Master Thesis City Branding The perception of Milan as a World Fashion Capital. January 25th, 2011. Name Karolina Jedras Student number 324055 e-mail address [email protected] Supervisor: Dr. Erwin Dekker Co-reader: Dr. Christian Handke Acknowledgements This thesis represents my interest in the fashion business and urban economics and is a culmination of the knowledge gained during my graduate studies at Erasmus University, Rotterdam and as an exchange student at Bocconi University, Milan. I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor Erwin Dekker for his guidance and patience. I believe that his constructive comments helped me to improve this work. A very special thanks goes to Francesca Rinaldi, for giving me the opportunity to be a part of SDA Bocconi Research and providing me with valuable sources of data. I recognize the fact that this research would not have been possible without her support and kindness. Finally, I would also like to thank my family for their love, support and generosity that made my experience abroad possible. Karolina Jedras, Krakow, January 2011 Abstract In the 21st century, fashion is a significant part of the creative industries and an important contributor to the economical development of cities. Moreover, the projected reputation as a fashion capital is strongly related to the potential benefits of cultural and educational tourism, increase in investment and prestige of a city. The idea of the fashion city is multidimensional, and it is difficult to present the key characteristics by which a fashion capital can be defined. The multidimensionality of the concept leaves it open for interpretation and development of specific sources of competitive advantage in this area. In fact, in many world fashion cities, public authorities have begun to give increasing significance to their own place positioning in a global hierarchical structure of fashion cities, aspiring to become number one - the fashion capital of the world (Gilbert, 2006). City boosters and planners attempt to implement branding strategies in order to enhance a city ‗fashionable‘ reputation and contribute to the city‘s economical development. In order to do so, they utilize various branding channels, and attempt to shape brand identity into a more recognizable brand image. The purpose of the thesis is to answer the question of what is the relationship between Milan‘s anticipated identity as a world fashion city and the image of the city as a fashion capital among international students (education tourists). In order to examine the effectiveness of shaping urban identity into city‘s image various branding attempts initiated by the Milan City Administration will be analyzed. Among the researched branding channels are promotional events linked to fashion like Milan Fashion Week, fashion fairs, artistic and cultural events linked to fashion open to the wider public, existence of internationally renowned fashion brands and specialized retail districts. Key words: City branding, Fashion, Milan, Fashion Capital, brand identity, brand image, Milan Fashion Week, Fashion Fairs, retail clusters, international students in Milan 3 Table of contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 7 1. Milan- the fashion city .......................................................................................................................... 10 1.1. The city profile- Fashion the soul of Milan ..................................................................................... 10 1.2. The rise of Milan as a Fashion Capital - a historical perspective..................................................... 11 1.2.1. From the beginnings of the city to the Industrial Revolution ................................................... 11 1.2.2. The evolution of Italian fashion after the World War II ........................................................... 12 1.2.3. The characterization of Milan as a capital of prêt a porter ....................................................... 13 1.2.4. From the emergence of Milanese fashion entrepreneurs to international success .................... 14 1.2.5. Milan since 2000- the challenges of the new era ...................................................................... 16 1.3. Milan‘s fashion economy ................................................................................................................. 17 1.4. The geography of fashion in Milan- territorial production systems ................................................. 18 1.5. Why Milan? – The sources of the competitive advantage of Milan ................................................ 20 2. City branding- a powerful image building strategy ........................................................................... 22 2.1. Introduction to city branding ............................................................................................................ 22 2.2. What is a brand? ............................................................................................................................... 22 2.2.1. Brand identity versus Brand image ........................................................................................... 24 2.3. The evolution of the place branding concept ................................................................................... 26 2.4. Branding the place versus branding psychical products and corporations. ...................................... 26 2.5. From city marketing to city branding ............................................................................................... 28 2.6. Branding the city through fashion .................................................................................................... 29 2.6.1. The growing impact of creative industries in city branding ..................................................... 29 2.6.2. Branding channels- developing brand identity.............................................................................. 31 2.6.3. The segmentation of the fashion market. ...................................................................................... 33 2.7.. Successful place branding- problems and challenges ..................................................................... 35 3. Methodology........................................................................................................................................... 37 3.1. Evaluating city branding .................................................................................................................. 37 3.2. The research objectives .................................................................................................................... 37 3.3. The research method ........................................................................................................................ 38 3.4. Researching brand image ................................................................................................................. 39 3.4.1.Sampling .................................................................................................................................... 39 3.4.2. The structure of the questionnaires ........................................................................................... 42 3.4.3 Data analysis .............................................................................................................................. 44 4 3.5. The limitations of the research ......................................................................................................... 45 4. Brand Identity- an analysis of branding channels in the Milanese fashion system ......................... 47 4.1. Promotional events initiated by the Milan City Administration and fashion institutions ................ 47 4.1.1. Milano Fashion Week ............................................................................................................... 48 4.1.2. Fashion fairs and exhibitions .................................................................................................... 49 4.1.3. Artistic and Cultural Events linked to fashion. ......................................................................... 54 4.2. Retail clusters .................................................................................................................................. 57 4.2.1. Duomo/Vittorio Emanuele........................................................................................................ 60 4.2.2. Quadrilatero d‘Oro.................................................................................................................... 62 4.2.3. Brera ......................................................................................................................................... 63 4.2.4. Navigli-Ticinese ....................................................................................................................... 64 4.2.5. Corso Buenos Aires .................................................................................................................. 66 4.2.6. Via Paolo Sarpi ......................................................................................................................... 68 4.2.7. Isola ......................................................................................................................................... 69 4.3. Word Fashion Capitals ....................................................................................................................