Time for Something a little bit different; A Peruvian apparel Company vs. a Goliath (Cont’d)
We continue our review of the Peruvian apparel maker, Tela. A couple weeks ago, we presented the case study here asking our readers how should Tela position itself.
Alejandra has been given a false choice. Yes, finding the right positioning is critical, especially for a small company facing serious competition. Yes, it’s important to develop a clear, simple message. And yes, you have only one chance to own a piece of consumers’ minds. But like life and careers, brands don’t fit into neat boxes. The business is always going to be deeper and wider than a one-sentence tagline. Instead of picking a statement that she’s not comfortable with, Alejandra needs to find the mission she wants to champion.
Unfortunately, the process Tela is using won’t yield that. The group needs to back up a bit. Alejandra should spend the little money she has on internal research first. Instead of asking how consumers view the brand, the company should ask questions like: Who is Alejandra? Why did she start this business? What are her values and personal interests? What is she trying to achieve with Tela? Market share is relevant, but it’s not a destination in itself. Is Tela about livable wages? The number of women empowered? These questions can help the company get to the core of who Alejandra is, what Tela stands for, and how it ultimately defines success.
Consumers are capable of appreciating layered messages.
Once the group has done that deep internal research, it can look outside the firm—not just to consumers but also to retailers, suppliers, and the weavers themselves to find out what those stakeholders think.
During the nine years when I ran Zico, we had three or four distinct positioning statements, but they all came back to our social mission. This was our touchstone: We wanted to see people drinking something more healthful, especially in a world of sugar-laden beverages. We initially positioned Zico as a postworkout replenishment for yogis. It was a very narrow choice, but we were able to reach a broader audience through that community. We eventually expanded to include endurance athletes and others. But we always came back to the mission of promoting healthful living—for our customers, our team, and the people in the communities where we sourced our coconut water.
Tela should expect that its message will similarly morph over time, but it should always return to the soul of the company: having a deep, sustainable impact on Peru and its people. It’s possible to convey that while also signaling that the product is affordable and authentic.
Soledad should give consumers more credit. They are capable of comprehending and appreciating layered messages; the days of having to be authentic or affordable or socially responsible are gone. It’s hard to come up with an elegant multifaceted message, but it’s not impossible. That’s what the group should aim to do: find a positioning that encompasses all the things Alejandra and her team care about. It might try something like: “Tela is the fabric of life. Fabric that warms us, protects us, connects us, inspires us, and benefits all of us.” That would feel more like a mission and would attract investors, retailers, and consumers. People don’t want a tagline; they want something to believe in.
Alejandra needs to focus less on Saira and more on Tela. You can’t fly blind in the face of a large competitor, but it’s far more important to know what you stand for. If the message is not true to her, it won’t be true to anyone else.
Soledad is right that you can’t be all things to all people, and it would be a big mistake for Tela to try. One of the major problems brands face today is dilution: too many messages aimed at too many target groups. This may work in the short term, but eventually sales and performance will suffer, because nobody knows what your brand stands for. Alejandra can avoid this by picking one direction for her company’s marketing—not a combination—and sticking with it for at least a few years.
It’s important to put a stake in the ground with a clear, consistent message.
This case is loosely based on our experience at Paez, a maker of traditional Argentine alpargatas. Several years ago we took stock of our brand position and realized we had been confusing consumers. One year we’d talk about our social mission of building meaningful manufacturing; the next year it was our heritage. Like Alejandra, my cofounder and I were passionate about everything we were doing, so we wanted to promote it all. But the result was confusion. In Argentina consumers said Paez was about design. In Asia they said it was about being yourself. An added complication was the fact that TOMS, a clear leader in the alpargata and now the casual-shoe industry, had beaten us to the social mission message and was doing a great job with it. So we admitted we had made a mistake and froze everything until we could figure out one strong message.
Through internal discussions and consultations with agencies and mentors, we landed on a lifestyle message—Paez is about “enjoying the ride”—and we’ve stopped talking about other aspects of our company and product, at least for now. We want our brand to inspire consumers to be more independent, appreciate the journey they’re on, and not take life too seriously. Once they understand that this is what we represent, we can add other important messages. We still plan to talk about our social mission and the authenticity of our product, but when we do, it will be under the umbrella of our lifestyle brand.
Tela needs to find its focus too. The positioning I find most compelling for it is authenticity. This is a Peruvian company founded and owned by someone giving back to the country she loves. If Tela can communicate those values in a creative way, it will have a leg up on the competition.
It shouldn’t obsess about Saira. When you’re David to a Goliath, it’s tempting to try to exploit your competitor’s weaknesses, but that’s not enough to build a brand around. To feel fresh to consumers, you have to find your own niche, story, and products.
Alejandra seems very hesitant, almost afraid, to make a choice, but she shouldn’t be. It’s better to choose a position than to be in the middle of nowhere. If that position doesn’t work, or if (and likely when) the competitive landscape, consumer preferences and values, or the company itself changes, you can always add to or adjust it. But it’s important to put a stake in the ground now with a clear, consistent message.
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