Ralph
Lauren is head of a multi-billion dollar global fashion enterprise that has
recently been forced to adjust to changing fashions in the way retail is
conducted.
Ralph
Lauren Corporation announced this week
that it would be closing its Fifth Avenue flagship store in New York following
poor sales.
Commentators
have listed flagship store dullness, young fashionistas using mobile phones to
search for discounted versions of their clothing, and customers finding it more
convenient to buy from outlets than the Ralph Lauren store itself, as the main
reasons for the store’s decline.
Neighbouring
retailers on Fifth Avenue seem to have gone to greater lengths to excite their customers
like this 12 foot Dinosaur made of handbags in the nearby Coach Inc store.
Showing
your customers the same old thing seems to have a price.