As well as becoming master licensee for all items excluding perfume, cosmetics, and precious metals and neckties from the 1 January, 2002, ITOCHU will acquire stock in Lanvin. As a strategic partner in Japan, the company will also move towards expanding the brand’s market through its licence management and the supply of imported goods. Further, Lanvin Japan Co., Ltd, (Headquarters: Tokyo, CEO: Yukari Kagami) will now handle brand image control and strengthen Japan’s marketing strategy together with ITOCHU by acting as a pipe-line for Lanvin’s headquarters in France.
Lanvin has recently put together a new world strategy, signalled by such acts as the appointment of Alber Elbaz as its new ladieswear creative director, and the closing of an exclusive contract with ITOCHU in the Japanese market. This opportunity came about when the company was bought by French investment company W. M. Ambrosia, from the umbrella of the biggest cosmetics manufacturer in the world, the L’Oréal Group. The contract with ITOCHU is not a simple licence tie-up, but involves the company acquiring Lanvin’s stock and building a support system for global business growth.
Further sales growth in the Japanese market will be achieved through the synergy of first-line core items from Paris, the Lanvin Paris line, and the second line, the Lanvin Collection.
