Founded in 1987 by Gerard Le Goff, IKKS began life as a junior brand with a unique and disruptive DNA that adopted adult styles and utilised them in the junior category. This was then extended to womenswear in 1999 and to menswear in 2003. In this interview, RLI sat down with CEO Ludovic Manzon to speak about the growth of the company and what its plans are in 2023 and beyond.
The brand manifesto for IKKS is “Made by and for free spirits”, meaning that the company emboldens people to embrace their “Free Spirit” state of mind by being uniquely themselves.
This mind-set is reflected through the company’s collections and their four different stylistic pillars. The first is called Urban Cargo and this takes its roots from the passion Gerard Le Goff had for the ocean. Additional pillars are Urban Rock and Urban Military and together these three pillars lend themselves to the women’s, men’s and junior ranges. The fourth pillar is dedicated to the company’s menswear category and is called Urban Lab which combines a minimalist style with functional performance.
Despite the global challenges in the past couple of years, IKKS has ridden these waves without too much of an impact to the company or its sales. IKKS CEO Ludovic Manzon believes that the government support they received, along with their own efforts to cautiously manage their costings gave them the platform to invest in the future of the business.
“Our online business now represents 20 per cent of our business compared to 15 per cent before the pandemic. As such we utilised the time in lockdowns to accelerate our online business as part of our overall mix, through brand and product content, consumer services, digital technology & loyalty program investment to recruit and retain more and new consumers,” Manzon explains.
London, UK
Today IKKS operates around 800 stores, with more than 600 of these being in France. The remainder of their portfolio is spread across Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland and the UK in Europe and throughout the Middle East and China.
Recently the company made its debut in the UK market with two store openings, the first launched back in May on Carnaby Street and this was followed by a site on King’s Road in July. Meanwhile last month they opened their fifth store in Shanghai. Across their entire store fleet, the idea is to reflect the brand DNA through the raw materials and the concept is about customers experiencing the values of the IKKS brand.
“It is all about simplicity and authenticity, integrating all members of the public and making the shopping experience joyful and great. We have adopted our Parisian concept in London, keeping the rock vibes and easy chic spirit of our collections, displaying key looks and focusing also on accessories,” highlights Manzon.
Looking to the development pipeline, the CEO comments that in the UK market they will learn from their two recent launches in terms of product mix and customer service and then expand gradually next year. Outside of the UK, they have re-entered China and will spend the next couple of years consolidating their market position in this country as well as across Europe by refurbishing their existing stores with a new retail concept.
London, UK
When discussing the topic of social media, Manzon comments that it is an important part of IKKS’s core communication strategy with brand ambassadors in various countries promoting the brand and contributes to building the IKKS community. It also acts as a line of direct communication between company and client to share their latest product developments, early bird releases and limited edition products.
As the business looks to continue combining both a physical and digital experience for their customers, they have completed the re-platforming of their online store for both IKKS and I.Code (one of their additional brands) to offer their consumer a more immersive experience and easier navigation combined with better mobile response, improved service efficiencies, such as payment facilities, browsing and brand communication.
“We were also the only French brand to take part in the first Metaverse Fashion Week, establishing IKKS in a long-term strategy as the Metaverse is integral to our roadmap. Alongside the virtual space, we will open a two-storey flagship devoted to our menswear collection and our new muse, Fabio Quartararo (MotoGP World Champion),” says Manzon.
London, UK
Whilst discussing the key drivers behind the success the brand has enjoyed and what makes them stand out, Ludovic explains that the childrenswear line is at the heart of their history and success. It is where it all started and it is still the company’s second biggest segment when it comes to sales.
Today it is the womenswear segment that represents the core of the IKKS business which is supported by their stylistic pillars and a strong anchor in Urban Rock that differentiates their offer from competitors with recognisable icons and their expertise in leather as their core fabric.
Meanwhile, menswear is a growing segment that is supported by its unique stylistic pillar Urban Lab, which mixes style and functionality and this has been met with growing success by their consumers and is a strong point of difference versus their competition.
London, UK
As our time with Ludovic runs short, we ask him what lies ahead and what is the greatest challenge facing the company?
“The environment in the last two years has significantly disrupted the supply chain, leading to such things as price increases in raw materials, production and freight cost and lead time reliability. In addition to the pandemic, climate changes are impacting the way consumers shop, dress and purchase and we must continue to evolve and grow our brand to continue its development successfully.”
Meanwhile, menswear is a growing segment that is supported by its unique stylistic pillar Urban Lab, which mixes style and functionality and this has been met with growing success by their consumers and is a strong point of difference versus their competition.
As our time with Ludovic runs short, we ask him what lies ahead and what is the greatest challenge facing the company?
“The environment in the last two years has significantly disrupted the supply chain, leading to such things as price increases in raw materials, production and freight cost and lead time reliability. In addition to the pandemic, climate changes are impacting the way consumers shop, dress and purchase and we must continue to evolve and grow our brand to continue its development successfully.”
