International Retailing | Page 12

CHOSEN COUNTRY The chosen country to expand Lorna Jane as an organic growth move is in the United Kingdom. After nearly reaching saturation in Australia and taking over America, Lorna Jane believes that the United Kingdom is the next place to bring Lorna Jane, due to the fitness industry rising in the past couple of years. According to a press release written in June 2014 about the state of the UK fitness industry, for a first time ever numbers have exceeded 8million for people becoming gym members, with a market value of over 4 billion pound. A 2014 Press Release stated the following - ‘The 2014 report highlights that the industry has experienced another year of growth over the twelve month period to the end of March 2014, with increase of 3.9% in value, 1.5% in the number of fitness facilities and a 4.5% rise in the number of member.’ This report shows that the fitness and health industry is becoming increasing more popular as people are becoming more conscious about their body and health. After looking at different cities around the United Kingdom it was made apparent that the best city to launch a Lorna Jane store would be London. Other cities looked at were Birmingham, Manchester and Bristol. These cities didn’t have the background, the population and following as much as London did. When it comes to marketing and selling a product, Lorna Jane wants to see women that are an inspiration to others wearing their clothes. Most of the English fitness fanatics that have a huge following on all social media platforms are living in London. London is the capital city of the United Kingdom, and has a population of 8.6 million. The city is south of the country and is a very popular location for tourists to visit as well as people from around the UK. The chosen location for the store within London will be Covent Garden. There is a good presence of stores, but not too many to overcrowd the location. Although one of Lorna Jane’s competitors, Lulu Lemon, is located here, this could be a positive choice to help branch the companies brand awareness to their target market. UNITED KINGDOM Lorna Jane does not have any stored within the UK market, however they still have a slight presence. Lorna Jane’s british consumers can now purchase a selection of Lorna Jane products online at www.houseoffraser. co.uk and activeinstyle.co.uk. Although it was known that Active in Style did not have any stores, clarification was needed to see whether House of Fraser stocked Lorna Jane in-store as well as online. Upon multiple communications to their Head Office, it was confirmed that Lorna Jane is only available online.