Joseph Wan, Chief Executive of Harvey Nichols, speaks exclusively to RLI about the company’s experiences along the expansion trail, his plans for sustained growth and the development of that all-important factor – customer satisfaction.
A lot has happened in the world of luxury retailer Harvey Nichols in the last two years. The company has worked hard to continue to retain and maintain its strong emotional engagement with customers through all aspects of its business, including advertising campaigns, window displays and new products.
In the last two years, the company has launched a new fourth floor concept, premiered a new Yo! Sushi area and has refurbished its fifth floor bar and restaurant areas in Knightsbridge, which have all proven very successful.
“We are working hard to keep renewing and refreshing things, doing more and more to preserve and enhance the brand and thereby retaining that emotional connection with our customers,” explains Harvey Nichols Chief Executive, Joseph Wan.
Harvey Nichols’ most recent opening was a new store in Ankara, Turkey which has been well received and is meeting expectation in trading terms, though it has not all been plain sailing, as Wan explains: “We opened in Jakarta nearly two years ago and it has been problematic, failing to achieve anything near our expectations.”
There is of course a good explanation for this: having signed, carried out construction and completed fit-out, the store launched in October 2008, coinciding with the peak of the global financial meltdown.
“Clearly, everyone was very badly affected, including the high-end consumer in Jakarta,” says Wan. “We are currently in discussion with our licensee in Jakarta with a view to perhaps restructuring the terms of our agreement, to be more favourable towards them and to support them in order to nurture and build the business.”
The good news for Harvey Nichols is that recovery would appear to be on its way and things are moving, albeit slowly, in the right direction.
What was it then that tempted the brand to open a second store in Turkey?
“That is really down to our licensee’s commitment and the fact that they were able to capitalise on the weakness in the economy, taking advantage of a not-to-be-missed real estate opportunity in Ankara that they seized upon, with our support,” he explains.
In September, Harvey Nichols announced the opening of its new fully-fledged store for Asia at Pacific Place, a key and leading luxury shopping destination in Hong Kong.
The store covers 84,000sq ft and will showcase the best that the world has to offer, bringing the latest fashions, global and niche, to Hong Kong and the region. When coupled with the completion of the current contemporisation program at Pacific Place, consumers are set to experience new highs in shopping experience.
For the full article, please see the November 2010 issue.
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