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sent mentionable profits. But up until now,
Scandinavia has not lived up to the development of other markets, the commercial
director explains.
- We have now developed a sales setup with
four independent and strong sales teams
in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland – in Denmark, for instance, we have
hired Kasper Rasmussen, who is a former
sales managerof Gant. We will inaugurate
a completely new showroom during the
fashion week in Copenhagen at CIFF Show-
rooms in Bella Center. In terms of style,
I think State of Art matches the taste of
most Scandinavian men. The look is modern without being too funky and it fits the
average man, because men, in general, do
not wish to look neither old-fashioned nor
stand out too much from the rest by looking
too trendy. All in all it seems that there is
a huge growth potential for State of Art in
Scandinavia, says Marcel Jansma, especially now that in these times retailers should
lokk with a critical eye to their store and
brands-portfolio. Succes from the past is
no longer any guarantee for the future..and
too many stores stick to perhaps wellknow,
but not profitable brands
State of Art’s headquarter is located in a
Dutch backup
small town in Holland, from where the fam-
The State of Art man
is a man of conviction
and quiet passions.
He is focused on his
leisure pursuits, rea
lising that he is not
defined by his career.
His passions are timeless: photography, cars
and gadgets, interiors
and art. He confidently
mixes retro and modern. He favoures a colour palette of neutrals,
he is inspired but not
bound, by nature. Even
in the city, you can spot
him: moving with a
natural grace, eternally tanned from working outdoors; he’s too
rugged and down-toearth to be a city boy:
he had rather be back
on the farm. He has an
air of nostalgia, yearning for a simpler life,
which is reflected in
his style. The authentic denims, tweeds and
checks and the tactile
leathers, suedes and
shearlings all express
his distaste for fakes
and fads. Meet a modern-day cowboy, in the
best sense of the word.
This is Now
ily-owned company controls the progress of
events.
- We have a top professional backup system
in Holland. The company is very well organized. We invested in State of the art Data In-
Behind every man
there’s a great woman
to give you an example. We have developed a
men’s choice of clothing.
telligence to help our retailpartners, with the
help of EDI and state-of-smart technology, we
are ready for new ideas and future. Allow me
B2B-platform, where the retailer can see the
stock status of a certain item on his iPad on
demand. If the product is in stock, we will send
it directly to the consumer’s home address,
while the retailer keeps his profit. Normally
a retailer would loose a sale if a size is out of
his range! The same applies for stores with a
web-shop, which a customer orders State of
Art products. The store keeps all of its profits
– just as if the item was sold in the store, says
Marcel Jansma.
_102
Marcel Jansma is a man with a firm attitude
towards men and fashion. In his opinion, we
must admit that women play a vital role in
- Men are still somewhat insecure when it
comes to buying clothes – and let us face it:
basically only the fewest men take an interest in fashion, Marcel Jansma states. That is
why Start of Art launches a campaign aimed
at women, where women can take part in a
contest when buying clothes for their husband, father, son or boyfriend, where it is
possible to win a luxury spa treatment.
- We know from sales statistics that most
customers buy two items at a time – for
example a shirt with a pullover or a pair
of trousers with a sweatshirt. State of Art
makes a virtue of colour coordinating the de-
liveries. For Autumn/Winter 14/15 we can
present six deliveries with matching colours.
That makes it easier for the shop assistant to
sell two items of clothing that match and it
makes it easier for the male consumer – or
his better half for that matter - to get an idea
of how the items can be matched, says Marcel
Jansma in conclusion.
This is Now. The interview is over. And soon
it is time for Scandinavian buyers to decide
whether this is the season to start carrying
the Start of Art brand in their store.
State of Art exhibits in CIFF Showrooms
B2-110.