Frye Leather Stakes Its Claim to Luxury

The Frye Company is a case study in how to build a luxury brand in the new economy

I love my Frye boots.  I’ve owned a number of pairs over the years and just got a new pair from Zappos.  Priced at $295 and made with rugged Frye quality leather and all tricked out with straps and buckles, I will enjoy wearing these boots for years to come.  That’s why I was thrilled to learn that Frye had just opened its first branded boutique in SoHo.  Coincident with that boutique opening, Frye also relaunched its website with enhanced search capability and a new look.

Frye is stepping out to create a new luxury brand based upon its ‘cowboy/girl’ western chic, one that perfectly matches the ‘zeigeist’ for authentic quality and value in the new economy where even the affluent are watching their pennies. Frye has leading-edge design covered too, as low-heeled riding boots are the look this fall.

New Unity Marketing survey reveals where the wealthiest Americans shop...

Discount Department Stores like Target and Kohls Appeal to the Nation's Wealthiest Shoppers   

When Apple's retail innovator Ron Johnson joins JC Penney's later this year, he'll already find a critical mass of wealthy shoppers in his midst

Stevens, PA  June 2011 --  Think that the nation's wealthiest shoppers, those ultra-affluents at the top 2 percent of U.S. households with incomes of $250,000 and above, shop only at the toniest places?  Think again.  They are just as eager as shoppers with less disposable income to find good quality at reasonable prices.  That's why they shop at discounters like number one ranked Target, as well as at Kohls, Costco and Walmart just like everybody else, according to the latest survey of luxury consumers conducted by Unity Marketing.

When You Will Know If the Time Is Right for Social Media

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Retailers and small businesses ask: What -- if anything -- should I do about social media?

Social media noise is everywhere these days.  You can't even watch the latest television news without getting an invitation to send your comments to the talking head of the day via Twitter, Facebook, the newscaster's webpage, email, or the station's website. 

Social media has also gone commercial with international brands like Audi running a Twitter hashtag campaign in their ad for the Super Bowl, easily the most expensive television commercial thanks to its huge audience.  Audi's investment in this effort shows the importance they believe social media has attained.