Peter Pilotto – Case Study

Peter Pilotto, a womenswear label launched by Peter Pilotto and Christopher de Vos, in 2008 is regarded as one of London’s most successful young fashion businesses.

The pair met at Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts, founded the label in London and launched their first collection together for the spring/summer season of 2008.

Peter and Christopher were supported by the London College of Fashion’s Centre for Fashion Enterprise (CFE) Pioneer programme for six months, followed by the CFE venture programme between 2007 and 2009. They received support from the CFE team in business planning, finance and cash flow management, contracts, early stage retail strategies, brand development and trademark registration. They also attended the New York sales showroom every season.

In all, the subsidy support from CFE totalled almost £37,000.

The impact of the support was measurable and significant. During the time Peter Pilotto was supported on the two CFE programmes (2007 -2009), their sales rose by 3,173% with more than 95 stockists when they exited both programmes. In 2009, stockists for Peter Pilotto’s spring/summer 2010 collection surged from 28 stores in 14 countries to 88 in 30 countries. There are currently more than 200 points of sale for Peter Pilotto in 50 countries. The British based brand is now sold in over 49 countries and is stocked by luxury retailers such as Net a Porter, Dover Street Market, Saks Fifth Avenue and Liberty.

The brand is now championed by some of the fashion world’s most influential opinion formers and has won numerous awards, including the Swarovski Emerging Talent award in 2010, the Fashion Forward prize in 2011, and the 2014 BFC/VOGUE fashion fund and the Swarovski Collective Award in 2015.

The label is frequently worn by high profile celebrities such as Naomie Harris, Kate Bosworth, Lupiya Nyong’o and Emma Roberts.  De Vos and Pilotto combine their skills in silhouette, drapery, textiles and print to create innovative and contemporary designs. Complex graphics juxtapose soft, sculptural shapes and combinations of textures and bold colours form the ever evolving style of the company.

The support of the CFE and the British Fashion Council enabled the pair to self-finance the business up to 2015 when they raised a minority-stake investment from London-based investment firm MH Luxe and Megha Mittal, chairman and managing director of German luxury brand Escada in 2015. Industry sources estimate the business turns over about $15 million to $20 million per year, (2016 figures).

Peter Pilotto and Christopher DeVos have undertaken a number of collaborations with brands such as Target, Kipling, Lisa Marie Fernandez and most recently with Nicholas Kirkwood on a range of printed shoes since their AW2012 collection. In 2012, the duo were also invited to be guest designers at the prestigious Pitti W showcase in Florence.

TASK

Assignment Brief

Peter Pilotto and Christopher de Vos are now considering the future strategic direction of their business for the next 5 years.  Analyse the facts of the case study and undertake personal research into the enterprise.

Utilising appropriate academic strategic management models write a 3,500 word business strategy report outlining the future strategic development initiatives that Peter Pilotto could undertake to develop their business for the next 5 years