Creating Value by Being Tech Savvy

Image: Ralph Lauren Bitmoji on Snapchat

​Corporate Challenge: Increasing sales among millennials.

Ironbound Strategy: Using emerging technologies can reinforce brand prowess and help create value for customers, employees, and society.

Ironbound Action: New York based Ralph Lauren, known for timeless style, has been trying to appeal to millennials in recent years.  The brand has created value for employees by emphasizing diversity and inclusion, while creating value for society by lowering carbon emissions and becoming better water stewards for the planet.  One novel way of creating value for customers has been to partner with Snapchat to offer Ralph Lauren clothing for Bitmoji’s.  Ralph Lauren is the first fashion brand to create a clothing line that is entirely digital. Investing in the digital ecosystem of Snapchat is a cost-effective way of building brand relationships with millennials.  Building powerful relationships with stakeholders is a great way to assure sustainable and exciting growth.

​* Snapchat purchased Bitstrips (Bitmoji’s parent company) for $64M in 2016; at the time Snapchat’s daily active users was 122M.  In 2017 Bitmoji was Apple’s most downloaded App. In Q2 of 2020, Snapchat recorded 238M daily active users.  
 
** As fashion brands have been lagging with brick and mortar stores, in the last FY Ralph Lauren has increased their number of stores in the US from 224 to 230, and 501 to 530 Globally.  YoY revenues fell from $6.31B to $6.16B (FY ending March 28 2020).