The Blonde Salad

Anat   Keinan; Kristina  Maslauskaite; Sandrine  Crener; Vincent  Dessain

Case | HBS Case Collection | January 2015

The Blonde Salad

by Anat Keinan, Kristina Maslauskaite, Sandrine Crener and Vincent Dessain

Abstract

In 2014, Chiara Ferragni, a globe-trotting founder of the world's most popular fashion blog "The Blonde Salad," had to decide how to best monetize her blog as well as her shoe line called the "Chiara Ferragni Collection." A year earlier, Ferragni, together with her team, had already made a decision to transform her blog into an online lifestyle magazine and to build its positioning as a high-end brand. It meant that "The Blonde Salad" envisaged to only cooperate with a limited number of luxury fashion advertisers, inevitably reducing the blog's revenues. Ferragni considered changing the revenue-generating model by incorporating an online market place within "The Blonde Salad," but which strategy and timeline would she need to achieve her aim? Should Ferragni's shoe line, a separate company with a different ownership structure, be merged with "The Blonde Salad" or was it desirable to keep the two apart?

Keywords: luxury; social media; digital influencers; fashion blogger; brand authenticity; digital marketing; Brands; entrepreneurship; start-up; fashion; shoe; Chiara Ferragni; celebrity endorsement; celebrity management; lifestyle brand; digital brand; new brand development; branding; Instagram; online followers; fashion blog; marketing partnerships; brand portfolio; luxury brand; Louis Vuitton; Dior; designer brands; Authenticity; Business Model; Blogs; Product Positioning; Commercialization; Consolidation; Luxury; Brands and Branding; Fashion Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Publishing Industry;

Language: English

Format: Print

25 pages

Educators Purchase

Citation:

Keinan, Anat, Kristina Maslauskaite, Sandrine Crener, and Vincent Dessain. "The Blonde Salad." Harvard Business School Case 515-074, January 2015.

In 2018, Henri Seydoux, CEO and Founder of Parrot, believed that his company was at an inflection point in its history. Parrot had been a European leader in consumer electronics since the 1990s, first developing Bluetooth kits for cars before moving on to electronic toys and, significantly, the AR Drone in 2010 — a remote-controlled quadcopter that was way ahead of its time. In the years that followed, Parrot’s sales volumes and popularity quickly increased. But new players were entering the market. Giant Chinese rival DJI, in particular, aggressively lowered its prices, forcing weaker companies out of the market. If Parrot was to survive the shakeout, Seydoux would have to figure out how to compete in an industry where even well-capitalized companies were collapsing. The questions that he faced were both strategic and urgent. Where to compete and how to win?

The case traces the growth of Maybach from its origins as a pioneer in car manufacturing to its relaunch by parent company Mercedes Benz AG (now Daimler AG). It covers the relaunch strategy implemented by the German car manufacturer and examines the challenges of reviving a prestigious but dormant brand in an increasingly competitive luxury market. In a fast-paced, globalized and ultra-competitive environment, Mercedes is facing a complex set of challenges and needs to find the right strategy to make the Maybach heritage brand desirable and relevant to today’s demanding luxury customers.

Faculty & Research

The Blonde Salad

Abstract

Citation:

More from these Authors