Paez

Jill  Avery

Teaching Note | HBS Case Collection | February 2017

Paez

Abstract

Paez, an Argentine start-up fashion brand, sold traditional alpargatas, a sleepy category that suddenly woke up when TOMS, a U.S. company, appropriated the traditional alpargata design, covered it with fashionable colors and prints, and tied it to a social cause. Paez’s founders were keenly aware of the present and future challenges they faced due to the resources and capabilities of their well-capitalized and marketing-savvy competitor. How could a small brand compete against a company that had captured the hearts and minds of consumers? Which brand positioning concept should Paez choose to best capture consumers’ attention and interest and compete against TOMS? How would the choice of positioning affect the rollout of Paez’s distribution strategy and its product line strategy? Teaching Note for HBS No. 316-085.

Keywords: marketing; brands and branding; brand management; brand positioning; competitive positioning; marketing strategy; competitive strategy; retailing; go to market strategy; Marketing; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Retail Industry; Fashion Industry; Argentina; Latin America; South America; Europe;

Language: English

Format: Print

27 pages

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Citation:

Avery, Jill. "Paez." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 517-092, February 2017.

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