On Friday Drapers dropped a bit of a bombshell story, the main details of which are:
Loss-making menswear brand Pretty Green has appointed advisers to review options for the future of the business.
The brand, founded by the former Oasis frontman in 2009, told the trade journal Drapers it was “not immune to the challenges currently facing the UK high street” and had appointed restructuring and insolvency experts Moorfields Advisory to help consider ways forward, including a sale.
“The growing overall demand for the brand, coupled with a strong online customer base, position the company well to navigate these changes and we are therefore considering all options,” Moorfields said.
So, in a nutshell, what appears on the surface to be pretty bad news. However the closing paragraph hints at a possible future and a thread to hold on to. Like most of you, I have my fingers crossed.
I've asked folks for their opinions, and below is what I've been given.
I'll drop a little bit of opinion in here and there. I know fuck all about the fashion industry so am going to waste zero time playing at some expert. I do know a lot about buying stuff, don't we all. We like what we like and we know what we don't.
On these topics it can be hard to see comments as constructive, a lot will see a negative in that. If I was anyone looking at the brand what you will see is a huge customer base who remain loyal and want to see the brand continue. There are various opinions as to how they do that, but at the heart of all comments is a love for the brand and to see it continue. For anyone at PG, please don't misconstrue what you see, people quite simply want to see your brand continue.
Exclusivity:
This word is kicked about a lot when modern-PG is talked of. It can also take on a number of meanings, I think most think of it as simply the brand is available in too many places, and for some it is available in places that it shouldn't be. Let's not get into the TK Maxx and Sports-Direct discussion, they've been well covered.
The ultimate upshot/downside of this is that a lot more people have PG pieces on their back
I guess this is the core customer at odds with the ambition of the brand. The customer wants something no one else has, the business of the brand want it everywhere. It's a tough balancing act.
Can a brand be both big and exclusive at the same time? And in those terms what does big actually mean?
How big is too small?
Does it have to be available in so many locations on the High St?
Where I live we even had an example of a store stocking PG that was on the same street as the PG store.
Sales:
Okay, we all know where this going. Get rid of these constant Sales. No doubt the House of Fraser deal has impacted the constant sales we've seen the last 9-12 months of course.
But in general people feel the constant level of Sales devalues the brand. It's a hard one to argue isn't it. Would you pay full price knowing a Sale is generally only weeks away. I think in 2018 the brand was in Sale more than it wasn't. That has to be harmful to the bottom line in the long-term.
It also has a wider impact, if you are a shop stocking PG, you have no way to sell full price product when the brand direct is almost always in Sale. It's a simple decision, you'd stop stocking them.
We all love a deal, who doesn't, but there was far more excitement for the older end of season Sales where we were all so feverishly filling our baskets we used to crash the website.
Summer and Winter Sales, with the odd one for a Bank Holiday, etc thrown-in is what people would prefer to see. Items on launch, even though full-price, would be far more desirable. Not many chance waiting 3-4 months to try and get it in a Sale.
Otherwise it's just impossible to defend the DFS accusations. Does anyone think DFS are a high end manufacturer? Do they fuck.
Quality and Sizing:
Now I've grouped these 2 together as they are the most common of complaints. Sizing has been a never ending online gamble, quite a few years back the brand decided to move their sizing down a bit (by several inches across the range). Now that is completely the right of the brand to do so, however for people who had bought into the brand from day one it was a bit of a kick in the teeth. Over the years the clamour about sizing has never really died down, certainly not since they moved to the small sizing. The very original range could be a little long at times, this was all corrected and it has to be said the sizing the years following were damn near perfect and opened the brand to just about everyone.
Slim-fit, man this comes up all the time. Sooooo many people simply do not want to dress in spray on clothing, they want normal or regular cuts that just fit well. I get this complaint a lot, I don't know why they decided to move to something like 90% of the range being this slim cut (I've made that number up, I aint counting it all...). In such a wide range why can't we have options for all ages and all shapes & sizes, it shouldn't just be a yoof brand. You do see it in other brands, guys buying slim shirts that don't sit properly when they sit down, they end up with gaping buttons. That's not slim-fit, that's shit-fit. If you sit down in a slim shirt the placket should follow a straight line
Quality, an old favourite of the masses. What I get a lot is complaints about the materials, shrinkage, buttons falling off, etc. We all used to love the Egyptian cotton t-shirts, however we should also remember that they were expensive.
Items like this one, 100% cotton, from the much revered SS12 range....£90. Would PG customers pay that today or would any post for an item with that price be derided today? Has the customer base moved on?
Regardless of the actual price points, PG items are not cheap and as such PG customers expect to part their cash for a superior product.
I don't buy Polo-Shirts from PG, but there are a huge amount of complaints about them, mostly shrinking issues. This was an issue years ago, but seems to be one that continues.
Range is too Big:
As we watch each passing season the range has got to an incredible size hasn't it. Is that part of a business push to appeal to a broader audience or is it simply to offer the existing customer base a wide choice.?
Personally, I'd have to agree here, purely as a customer and not considering the business strategy (because I have no idea what it is). The ranges are vast now, and as a lot of people have stated they feel like they have a lot of 'fillers' in them.
It's a tough one though isn't it, who doesn't enjoy a good range of choice? Or does this wide array make it all feel just a bit too High St. and not High End.
Someone has commented there is something like 63 jackets in the last range, that does feel kinda heavy (to someone who doesn't know how all this works).
Too many Stores:
Now, I do have a slight issue with this one. In calling for stores to close you are calling for people to lose their jobs, and that's not right. None of us would wish anyone out of a job really would we.
If you look at the recent PG financials you can see that bricks and mortar retail is a hefty hefty cost to the brand. All stores having to outlay a lot before they even get near a profit. Having a shop location is an expensive business model.
If a shop isn't in profit, or perhaps clearing enough profit, then it's understandable a business would seek to close it. I think we all get that.
I lost my local store recently, and to be honest it's a bit shit. It's a shame it ever moved from its original location as it never really got back its atmosphere. Staff turnovers impact that of course.
So many of the stores have some of the best reps for the brand working in them. Look at the longer running stores such as Carnaby and say Cardiff. If you shop there you know the faces and you know it's a good experience. Those people make that.
Trying not to focus on human factors, are there too many stores? Quite likely.
Is their real curse the concessions in House of Fraser? Did they really need them? Did it make sense to have them in HoF stores that already had a PG store in the same city?
Too many re-hashes:
Far too many items repeated each season. There was a lot of whispers some time back over running a Classics line inside Green Label to house continuation items. This would allow items to always be available (Macs, Harringtons, Polos, etc.) with a range of standard colours and some new seasonal ones introduced each year. That made sense but never seemed to happen in any real sense.
For me a lot of the continuation items are absolutely spot-on, but it totally makes sense to move them into their own little space. Maybe reduce down that offering a bit and keep it classic.
Pricing:
Always a good one to start an argument. A lot of people calling for a return to the early days, however let's remember there were £255 jumpers and Harringtons coming in at £270. Are you going to pay for that today, be honest now? £450 Parkas? Fool On The Hill, awesome piece....£675.
Pricing is so personal isn't it, we all have different budgets, and what for me would be an epic spend will be absolutely nothing to someone else.
Sometimes elements of the pricing can look odd, some items simply coming in far more expensive than you'd expect. It is a designer brand, and like it or not you are paying for the badge. That's just how it is. But absolutely does not take away your given right to expect a high end product.
I've had a jump into New Arrivals, quality concerns not withstanding, prices look kinda what you'd expect. The Made in England prices do make your testicles shrivel up, but it is a far superior product.
Where is LG?
Here comes the topical one! A lot of comments that LG doesn't wear the brand anymore, now of course he does, just not as much. He has been sporting a lot of hidden PG in the last year or so. But the thing about LG is that he comes with a rock n roll star wallet, so he can afford whatever gear he wants really. As a musical icon we have an expectation of him in the best of gear 24/7. I don't think he needs to be in PG all the time, just because you own a fashion label I don't think you need to rep it constantly. Now I now my opinion won't reach agreement with a lot of people, that's cool, it's just my take on it. I fully understand the point of those who want to see their lad in their brand.
Where I do agree with folks is this perception he's not involved with the brand as much, he was even quoted last year as saying he doesn't bother with GL anymore (can't remember the exact words, but I'm not far off). The original idea was that nothing would go out that LG wouldn't wear himself. I don't think it's harsh to say there is a lot over the last few years he simply wouldn't wear. So that disconnection equals a disassociation for customers. It's maybe simply the size the brand has got that it's not practical anymore. Maybe LG was happy to step back and hand the responsibility to Pat Salter. Maybe his step away is just a practical thing. After all, he's a rock stage prowler, not a fashion designer.
Now it would be good to see him back in the promotion campaigns, I don't think a soul would disagree with that. It's a fact, any item he drapes over quite simply becomes more desirable. No matter what you knock in the range, if he steps out in it the item will sell. That's life.
There was no cooler campaign than SS12, it was simply sublime
Check it out, great tune, great range, LG just being LG
Get rid of (expensive) collabs:
Seems like ranges such as Hendrix and The Beatles haven't gone down as well as planned. I've actually liked the ranges, apart from the Yellow Sub one which I've commented on before. These ranges are tricky to get right and there is a general feeling they probably weren't worth the licensing costs to the brand.
People loved the themes PG used to employ and the stories behind them. Did that concept simply get too big?
As a Beatles fan I need to turn off that band love to really discuss this one. I have to be honest, they got a serious amount of negative feedback, it just can't be denied. I do feel a bit sorry for PG there, it should be a good fit for them, but for whatever reason it hasn't gone down well.
It's clear there is a massive love for previous Theme or Capsule ranges, I can still remember the serious love for the Dove from above. Okay, Storm ended up a bit of a mess, but looking back it at it now I still maintain it was better than folks gave it credit for. I got a bit of shit off some at PG for my review of that range, but I still maintain I gave a positive review, I had even had my Storm Poncho on the other day.
Remember the Customer:
Now this one doesn't get the same air-time as sizing, quality, etc. but it still comes round a lot. When PG had that Attic Party thing last year (or the year before) I got a lot of DM's asking what it was and how folks got invited to it. When the photos came out it didn't really seem to be a PG customer base. Stuff like that just annoys people, here's a load of photos of us having a party that you aren't allowed to. Not sure how that promoted the brand I would have to agree with. But I got a lot of disgruntled messages. PR BS perhaps, who knows....that's just one example of a few things the past few years that just irritate PG customers. Aye, have a great time, but we don't really need some photos of loads of free booze we can't get access to. I do have to agree with that one, it was strange.
Remember the Tribe, remember where some ranges got Tribe access first, remember in-store events, remember lookbooks and gifts. I think back when those things existed we all felt a bit more connected to the brand. Those simple things made us all feel like we were a part of things.
Remember simply getting some beers in-store, happy days eh. Remember early Sale access.
Going into PG stores was a good experience, good tunes playing, the staff were always ace and knowledgable. It was good chat.
For many now it's just a brand. I think that's a real shame. They absolutely need to carry out PR guff within their 'fashion' industry, of course they do. But maybe the gap between the brand and the customer needs to rebuild the bridge?
Far too many of the original customers feel particularly alienated these days, and that just can't be good.
Black Label:
This one is gonna hurt, it is no secret it's my favourite part of the PG stable. It's an open secret that BL is seemingly to end. That rumour is out there and being discussed.
For many there is a feeling that BL has lost its way, become too casual a collection and not that distinguishable from GL Materials have faded, designs aren't as classic and it's simply missing the Wow pieces are the comments I've see most.
Last one....
Back to Basics:
This message is coming through loud and clear. People would love to see the band return back to the original ethos and culture. It's not so much diluted from that original path as completely erased it is the feedback.
So much love for smaller ranges, more classic designs, less mad mayhem stuff that people outside of London just don't wear, great materials, pulling right back into that rock n roll DNA that runs through the brand.
The brand has evolved into something unrecognisable from its launch incarnation in 2009. Now that's simply evolution of course, backed by a business design and strategy.
Without knowing the inner workings of the brand and what it wants to be all we can really state here is our own opinion. I simply can't argue with this one at all;
scale down
better materials
bring quality up
back to the original sizing
2 labels, Black and Green
keep design heritage and classic
keep the mayhem to a minimum
2009-2012 (and a lot will argue 2013) are seen as the Wonder Years by so many. There is no arguing the designs were top of the game and the quality made the expense worth it. But if it's not the direction the brand want to take then it's an argument so many will lose.
Now I don't know if this is an option for the brand, to turn round and come back to its routes. You can't help think it would be a winner based on the comments. Maybe it's simply not a possible scenario in the current position, and again it's something the people at the brand would have to want to do.
On the last set of financials the brand did £38M of turnover, can you imagine that audience spending their dirty wedge on a range that wasn't simply good, but wow.!
I need to close off, and instead of my own summary I'm going to lift word directly from Pete Puustinen:
"I think I speak for everyone when I say that we all love Pretty Green and we want it to do well. That's why we're critical: we've been with the brand since the very beginning and we have a strong emotional connection with it (which is exactly what every brand would want). We got into Pretty Green 'cause it was associated with our style hero Liam, because the clothes we're different from the mainstream and because the quality was excellent (I'm still getting wear out of my SS11 Egyptian cotton tees 😍). Through the years, all these starting points have been somewhat diluted and that's why we feel a bit lost with Pretty Green now. We'd love for it to get back to its roots or for it to find other ways to succeed. If and when we're being critical, it's only because we value Pretty Green and we are into quality gear that stands out from the ordinary."
If there was any doubt that there is love for the brand Pete blows that away with a sentiment that so many agree with.
Lastly, bring back the green and black bade on GL, and drop the hem pinch tab. That's my opinion....
Peace&Love&Mercy, theSub