that stretches
across outdoor, denim, sportswear, contemporary, footwear and accessories.
“VF’s overall growth strategy is
based on actively managing a highly
diversified global portfolio of leading
lifestyle brands. Nautica’s diversified
product mix and global distribution
is perfectly aligned with that strategy.
The brand is stronger today than it has
ever been and [has] many growth opportunities,” said Wiseman, who earlier in his career oversaw Nautica when
he held Murray’s current position.
“What stands out was [how] we all
felt about bringing Nautica into the
VF family of brands and taking it to
its next level of growth,” he recalled
of his time at the helm of the Nautica
business. “Nautica was one of the first
acquisitions VF made, once we put
into motion our plan to transform the
company with the addition of more
lifestyle brands, so it really was a
milestone for us.”
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WWD MILESTONES
Young Man and the Sea
CHRIS COX IS passionate about the
outdoors. And being Nautica’s vice
president of design and creative allows
him to indulge that passion every day.
Born and raised in New Jersey, Cox
grew up around the water, summering
at Long Beach Island, a barrier island
off the state’s mainland.
“My brother was a lifeguard and in a
band — I worked,” Cox said with a laugh.
“But I lived vicariously through him.”
But it wasn’t all work and no play.
When he wasn’t toiling away for some
extra cash, Cox spent time enjoying the
sand and the surf as well, skills he calls
upon to create the company’s men’s
collections every season.
“I have a really active life outside of
the office,” said Cox, who enjoys surfing, kayaking, mountain biking, tennis
and soccer, among other sports. “And
this brand’s large point of differentiation is its performance aspects and the
fact that it was built around the water.”
The company says its spinnaker
logo is “a symbol of adventure,
action and classicism.” This
unwavering devotion to the
water runs deep, and impacts everything Cox
produces for the label.
He travels frequently to coastal locations around the
country to keep his
finger on the pulse
of the Nautica customer. Those excursions have taken
him from the Great
Lakes to Oregon, New
England to Florida
and California, and
while the communities
and climates are different, there’s a certain
commonality.
“I’ve seen a large diversity of people, cultures and
lifestyles,” he said, “but water
is what brings them all together.”
And while he keeps up
with the latest fashion trends
emerging from the runways of
Europe, he finds his travels
around the U.S. to be
more useful inspirations for the Nautica
brand because the
company’s association with the water
“is such a strong part
of who we are.”
While his personal
activities are a perfect
match for the brand,
it was his design talent
that appealed to Karen
Murray, president of
VF’s Sportswear Coalition,
which oversees Nautica.
Before joining Nautica
five years ago, Cox spent 11 years at
Tommy Hilfiger, overseeing everything from men’s outerwear, swimwear
and bottoms to denim and sportswear.
After leaving Hilfiger in 2004, he joined
Victorinox as senior vice president of
design and creative director.
“Karen went to HR and said she
wanted to hire the guy who was designing Victorinox,” Cox related. “We had
actually had a conversation when I left
Tommy so she knew who I was and my
career path. So I met with Karen and
everything fell in line.”
He came on board as vice president of men’s design in February
2008, and later that year was elevated
to his current position, succeeding
Miriam Lambert.
“It’s been a fun run,” he said.
“There have been a lot of challenges
and a lot of rewarding moments.”
His primary goal upon joining the
company was to reconnect Nautica
with its roots and “get back to the core
essence” of the brand.
“When I came in, we didn’t really
stand for anything anymore,” he said.
“We were all over the place and we
were chasing something that wasn’t
what the brand is all about.”
Cox dove in, researching the history
of Nautica and where it had enjoyed
the most success over the years.
“I did a ton of brand work,” he said.
“I asked, Who do we want to be?”
Answering that question required
“focus, belief and great creativity,” he
continued. “You have to believe in
who you are, put a stake in the
ground and go for it.”
Cox said he’s never felt
restricted by Nautica’s single-minded mission — in
fact, just the opposite.
“When you put
blinders on and really focus on the
end goal, you can go
forward — as long
as it goes back to
the brand’s point of
view,” he said.
That point of view
needs to be consistent
across all categories of
product that sport the
Nautica name. As a result, Cox works with
the company’s large
cadre of licensees to
Two of ensure that they’re
Cox’s on board with the
favorite mission as well.
The design projackets.
cess starts with the
company’s internal
sportswear design team
and then Cox “interfaces” with the outside companies that
produce everything
from
tailored
clothing, dress
shirts and neckwear to shoes
and cold-weather
goods. The largest companies
come to Nautica’s
office on a quarterly basis to run
through the color
palette and print choices
for the season to ensure
everyone is on the same page.
But Nautica’s bread-and-butter is
still its men’s collection sportswear, 95
percent of which is designed in-house.
The fall incarnation of the collection will make its debut on the runway during New York Fashion Week
on Friday. Key pieces will include furtrimmed technical parkas, nautical
utility leather jackets, hand-knit cashmere fisherman sweaters, slim brushed
cargos and slim wool knit pants.
As part of the mix, Cox will unveil
Chris Cox oversees all
of the men’s design
for the brand.
the latest pieces of the Black Sail
collection, which is the brand’s most
elevated product.
“It’s more of our pinnacle line,” Cox
explained. “It’s more directional and
innovative. It’s our tease about where
we believe we can take the brand.”
And this year, its 30th anniversary,
Nautica is also offering a series of
capsules throughout the year celebrating the milestone. For spring,
Cox designed “more modern interpretations of vintage sailing pieces,”
including waterproof sailing jackets,
zip cable shawl cardigans with windblock linings and full-zip hoodies. And
for fall, the celebration will continue
with similarly themed pieces.
“The America’s Cup finals will be in
San Francisco in September,” Cox said,
“so we’ll also be playing off of that.”
But in everything Cox designs, attention to detail remains paramount
as Nautica seeks to capture “the essence of an active, adventurous and
spirited lifestyle.”
Cox admitted: “I’m a gear-head.
Growing up, I loved to see how things
work.” He translates that into his designs for Nautica by constantly asking
“what’s next, what’s warmer, what’s
cooler, what’s drier? I’m driven by that —
whether it’s in hard goods or soft goods.”
So which items does Cox believe
have been his most iconic during his
tenure at Nautica?
“I’m a giant turtleneck fan,” he said.
“And this fall, we’ll be celebrating the
fisherman’s sweater.”
In addition, he pointed to the down
parkas with fur trim and “detailed bottoms with a great wash,” as key. “And
pant fit is really important to me.”
Cox said the sportswear design
team creates a collection every year
that is “so vast, it’s hard to pick one
thing. In any given quarter, there are
800 to 1,000 sku’s and we manage three
seasons at once.”
He said such a work load would
be impossible without the help of a
strong technical and product-development team. And each of the company’s designers, some of whom have
been with the brand since founder
David Chu was still on board, is responsible for all the technical bells
and whistles on each garment they
create. “We don’t just design it and
hand it off,” he said. “We control everything about it, including making
sure it’s [priced] properly. Owning the
details is very important — today’s
consumer expects so much.”
PHOTO BY GEORGE CHINSEE
Creative director Chris Cox channels his love of the outdoors into Nautica’s lifestyle offerings. By Jean E. Palmieri
EL PALACIO DE HIERRO CONGRATULATES
NAUTICA ON THEIR 30 YEAR ANNIVERSARY
12 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
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WWD MILESTONES
David Chu: Then and Now
DAVID CHU always had an affinity for
the water. And it was this love of the
ocean that prompted the designer and
entrepreneur to create the Nautica
label in 1983.
“I used to travel to the islands and
loved being on the beach in St. Maarten
and the Bahamas,” Chu said in a recent
interview at his town house in New
York’s Flatiron District. “I found the
island life cool and relaxing and being
around the ocean was magnificent.”
Even so, the idea of creating a
nautical-themed apparel brand was
the furthest thing from his mind growing up. In fact, Chu, who was born in
Taiwan and immigrated to the U.S. at
age 13, had designs on being an architect, not a designer.
“I went to FIT, but I didn’t know I’d
be in the fashion industry,” he said. “I
actually studied design by accident. I
thought I’d be an architect or in sales
and marketing. But I took an illustration class one summer and found myself in fashion design.”
After he graduated from college
with a degree in fashion design, Chu
traveled back to Taiwan and launched
an apparel business with friends, “but
it failed miserably,” he recalled with a
laugh. “But I’m glad I failed early. It’s
better to fail when you’re 23 and young
and stupid than at 35 or 40.”
Chu returned to the States and
joined Kayser-Roth for five years.
Then, in 1983, his entrepreneurial
spirit surfaced and Chu whipped
up a small collection of six colorful men’s jackets that incorporated
fashion and function. This collection spawned a new business that he
named Nautica, after the Latin word
“nauticus,” for “nautical.”
“I was 28 when I started Nautica,”
said Chu, now 58. “It started with a
sail-away jacket and was fine-tuned
over the years. It resonated with a lot
of people.” In its first year, he said,
Bloomingdale’s, Barneys New York
and Saks Fifth Avenue carried the collection along with such high-end specialty stores as Mark Shale, Roots and
Capper & Capper.
“When we started, there were 80 department store chains,” Chu said wistfully. “Now there are four. And we were
also selling to a few hundred really
good specialty stores.”
The company had sales of $700,000
in its first year and $2.5 million the following year, the same year it caught the
attention of State-O-Maine, a publicly
traded sleepwear firm. In his bid to
expand his fledging brand, Chu partnered with the larger company and
with State-O-Maine’s Harvey Sanders
serving as chief executive, a plan was
put into motion that took Nautica into
various product categories including
sportswear, activewear and women’s
wear as well as retail.
Nautica in-store shops were installed at department stores around the
country and the brand sponsored sailing competitions and opened a fancy
showroom on 57th Street in New York.
With the Nautica label accounting
for the majority of State-O-Maine’s
sales, the company was renamed
Nautica Enterprises in 1994. At the
height of its popularity, worldwide
sales were more than $1 billion, and
there were some 1,500 in-store shops
around the country, as well as more
than 100 of its own stores. The brand’s
name was found on everything from
neckwear to fragrance, and along
with Tommy Hilfiger and Polo Ralph
Lauren, Nautica rode the American
sportswear wave that was sweeping the
U.S. at that time.
In 2003, VF Corp. — which had been
thwarted in its attempt to buy Calvin
Klein — bought the brand for $600 million in cash. Chu pocketed a windfall
of more than $104 million and stayed
on with VF to oversee global design,
product development and marketing
for the label.
He remained for a little over a
year “to transition the business,” he
said, before exiting to search for his
next chapter.
“VF’s strategy was an investment
strategy,” he said. “And they didn’t
think they needed any more of my
input. So I moved on. Life is a series of
different adventures.”
The first adventure was to create a new company, DC Design
International, to market an upscale
men’s designer collection label. At
one point, he was designing both a
tailored-driven David Chu line and a
sportswear collection under the Lincs
by David Chu name. The two lines
were merged in 2008. He also has a
David Chu Bespoke line of luxury
made-to-measure men’s wear that he
offers from the top floor of his historic
brick town house in Manhattan.
Chu also flexed the creative side
of his personality by buying an equity
David Chu
photographed
last month at
his Manhattan
town house.
stake in Tumi, the luggage and accessories brand, and joining the company as
executive creative director. He worked
with Tumi for around two years and
also acquired Mallory & Church, a luxury accessories firm.
Most recently, Chu teamed with
Investcorp to acquire Georg Jensen, a
Scandinavian luxury brand that is best
known for its high-end silver but also
manufactures jewelry, watches and
high-end home goods. It was founded
in 1904 and operates nearly 100 stores
around the world but has limited distribution in the U.S.
Leafing through a coffee-table book
of Jensen’s silver products, Chu, who
was named the company’s chief cre-
...1996...
PHOTO BY GEORGE CHINSEE
Looks from
1993...
PHOTO BY ROBERT MITRA
PHOTO BY JOHN AQUINO
...and
1998.
ative director and cochairman of the
board, said he was looking forward
to doing “something that I’ve never
done before. We can take this company global. Its penetration in North
America and Asia is low. China is a
potentially big market and we’re [enthusiastic] about the opportunities in
North America.”
Among his goals for Jensen is to
expand its men’s wear offerings. “We
have a watch collection but we’re
looking to launch men’s accessories,”
he revealed.
He said he’s eager to “take my taste
and sensibility and reposition the
brand to be more successful. It’s an interesting challenge for me.”
Although he may be older and a
little grayer, Chu’s creative mind-set
hasn’t really changed since he conceived of Nautica three decades ago.
Looking back at the brand, Chu said
he is “not surprised” that Nautica has
remained so popular.
“Once you hit a certain size, you
have longevity,” he said. “There’s a
value and perception in consumers’
minds about what Nautica stands for,
and that will be around for a long,
long time.”
He admits that he doesn’t really
keep up with what the brand is doing,
although he said current Nautica designer Chris Cox “is a good guy and has
good taste.”
But although he has distanced himself from Nautica, it will always be
a big part of who he is. “Nautica was
great and a lot of fun,” he said. “Life’s
been good to me.”
PHOTO BY THOMAS IANNACCONE
Nautica’s founder reflects on the brand’s roots and looks
ahead to his latest challenge. By Jean E. Palmieri
14 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
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WWD MILESTONES
SMOOTH
PHOTOS BY ELI SCHMIDT
SAILING
Polyester jackets,
cotton pants and
aviator sunglasses.
WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013 15
Over the last 30 years,
Nautica has evolved into
an American lifestyle
brand featuring bright
performance outerwear,
playful sportswear, sleek
tailored clothing, timeless
dress furnishings and
modern accessories.
— ALEX BADIA
Wool blazer, nylon
jacket, cotton and
nylon pants.
MODELS: THIJS M AT FUSION AND CECE DUVALE AT WILHELMINA; MAKEUP BY LEAH BENNETT, LEAHBENNETT.COM; HAIR BY DENNIS FEI AT KATE RYAN USING BUMBLE & BUMBLE; FASHION ASSISTANT: MERCEDES PSL BASS; FASHION INTERN: MICHAEL ROBERTS; WOMEN’S STYLING BY KIM FRIDAY
WWD.COM
16 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
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WWD MILESTONES
SMOOTH SAILING
Polyester vest, Sorona
shape polyester memory
jacket, cotton shirt and
silk tie. Tie bar from
Thetiebar.com.
18 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
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WWD MILESTONES
SMOOTH SAILING
Cotton blazer, cotton
piqué polo shirt and
cotton and elastane skirt.
20 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
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WWD.COM
WWD MILESTONES
SMOOTH SAILING
Polyester and
nylon jacket, wool
cardigan, cotton
and Lycra spandex
poplin shirt, nylon
active pants and
high-top sneakers.
Congratulations
NAUTICA
ICONIC STYLE
22 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
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WWD MILESTONES
SMOOTH SAILING
Cotton and linen
jacket, cotton
denim jacket and
jeans, cotton and
spandex maillot.
24 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
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WWD MILESTONES
SMOOTH SAILING
Leather jacket,
nylon active pants,
Sorona shape
polyester memory
shorts, Nautica Zhik
hat, multifunction
resin-strap watch.
CONGRATULATES
CELEBRATING
YEARS
ON THE WATER
26 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
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WWD MILESTONES
SMOOTH SAILING
Polyester jacket,
cotton and linen shirt,
polyester shorts and
knit tie. Tie bar from
Thetiebar.com.
28 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
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Licensing: Pump Up the Volume
Nautica’s 58 categories of product account for more than $500 million in annual sales. By Jean E. Palmieri
dren’s wear and home products, Vicari said.
The international arm,
which includes distributors,
counts 22 operators in almost
75 countries. These partners
operate some 200 freestanding
Nautica stores as well as 1,000
in-store shops.
Vicari noted that Timex,
Coty and Marchon, its watch,
fragrance and eyewear licensees, respectively, hold global
licenses for the brand and sell
the Nautica product around
the world.
··
The unaided awareness of the brand
is astounding. There are very few
markets where we’re not known.
— MARIA VICARI
In the States, Nautica is
primarily a men’s brand with
women’s sportswear slated to
launch here for spring under
the direction of the in-house
Nautica team. But overseas,
she pointed out, most of the
partners “operate a dual-gender platform.” The largest international market is Greater
China, which accounts for 27
percent of total sales. There
are 366 points of sale there,
including freestanding stores
as well as in-store shops in
department stores like Isetan,
Parkson, Sogo, New World,
Mitsukoshi and Takishimaya.
There are nine Nautica Kids
stores in China and Vicari
said there is “potential for
growth there.”
Other large international
markets include Mexico and
Domestic
Licenses
Fragrance: Coty
Footwear: ES Originals
Umbrellas: Essex
Boys’ and girls’ apparel: Fishman Tobin
Cold-weather gear: Fownes
Men’s main floor outerwear: Levy Group
Men’s tailored clothing: Levy Group
Women’s topcoats: Levy Group
Women’s swimwear: Raj
Eyewear: Marchon
Neckwear: PVH
Luggage and backpacks: Randa
Socks: Royce
Tailored clothing in Canada: S. Cohen
Dress shirts: Li & Fung
Belts and small leather goods: Swank
Watches: Timex
Infant and juvenile bedding: Crown Crafts
Tabletop: Lifetime
Utility bedding: Louisville
Fashion bedding and bath in
U.S. and Mexico: Revman
Latin America, which have
more than 300 points of sale.
Product categories sold in
those countries include women’s, home furnishings and
children’s in addition to men’s
wear. The Middle East boasts
freestanding men’s, women’s
and children’s stores in Dubai,
Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Qatar,
Saudi Arabia and Israel.
There are no longer any
full-price Nautica retail outposts in the U.S., although
Vicari said it is definitely in
the company’s sights.
··
“We’re working on it,” she
said. “It’ll be one of our strategies going forward.”
With such a wide-ranging
network, Vicari categorized
Nautica’s licensing efforts as
“a mature business.” And with
rare exceptions, there aren’t a
lot of other categories where
Nautica hopes to plant stakes.
“I get calls all day long with
some of the most bizarre requests,” she said, shaking her
head. “But we have specific
guardrails and guidelines [for
what products we’ll put the
Nautica name on], and we consider if it will be brand-equity
building. We also look at the
kinds of distribution it would
get and whether it would enhance the brand experience
with the consumer. If the answers to those questions are
not ‘Yes,’ we won’t consider
the category.”
And, she added with a
laugh, “We’re very controlling. It’s not easy being our licensee. We control every part
PHOTO BY THOMAS IANNACCONE
FROM UMBRELLAS and
beach towels to footwear
and fashion bedding, and
from Europe to Asia to South
America, Nautica’s reach is
far and wide.
And overseeing the massive
international effort is Maria
Vicari, president of global licensing for the brand.
An eight-year veteran of
the company, Vicari has an industry pedigree that includes
20 years with GFT working on
Ungaro, Valentino and Joseph
Abboud, as well as a stint
at Saks Fifth Avenue working with then-men’s general
merchandise manager Roger
Farah, who is now president
of Ralph Lauren.
When
Vicari
joined
Nautica, the licensing program was already established.
In fact, the brand has had international licenses in Canada
and Mexico — “above and
below the border,” as she puts
it — for 29 years.
But under her tutelage, the
company’s licensing arm has
grown substantially, and today
there are 40 operators domestically and abroad, overseeing 59
categories of product that account for annual sales of more
than $500 million.
“Licensing is a big source
of revenue and a brand-building component,” Vicari said.
“It’s a big endeavor.”
The business is broken
down into two distinct categories: domestic licensed product and international licensing, she explained.
The domestic products are
those that are “noncore competencies” for Nautica, like
luggage and tabletop. The most
successful in terms of volume
are watches, fragrance, chil-
of the contract negotiation
and compliance.”
When deciding whether to
enter a category, Vicari said
the company “discerns what’s
{Continued on page 30}
International
Licenses
Fashion bedding in the U.S. and
Mexico is licensed to Revman.
338: China and Hong Kong
Amanex: Korea
Arvind Lifestyles: India
Bez Trading: Footwear in Mexico
and South America
Central Trading: Thailand
Dayan: Apparel and accessories in
Mexico and South America
Debenhams: U.K.
La Compagnie del Pelle: Italy,
Switzerland and Austria
LF Asia: Children’s wear in China
Liwa: Middle East
Montgar: Chile
Notos: Greece and Cyprus
Pacific Classic: Children’s wear in Taiwan
Planet Sports: Philippines and Vietnam
PT Mitra: Indonesia
Royal Sporting House: Singapore and
Malaysia
Ruentex: Taiwan
SBN Clothing: Israel
Siga: Canada
True Alliance: Australia
CONGRATULATIONS
NAUTICA!
30 YEARS OF REFRESHINGLY
UNIQUE AND EXCITING
MODERN CLASSIC
SPORTSWEAR.
YOUR PARTNER FROM THE BEGINNING,
We look forward to many future milestones together
30 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
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WWD MILESTONES
Pump Up the Volume
Nautica signed a license with Korea’s Amanex for special product and retail. Here, the store in Seoul.
{Continued from page 28}
worth the effort. If it’s small, it won’t
have a future. And it also has to be
nothing that would be brand-eroding.”
That said, however, bags and footwear are two product categories
where “enhancements are up for consideration,” Vicari said. “But with the
exception of women’s accessories,
we’re pretty much there.”
So instead of entering a lot of new
categories, the “strategy for the next five
years,” she said, is for “organic growth
and international expansion.”
The plan is to concentrate on emerging markets and Nautica is expected
to reveal shortly that it has lined up a
partner in Russia. Turkey and Brazil are
also seen as key growth opportunities
for the brand and the company recently
started a full-price business in India.
In the third quarter of 2012,
Nautica signed a deal with Amanex
for the manufacture and distribution
of a performance lifestyle collection
available exclusively in Korea. The
collection includes men’s and women’s performance apparel and accessories, including backpacks,
socks, hats, gloves, underwear
and scarves. The items are
designed to be functional
with water-resistant qualities and technical fabrics.
The plan is to open between 75
and 100 Nautica accounts by 2016
with distribution in in-store shops in
department stores and freestanding
Nautica units.
This deal is a “pioneering” one for
Nautica, Vicari said, since it focuses
on one particular product category —
performance apparel. “Our positioning
there is unique,” she said, noting that
the products offered in that country
center around “water and lifestyle”
and have been received well.
Outerwear is also expected to be
a big business there. “Korea is a
very outerwear-centric market,”
she added.
Vicari said that when it
comes to licensing, one size
doesn’t fit all, particularly outside the U.S. borders.
“The model is different, depending upon the country,” she
explained. “A lot of countries don’t
have department stores, so we’ll have
more distribution in independent specialty stores.”
As a result of its breadth of product
and distribution network, the Nautica
brand is “incredibly well-known outside this country,” Vicari said. “The
unaided awareness of the brand is
astounding. There are very few markets where we’re not known. And the
reception to the brand is very strong.”
Braided belt
by Swank.
She said with some exceptions for
local variances, the product that is
sold overseas is the same as that offered in the U.S.
As a result, it is imperative that all
product sporting the Nautica name
be consistent in terms of seasonal
fashion trends.
“Our product development team
works with [creative director] Chris
Cox to ensure the brand direction is
articulated each season,” she said,
adding that “they control the approval
process, which is very involved.”
Licensees are invited to the company’s showroom to see the season’s
fashion focus and work with the design team to brainstorm on how best
to translate the trends into their particular product categories. So when
customers buy anything from a pair of
shoes to a suit or even sheets for their
children, they can be assured it got the
nod from the top.
Watch from
Timex.
Ties are
licensed to
PVH.
Aqua Rush by
Nautica fragrance
from Coty.
Translucent
sunglasses are
by Marchon.
Boat shoes are licensed
to ES Originals.
THINK OUTLETS. THINK TANGER.
CONGRATULATIONS!
FOR 30 YEARS
OF FASHION
EXCELLENCE
3200 Northline Avenue, Suite 360 Greensboro, NC 27408
tangeroutlet.com NYSE:SKT
32 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
SECTION II
WWD.COM
WWD MILESTONES
Clicking
Away
The homepage at nautica.com.
Digital is experiencing
rapid growth in sales,
traffic and fans.
By Rachel Strugatz
EXACTLY THREE years ago,
Nautica hit the digital scene, and
during the first week of February,
the brand reached three million followers on Facebook.
Besides the social media platform
having the most fans and highest levels of engagement, Facebook drives
more traffic to nautica.com than any
of its peers, according to Rosalind
Drisko, director of marketing and communications at Nautica.
“ We c o u l d h a v e
150,000 people talking about an item, and
when the brand posts
something, there can
be thousands of likes.
We get a lot of insights,”
Drisko said, noting
that the most popular
posts on Facebook are
about timepieces. “With
watches, it’s a very international audience,
and we see a lot of interaction here.”
Behind-the-scenes
content — like photos
of shows and models —
also resonates well with
users, and Drisko calls
Facebook the “perfect
medium” in which to
showcase these images.
The blog on
Nautica saw sig- Nautica’s site.
nificant growth on this
channel from 2011 to 2012, going
from 550,627 fans in 2011 to 2.7 million just one year later. Last June,
the brand toasted reaching 1 million
followers with its Nautica Millionth
Fan initiative. A Facebook follower
designated as the millionth fan attended the spring 2013 fashion presentation in New York.
In 2010, the brand launched its
Nautica 360 blog, as well as accounts
on Twitter, YouTube and Flickr, followed by Instagram and Pinterest
last August.
And as successful as the brand has
been thus far on Facebook, Drisko acknowledges that Twitter has been a
“bit of a challenge” for the brand.
“A lot of people use Twitter to follow celebrities or news outlets and, for
us, it’s a bit challenging unless we’re
doing a lot of promotions. People usually want a promotion for something
off, which we don’t tend to do on
Twitter,” Drisko said.
She revealed that the brand plans
a total overhaul of its digital flagship
in the coming months — and while
small updates were made to nautica.
com last year, the site will look completely different come summer.
In addition to enhanced navigation, search and filtering capabilities,
the site will contain user reviews
and recommendations (a feature not
currently available on nautica.com).
There will be more of an assortment
Nautica’s Facebook page has more than three million fans.
of product spanning all categories, ranging from holiday gift lists to backincluding men’s, women’s, kids and to-school bedroom makeovers. The
home, as well as licensed products company sponsored a contest (which
like watches, eyewear, footwear, ended last month) in which one winwomen’s swimwear, leather goods, ner will have the opportunity to star
in an upcoming Nautica Ocean to
bath accessories and fragrance.
“Product presentation will be bet- Ocean campaign video. Drisko said
ter and, in general, [we will] better the winner will be announced within
a couple of weeks.
integrate the brand experience
When asked what has been
with the shopping experience.
the biggest challenge with re[This will allow] more of an inspect to digital for the brand
tegration of content and comthus far, Drisko pointed to
merce,” Drisko said.
two elements.
She added that curThe first is adapting
rently, nautica.com only
to the speed at which
ships to U.S. addresses,
technology is changbut there are plans to
ing. She cited as an
change this.
example the rapid
Nautica launched
pace
at
which
e-commerce in 2008,
Instagram has beand that channel
come one of the most
is growing rapidly.
popular social platAlthough Drisko deforms in the past year.
clined to reveal the
“This is the place to
percentage e-commerce
be, and that’s the one that
generates of overall
we’re going to see grow the
sales, electronic volume
fastest. Instagram is where
increased 50 percent bewe’re trying to do more and
tween 2011 and 2012. She
more,” she said.
projects the same growth
The second is divvying up recurve for 2013.
sources for digital responsibilities.
Mobile traffic tripled and
Watches
“Allocating new resources
mobile sales doubled from
attract the
toward digital becomes an
2011 to 2012, with the channel representing 10 percent of most comments additional part of someone’s
all e-commerce sales last year. on Nautica’s job, whereas it should have
The company only expects this Facebook page. its own team,” she said. A social media manager and diginumber to grow, especially
since 40 percent of Nautica’s e-mails tal manager work closely with the
e-commerce team, but the brand is
are opened on a mobile device.
A stand-alone mobile app doesn’t looking to increase the size of this
exist yet, but about 10 apps have been group. “At Nautica, we’re currently
created on a project basis since 2010, building a full team.”
A holiday Instagram promotion.
Celeb r a t i n g
y e a r s o n t h e W AT E R
Congratulations on 30 Years
of Nautical Style and Inspiration
34 WWD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013
SECTION II
WWD.COM
WWD MILESTONES
Making Every Drop Count
Nautica puts water in the forefront of
its philanthropic efforts, partnering with
organizations such as Oceana and Charity:
Water. By Lauren McCarthy
TO SAY THAT Nautica cares
about the environment would
be just skimming the surface.
Case in point: the company’s
mantra, which is “We celebrate, love and respect the
water, everywhere, every day.”
The apparel brand adopted
this mission statement in 2009,
after years of philanthropic
work lacking “an overarching platform,” according to
Morgan Freeman and Ted Danson at an Oceana event.
Rosalind Drisko, director of
marketing communications.
So Nautica teamed with
Oceana, the largest international organization focused
solely on ocean conservation. Based on similar objectives to save and protect the
world’s oceans, Oceana was an
obvious match for Nautica’s
aquatic focus, resulting in a
productive partnership that
has continued for the past
three years. The brand is currently the organization’s largest corporate sponsor, joining
other donors including La Mer,
Christie’s and Burgess.
Besides financial support,
Nautica also supports the organization’s efforts with elbow
grease. On World Oceans Day,
for example, Nautica sends
80 employees to help pick up
trash along the Hudson River
near its Manhattan headquarters. For those who cannot
attend — the number of volunteers is capped each year
due to limited resources — the
company holds events in New
York and Los Angeles to help
bring awareness to the cause.
In January 2012, Nautica
expanded its charitable efforts
to another aquatic-themed
organization, pairing with
Charity: Water, a nonprofit
group dedicated to bringing
clean and safe drinking water
to developing nations.
Within this new collaboration, Nautica introduced
its “Give Change to Make
Change” campaign, allowing
customers at the brand’s outlet stores to round up their
purchases to the nearest dollar, with the extra pennies donated to Charity: Water. Since
the program was unveiled
in March 2012, funds have
reached more than double
the initial goal.
“Our initial goal was
$150,000,” said Drisko. “Then we
got to a point where we moved it
up to $250,000. It ended up coming in at about $375,000.”
Nautica currently supports
two countries, Nepal and
India, through Charity: Water,
providing safe drinking water
to needy communities through
the installation of sanitary
water taps and wells.
Despite its more recent
dedication to water-themed
charities, the company has
not turned its back on other
Actor Josh Hopkins (“Cougar Town”)
at the Malibu triathalon.
causes it has supported in
years past. In 2008, the brand
began the Nautica South
Beach Triathlon, held every
April to benefit St. Jude’s
Children’s Research Hospital.
For the past 25 years, it has
also been a part of the annual
Nautica Malibu Triathlon,
which benefits pediatric cancer
research at Children’s Hospital
Los Angeles. Celebrities
who have participated in the
races include Jennifer Lopez,
Matthew McConaughey, Jon
Cryer and Tom Cruise.
“It started as a small event,
and over time it’s grown to be
massive,” Drisko said of the
Malibu event. “This past year,
we raised $1.2 million in that
one day. [That’s] really amazing.”
DUANE MORRIS
IS PROUD TO SUPPORT
NAUTICA
AS WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY CELEBRATES
THE GLOBAL LIFESTYLE BRAND’S
30TH ANNIVERSARY
IN ITS MILESTONES ISSUE
Duane Morris LLP, a global law firm with more than 700 attorneys in offices across the
United States and around the world, is asked by a broad array of clients to provide
innovative solutions to today’s legal and business challenges.
Duane Morris LLP | 1540 Broadway | New York, NY 10036
Duane Morris – Firm and Affiliate Offices | New York | London | Singapore | Los Angeles | Chicago | Houston | Hanoi | Philadelphia
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For more information, please contact:
MICHAEL TILIAKOS
Partner
P: 212.692.1045
mtiliakos@duanemorris.com
www.duanemorris.com
LEACHENG APPAREL CO., LTD.
Congratulates
on 30 Years of Innovation