Furla’s presence in Australia
Furla first made its appearance back in December 2013 in Westfield Sydney. Over the past 4 years they have steadily increased their presence in Australia. The luxury brand now sells its exclusive Italian accessories through a network of 15 stores across major cities within Australia including: Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Gold Coast.
- Australia’s sales have grown to represent 5 per cent of the brands’ annual, global revenue in less than four years.
- Sales from Furla’s Australian and New Zealand stores are expected to increase by about 20% in 2017 to about $40 million.
The deal to reestablish control over their local stores will see to Furla reaffirming their goal of further strengthening their presence in Australia, and also New Zealand.
Growth of luxury business in Australia
Due to the growing success of the luxury market within Australia, rumours suggest that Furla was forced to buy back the business earlier than planned.
- The group’s chief executive Alberto Camerlengo said that Furla would open four new stores in Australia this year.
- Market research group IBISWorld suggests that luxury retail sales are growing at more than 8% a year in Australia this year.
- Industry professionals points to the influence of Asian shoppers to explain the strength of the luxury fashion market.
LRG’s managing director Nelson Mair believes that the polarisation of the fashion retail sector is the result of consumers buying things “they really want or things they really need”.
“Beyond that, Australia has an enormous Asian demographic and their propensity to consume is a little bit different,” he says. “It comes back to a cultural aspect… they will define themselves or their success by what they wear, drive or consume.”
What does the future for Furla look like in Australia?
Safe to say, managing director Mair has large things in store planned for the luxury brand.
- He envisions 25 stores across Australia.
- Mr Mair also aims to double sales over the next several years, taking on brands like Michael Kors, Coach and Oroton.
“We do covet the position of being the leading premium brand in this space,”said Mr Mair. “We think we can beat Oroton in terms of revenues on 25 sites,” he continues, adding Furla’s sales per square metre were high by Australian and global standards and the brand was popular with cashed-up Asian tourists as well as Australian consumers. “We do see a lot of opportunities to broaden the customer base.”
“After having achieved 95% sales growth in 2016, this vertical integration of Furla Australia and New Zealand will better equip the business for the next phase of its growth.
To find out more about what other luxury brands are doing, make sure you visit our case studies library where we have compiled luxury strategies over the last decade that have proved successful.
