Vera Bradley Inc., Brings Color to Japan

May 2012 -- When Barbara Bradley Baekgaard and Patricia R. Miller started Vera Bradley, Inc. in 1982 in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the idea was to create luggage that would appeal to female travelers. Thirty years later, Vera Bradley has become a fashion leader, with women all over the world carrying their colorful quilted cotton handbags, luggage and accessories. Much less expensive than high-end luxury bags, Vera Bradley is an "affordable indulgence." Today the company employs more than 2,000 people and is publicly traded on the NASDAQ Stock Market.

Why Go To Japan?
In 2009, Vera Bradley's management team decided the time was right to expand internationally. After considering different countries around the world, a tentative decision was made to go to Japan. Sachin Shah, Vera Bradley's Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives, explained the company's reasoning, "We found that the Vera Bradley brand resonated with Japanese consumers. Vera Bradley opened a store in the Ala Moana shopping mall in Honolulu, Hawaii, where 70% of the customers are Asian tourists, many from Japan. Japanese consumers are very sophisticated and are the trendsetters in Asia, so we were pleased with the enthusiasm for Vera Bradley. Japan is still the world's 3rd largest consumer market and very condensed. Japan was a market that we wanted to be in."

As Vera Bradley began to get more interested in Japan, senior managers at the company spoke to friends and colleagues at other companies that had made similar moves into Japan. The company hired a marketing consultant to advise them on Japan and Asia. Vera Bradley also contacted JETRO to inquire about assistance from the Japanese government.


First Contact With JETRO

 
Launching In Japan With Confidence
Rather than licensing their brand or working with a trading company like some foreign retailers, Vera Bradley decided to go to Japan on their own. "Brand consistency and quality are very important to us. JETRO helped us understand our options and gave us the confidence to open distribution in a brand-right way." said Mr. Shah. While this allowed the company to control their own destiny, it also required them to form strong partnerships with service providers like a public relations firm, a third-party logistics provider, an advertising company, an accounting firm and a customer service company. Vera Bradley recognized the important role these companies would play in their success in Japan. Selecting these partners and building these relationships was a key part of Phase 1.

Vera Bradley Weekender Bag in Rosy Posies

Once their strategic partners were in place, the focus was on building brand awareness. To get people interested in Vera Bradley, the company ran several advertorials in Japanese fashion and shopping magazines. The company cultivated relationships with influential fashion magazine editors as well as style bloggers. The outreach effort would also include temporary pop-up stores in major department stores around Japan. These temporary stores would allow consumers to see Vera Bradley's merchandise first-hand, to appreciate the attention to detail and feel the soft fabrics for themselves.

In early 2011, preparations were underway for Vera Bradley's first pop-up store, which was scheduled for two weeks in the spring. The temporary boutique would be on the 6th floor of the fashionable Isetan department store in Shinjuku. Vera Bradley was fortunate to find a buyer at the department store that believed in their product and was willing to take a chance on a relatively unknown company. Then on March 11, 2011, The Great East Japan Earthquake struck.

As Japan dealt with the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami, Vera Bradley was unsure how to proceed. Some within the company did not think it was appropriate to move forward at that time and argued for postponing the first pop-up store. Vera Bradley's management team reached out to JETRO and other partners in Japan to get their input. Perhaps most importantly, they consulted with the buyer at Isetan who they were working with. "He understood our concerns," said Mr. Shah, "but he said that Isetan hoped we would move forward. Store traffic was down dramatically after March 11th and the management at Isetan hoped that the Vera Bradley pop-up might bring customers back to the store." After careful consideration, Vera Bradley decided to move forward with their planned pop-up store at Isetan Shinjuku as scheduled. A large marketing event was postponed until later in the year, but Vera Bradley recognized the significance of moving forward in the face of adversity.

Vera Bradley's new store at Marui Yokohama
opened March 10, 2012

Vera Bradley's first pop-up store in Japan was a big event. It was their first opportunity for Japanese consumers to buy the Vera Bradley brand in Japan. While it was a temporary installation, Vera Bradley's merchandising team had very specific requirements for the space. Most importantly, the space had to look just like Vera Bradley's company-owned stores in the US, with their distinctive furniture and decor. No expense was spared. With just a short window of time to install the fixtures and set up the sales space inside Isetan, the Vera Bradley team worked through the night. When the time came to officially open the doors, the Vera Bradley team was greeted with a line of shoppers eager to be the first to buy the colorful bags. The crowds continued during the pop-up store's short run, with sales far exceeding both Vera Bradley and Isetan's expectations.

Over the next 12 months, Vera Bradley staged 10 additional pop-up stores throughout Japan, with similar results. Japanese consumers are now connecting with the brand and recognizing its quality and value. Importantly, customers are coming back, turning up at different pop-up stores. The patterns and fabrics are upbeat, cheerful and fresh: they make people happy. "Vera Bradley customers often talk about their emotional connection with our brand," said Mr. Shah. "Our mission statement is 'to be a girl's best friend.' We try to live up to that in every way."

As Vera Bradley moves forward in 2012, the company will move into Phase 2 of their expansion plans, opening permanent stores in Japan. The first two stores opened in March in Marui Yokohama and Marui Shibuya. Locations in Odakyu Shinjuku and Marui Yurakucho opened in April and May, with more openings to follow. As their brand recognition grows, Vera Bradley expects that more consumers will shop on their Japanese website. Moving forward, the company hopes to open it first company-owned store in Japan within the next 18 months.

Japan Company Profile

*Note: The opinions contained in this article are based on the experiences of the interviewee. They are not representative of all experiences in Japan or working with Japanese companies, and do not reflect the opinions of JETRO.