David Jones are forced to fight a tough battle when it comes to brand positioning. On the one hand, they need to be seen as an upmarket provider of Boss, Armani & other luxury brands, but on the other, they must remain accessible to the bulk of the population... and therein lies the rub. It is nearly impossible to have a brand that is both affordable and luxury, but that is the fine line that the department giant is treading in 2008.
The current 'Pay No More At David Jones' campaign is the latest in a string of position focused marketing drivers that address the way DJ's does business. No doubt wary not to become the next Myer (can't sell anything unless they are having a sale), DJ's needs to appeal to the masses, but offer them a differentiation point from providers of the next rung down (this includes Target if you are looking at that group of consumers).
Affordable Luxury: It is a contradiction, isn't it! I would argue that it can not be done. Although, I have heard my colleges argue that Mercedes and BMW are affordable luxury, still I rebuke their claims and DJ's is no different. What I believe DJ's is really positioning themselves as: affordable experts.
Take suits for example. I went with Dan Hunter (Monash University post-graduate marketing tutor) to purchase a suit from DJ's today. Dan tried on a number of suits from a number of price points and what he found was that DJ's were the experts in suit fitting within every price point. They were no trying to up-sell him, rather find him the correct solution that fitted his needs. As we discussed latter that day, it was this very positioning that lead him to shop there. He knew what he wanted and could have gone to the boss store, but DJ's offered a range (including his desired suit) and hence opened his options for no additional spend.
Josh Strawczynski's Opinion
I have to admit that I was impressed with their setup. The store is broken into segments that are catered for by specific sales staff therein insuring that customers are segmented and served appropriate to their price point. They offered a huge range of alternatives and catered for the rich guy with armani all over him, as well as the 15 year old pimply nerd with in spare change in his pocket. It does fit the positioning strategy well.
Sam Berringer's Opinion
I love that no matter what department I go into, they know what they are talking about. That sort of expertise makes the experience, although I have to say, I still feel like I am paying more for it.'
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