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LEVI’S Strauss & Co. Levis Strauss & Co. Overview of the Retailer Created by: Yuto Sakurai Contact info: [email protected] Tel: 604-443-0430 LEVI’S Strauss & Co. Table of Contents I NTRODUCTION ....................................................................... 3 Company ............................................................................... 4 Organization ............................................................................... 4 History ....................................................................................... 5 Product Description and Pricing ............................................. 6 Men’s Denim (Description and Pricing Based on North American Regions) ...................................................................................... 6 Women’s Denim (Pricing based on North American Region) .......... 7 Target Market ....................................................................... 8 Marketing ............................................................................. 8 S.W.O.T. Analysis of Levi’s Strauss & Co. ............................. 9 Competition ........................................................................... 9 Prospecting ......................................................................... 10 Pre-Approach ...................................................................... 10 The Approach ...................................................................... 10 Needs Discovery Questions .................................................. 11 Dominant Buying Motives .................................................... 12 Demonstration Details ......................................................... 13 Demonstration for male prospects ............................................... 13 Demonstration for female prospects ............................................ 14 Objections/Questions ........................................................... 15 Closing ................................................................................ 15 Servicing ............................................................................. 15 References ........................................................................... 16 Interviews ........................................................................... 16 LEVI’S Strauss & Co. INTRODUCTION Levi Strauss & Co. also known as LS&CO or simply Levi's, is a privately held American clothing company known worldwide for its Levi's brand of denim jeans. It was founded in 1873 when Levi Strauss came from Buttenheim,Bavaria, to San Francisco, California to open a west coast branch of his brothers' New York dry goods business. In 1873 Levi Strauss and tailor Jacob Davis received a U.S. patent to make the first riveted men's work pants out of denim: the first blue jeans. The company briefly experimented (in the 1970s) with a public stock listing, but remains owned and controlled by descendants and relatives of Levi Strauss's four nephews. The company's corporate headquarters is located at Levi's Plaza in San Francisco. LEVI’S Strauss & Co. Company Organization Levi Strauss & Co. is a worldwide corporation organized into three geographic divisions: Levi Strauss Americas (LSA), based in the San Francisco headquarters; Levi Strauss Europe, Middle East and Africa (LSEMA), based in Brussels; and Asia Pacific Division (APD), based in Singapore. The company employs a staff of approximately 10,500 people worldwide. The core Levi's was founded in 1873 in San Francisco, specializing in riveted denim jeans and different lines of casual and street fashion. From the early 1960s through the mid 1970s, Levi Strauss experienced significant growth in its business as the more casual look of the 1960s and 1970s ushered in the "blue jeans craze" and served as a catalyst for the brand. Levi's, under the leadership of Walter Haas Jr., Peter Haas, Ed Combs, and Mel Bacharach, expanded the firm's clothing line by adding new fashions and models, including stone-washed jeans through the acquisition of Great Western Garment Co. (GWG), a Canadian clothing manufacturer, and introducing Permanent Press trousers under the Sta-prest name. The company experienced rapid expansion of its manufacturing capacity from 16 plants to more than 63 plants in the United States from 1964 to 1974 and 25 overseas. The use of "pay for performance" manufacturing at the sewing machine operator level up. In Vancouver, all the Levi’s Stores are franchised and owned different owners. The Levi’s Store in Metrotown Metropolis is owned by Below The Belt. Brian Rystephunk is the individual owner of the Metrotown location. The first Levi’s store he had opened was in Richmond Center in 1992. From there, the Metrotown location had opened in 1994, ParkRoyal and Guilford in 1995. Currently all the other locations have closed except for the Metrotown location. The Metrotown locations is now the only Levi’s Store in the lower mainland since the Robson street location had closed down in April of 2013. LEVI’S Strauss & Co. History Levi Strauss started the business at the 90 Sacramento Street address in San Francisco. He next moved the location to 62 Sacramento Street then 63 & 65 Sacramento Street. Jacob Davis, a Jewish emigrant from Latvia, was a tailor who frequently purchased bolts of cloth made from hemp from Levi Strauss & Co.'s wholesale house. After one of Davis' customers kept purchasing cloth to reinforce torn pants, he had an idea to use copper rivets to reinforce the points of strain, such as on the pocket corners and at the base of the button fly. Davis did not have the required money to purchase a patent, so he wrote to Strauss suggesting that they go into business together. After Levi accepted Jacob's offer, on May 20, 1873, the two men received U.S. Patent 139,121 from the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The patented rivet was later incorporated into the company's jean design and advertisements. Contrary to an advertising campaign suggesting that Levi Strauss sold his first jeans to gold miners during the California Gold Rush (which peaked in 1849), the manufacturing of denim overalls only began in the 1870s. The company then created their first pair of Levis 501 Jeans in the 1890s, a style that went on to become the world's best-selling item of clothing. Levi Strauss advertising sign Modern jeans began to appear in the 1920s, but sales were largely confined to the working people of the western United States, such as cowboys, lumberjacks, and railroad workers. Levi’s jeans apparently were first introduced to the East during the dude ranch craze of the 1930s, when vacationing Easterners returned home with tales (and usually examples) of the hard-wearing pants with rivets. Another boost came in World War II, when blue jeans were declared an essential commodity and were sold only to people engaged in defense work. LEVI’S Strauss & Co. Product Description and Pricing Men’s Denim (Description and Pricing Based on North American Regions) Style Number Description Price 510 Super Skinny $78 - $98 511 Skinny $78 - $108 513 Slim Taper $78 - $98 508 Taper $78 - $98 520 Taper (Wider waist/Thighs) $78 - $98 514 Slim Straight $78 - $108 516 High rise Slim (Discontinued in 2012) $60 - $65 501 Button Fly Original Straight $65 - $120 504 Regular Fit $78 - $108 505 Regular Straight Fit $65 - $120 527 Slim Boot Cut $78 - $108 559 Relaxed Straight $78 - $88 550 Relax Fit $78 - $88 567 Loose Fit Boot $78 - $88 569 Loose Fit $78 - $88 Premiums/Collaboration/etc. Capital E Vintage Series 511, 501, 505 $98 - $330 Commuter Series 511, 505 $88 - $120 Sta-Prest Series 511, 513 $78 - $98 Nike X Levi’s Collaboration Limited Edition Skinny leg $120 - $250 Stussy X Levis Limited Limited Edition Skinny or Straight Leg $120 - $250 Signature Jeans Only Sold in Department Stores $29.90 – $49.90 LEVI’S Strauss & Co. Women’s Denim (Pricing based on North American Region) Demi Skinny, Straight, Skinny Boot, Classic $78 - $148 Slight Skinny, Straight, Skinny Boot, Classic $78 - $148 Bold Skinny, Straight, Skinny Boot, Classic $78 - $148 Supreme Skinny, Straight, Skinny Boot, Classic (Only in U.S) $78 - $148 501 Skinny, Straight $88 - $110 Flare Wide Leg $68 - $88 LEVI’S Strauss & Co. Target Market The company makes clothes for men, women, teen and children. Levi’s denim appeals to more mature generations not necessarily looking to make a fashion statement. In recent years the company has come up with a new line for women called Curve ID which is a totally different concept of denim for women. Levi’s has also come up fashion denims for younger male. The company also targets denim lovers with high-end vintage denim and limited edition models. These high-end vintage denim and limited editions models are more popular in Asian countries such as Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Levi’s specifies the target market by their various different styles so that anyone can own a pair but in different cuts of denim. Marketing During the launch of Levi's Curve ID jeans, Levi launched a 5 week integrated marketing campaign that touched on experiential marketing, social media and outdoor events in shopping malls and city centers throughout the UK. Brand ambassadors for Levi's encouraged women to find their perfect curve jeans shape in-store for the chance to win a £1000 Levi's shopping spree. The idea behind the campaign was to drive long-term engagement with the brand. The company also promoted Curve ID on TV shows such as the Ellen DeGeneres to introduce the product to the world. They also have a demonstration