THE BEST OF INTIMA – BIANNUAL – JULY 2008 - (Page 142)

Interview Lou, back to bold Lou is treating itself to a makeover, with a relaunch plan backed by a major marketing campaign. As Brand Manager who joined the Vanity Fair Brands lingerie group in May 2007, Sophie Drouard spoke to The Best of Intima and answered our questions. Sophie Drouard, Lou has an ambitious relaunch plan. Tell us about the repositioning of the brand… SOPHIE DROUARD For over a year, the entire Lou team has been pouring a lot of energy into this relaunch plan. Consumer surveys were conducted in May 2007 and last January we revealed the new face of Lou to our clients. But things really started when the first new look collection for Fall/Winter 2008-09 hit the stores. An aggressive marketing plan will be implemented in September. The goal is to position Lou as a high-end, accessible luxury brand, both nationally and internationally. We are building on solid foundations, since Lou is a great name for lingerie. Thanks to its prestigious history, the brand enjoys an excellent reputation and that chic and modern image that is so sought after these days. Lou can claim a combination of elegance and freedom… the “French touch” that appeals the world over. Lou has been synonymous with boldness since its creation in 1946. During the 80s the brand was a pioneer with original campaigns: lingerie was worn by a black model for the first time. In the 90s it was Carole, Lou’s star model, who promoted the fresh and sexy lingerie. The brand has lost some momentum since 2000, but our intention today is to reinject it with daring and creativity to bring it back in step with the times. After all, Lou is chic lingerie for everyday wear. Of course, Lou is going to capitalize on its corsetmaking “genes” and its talent for making beautiful lingerie. But what we really want is to make it a fashionable brand. This is the way forward these days, as women are very much in touch with fashion and are less and less accepting of lingerie that is too traditional and redundant. The woman who inspired and guided us for this first collection is 35 years old, is rather citified, loves fashion and beautiful lingerie, and above all she dreams of combining the two, melding skill and creativity. Today we know that the majority of women aged between 25 and 65 want the same things and age is no longer relevant! Of course, to be more fashionable you have to make choices and put forward a style. We have opted for investing in the design teams. Our motto is “creative chic for everyday wear” and it fits perfectly with Lou’s original identity. How is this repositioning reflected in the latest collection? The Fall/Winter 2008-09 collection is drawn from a piece of fashion history - that of the 1920’s and of the great master, Paul Poiret. After the chaos of the First World War, he liberated women from the corset and created clothing that suited their new way of life. He had a powerful influence on contemporary fashion. Of course, we didn’t want to “ape” this period, but rather draw ideas from it; it gave us the inspiration to achieve what we wanted. The Lou F/W 2008/09 collection models are called Garçonne, Années Folles, Charmant, Music Hall and Couture. They include a very graphic masculine-feminine influence, stylized rose patterns, rhinestones, art deco prints, draping, satin studs, and a general impression of contemporary chic. The preference for dark blue tones, pinks, browns and black is also very significant for the identity of this first collection. As a result, it is very visual. So the tone is set and the warm reception it received from our clients indicates that we must continue down this path. We are going to keep up our efforts to bring this new Lou style to life, because there is still a lot of work to be done. Japan is the inspiration for our Spring/Summer 2009 collection, allowing us to stay focused on achieving a more contemporary style. Between virginal and wicked, Japan is a land of harmonious contrasts. There we find true sophistication, but also a great deal of delicacy and that is a world that appeals to Lou. We pay close attention to what is coming up more and more in the fashion world; giant prints, for example, or combinations of different pat-

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of THE BEST OF INTIMA – BIANNUAL – JULY 2008

Cover
CONTENTS
EDITORIAL
SHOP SCOUTINGWORLDWIDE - Boi’s selection from Asia to Europe
NEWER NOTABLES - Kiki de Montparnasse
- Isabella’s Fine Lingerie
- Etam Lingerie
- Coeur Pistache
- Tanya Bulhoes
- Arthur
- Taye Brasil
- Balls
- Le66
PHOTO SHOOT - Summer in the city
TETE-À-TETE - John Galliano
PHOTO SHOOT - Private Room
PORTRAIT - Wendy Glez
LAUNCHING - Nicole Miller, Marie Jo
- Hale Bob, Niki shapewear
- Jezebel
- Claire Pettibone
LINGERIE TRENDS S/S 09 - Delicate innocence
- Air of refinement
- Blooming cocktail
- Eco poetry
- Ethnic modernity
TALENT - Maud and Marjorie
BEACHWEAR TRENDS S/S 09 - Precious glimmer
- Fresh clear water
- Enchanted gardens
- Vernissage
- Exotic lands
THE BEST SHOP AWARDS
EVENT - Komar
- Chantelle, Radici
- Hug Award
INTERVIEW - Bob Vitale, Wacoal
- Anthony Verbaeys, Marie Jo
- Sophie Drouad, Lou
WHO’S WHO
EXCLUSIVE - Secrets
BUSINESS NEWS - Ea Lingerie
- Donna Karan, Fashion Ribbon
- Samantha Chang, Armani
EVENT - The Femmy Awards
EXPERT - Growing your business during hard times
MARKET OVERVIEW - Russia for everybody
EXHIBITION UPDATE - Lingerie Americas
- Curve
- Mode City
EXCLUSIVE - Intima’s T-shirt no.5
NETWORK EXPRESS - Network Dessous’ 10 worldwide magazines
CALENDAR - Major trade fairs around the world
BEST SELLERS - Brands’ best-selling items for F/W 08
EXCLUSIVE - The Green Factory
FABRIC NEWS - Eurojersey, Dow Fibers, Aquafil
FABRIC TRENDS F/W09 - Sweet glamour
- Sensual skin
- Red passion
- Baroque allure
- Light & shadow

THE BEST OF INTIMA – BIANNUAL – JULY 2008