Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
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proved to be less difficult than breaking out. Although Boateng's purples and oranges have turned to gold in London, where his custom suits reportedly start at about £2,200 (roughly $3,500), he has yet to achieve the kind of global brand status of a Giorgio Armani. An earlier attempt at expansion to Japan in the 1990s failed, at least in part because of the 1997–'98 Asian financial crisis. Despite a stint as director of men's wear for Givenchy in 2003, he remains best known in Britain. And some think this is exactly where he should stay for the time being. "As far as design goes, there's noth- ing to talk about — the man is brilliant," said Howard Davidowitz, who heads Davidowitz & Associates, a New York City–based retail consulting and invest- ment bank firm. "But running a retail business — there's nothing in his back- ground that demonstrates he can do that." These sorts of rollouts are tough, says Davidowitz, who worked with both Ann Taylor and Paul Stuart when they were opening their second stores. "It's infinitely complicated," he said. "You need all kinds of technology, controls, management — different needs in dif- ferent markets." The franchising model Boateng re- portedly intends to follow should help ease the financial challenge somewhat because franchising reduces the need for capital, but it also creates another set of issues, Davidowitz says. "The prob- lem is [that] now, instead of dealing with an employee, you're dealing with an owner — this is complicated." Although some British brands have managed to achieve global status, many more have failed. "Taking brands inter- nationally is not an easy thing to do," said Alex Finch, chairman of Quarto Ad- visors, a London-based retail and fash- ion consulting firm. "The failure rate of U.K. retail brands overseas is very high. There are some glittering successes, but there are also numerous failures." Another unknown is how well the style will play abroad. After all, what works for David Bowie may not work for the ordinary guy. "It's quite a niche product in a way, because you're not really going for the regularly suited man," said Cavill. Initially, though, Boateng should be on relatively friendly ground: He plans to open a second London store in nearby Sloane Square and to follow that up with a third, in Paris. Finch thinks Boateng could very well pull off the expansion, with the right team behind him. "He's a very dynamic character," said Finch. "He's a great sort of ambassador for the business. I give him a better than even chance." That's no sure thing, but compared to the odds of an immigrant's kid end- ing up as the owner of a store on Savile Row, with movie stars and even a U.S. president on the client list, a better-than- even chance may be all he'll need. SCT 285 3$66,21 ,6 285 0,66,21 ±8S TVSZMHI XLI JMRIWX VMWO QEREKIQIRX ERH MRWYVERGI WIVZMGIW XLEX TSWMXMZIP] MQTEGX SYV GPMIRXW´ XSXEP GSWX SJ VMWO ² ;I HIPMZIV SYV QMWWMSR XLVSYKL SYV TVSTVMIXEV] 'SRGMIVKI 6MWO 1EREKIQIRX 7IVZMGI 1SHIP 7+( $57 2) 5,6. 0$1$*(0(17 3YV *SGYW MW =SYV 4IEGI SJ 1MRH &3%6(1%2 -2(-%2%430-7 (4-4-23 '31 :MWMX 9W MR 0EW :IKEW EX 6I'SR 1EVOIXTPEGI 1EPP &SSXL; 30 SCT / APRIL 2012 &32-8% 746-2+7