Chapter 7 : Business Marketing

       Banana Republic is extremely concerned with the production of their clothing. In order to produce the mass amount of clothing the company requires, major equipment such as those used to create and dye fabrics as well as the factories, computers and sewing machines are needed. Not to mention there are accessory equipment pieces that are used in order to complete the production process. Banana Republic is also concerned with the sourcing of the raw materials they use for their clothing. They are a very conscious and socially responsible company, so Banana Republic as well as Gap Inc. make sure factory conditions are up to standard and their employee’s opinions are heard.

A Banana Republic/Gap Inc. worker in Bangladesh

       You can see a video of a Gap Inc. factory in Bangladesh as well as the efforts to meet employee needs here.

       Banana Republic has also been well known for creating strategic partnerships with different designers and companies for specific lines that they release. In that way, both businesses are being marketed and are receiving revenue from the clothing released in Banana Republic stores. Some examples of this are the release of their Milly collection from the summer of 2013, their partnership with L’wren Scott during the winter 2013 season, or their most recent partnership with the Finnish company Marimekko. With this most recent collaboration, Banana Republic partnered with Marimekko and their designers to create a line with the designs from Marimekko and the classic silhouettes of Banana Republic clothing. Both companies trust enough in each other’s business, reliability, and integrity that they are willing to collaborate with one another. With this agreement and partnership, both businesses will gain more exposure so it is beneficial to the both of them.

A new Marimekko limited edition line advertisement for Banana Republic

Chapter 8 : Segmenting and Targeting Markets

       When taking a look at Banana Republic and their marketing strategy, it is evident that the company is in transition from more of a concentrated targeting strategy to a multi-segment targeting strategy. This means that Banana Republic is no longer focusing on just one specific market segment but rather two or more well-defined market segments.  Banana Republic does this by no longer just focusing on demographic segments; they are also taking into consideration psychographic segments as well. In the past, Banana Republic focused mainly on middle aged professionals with a higher income to purchase their product. Now, they are trying to reposition themselves as a brand and expanding their target market to include millennials, or young professionals. This means they are taking into consideration the lifestyle, motives, personality, etc. of their younger customers so that they can cater to people of a different age demographic. 

Banana Republic's Spring 2014 ad showing younger models in a carefree setting, appealing to a younger demographic

       This poses a potential problem for the future of the company because they run the risk of losing their first target group, however, it seems beneficial for the company to expand who they aim their product at. By adding a younger group to its target market, the older group might start to seek elsewhere for  their clothing since they see the company as changing and becoming “too young.”  This can be avoided though with a marketing mix that will satisfy both target markets. Another potential risk of this new segmentation is that the sales of the new product (should Banana Republic design clothing specifically aimed at the younger customers) can cut into sales of the old product. This is better known as cannibalization. It isn’t necessarily a bad thing for the company, but it could effect the original target market in that they don’t feel like the company is really considering their needs any longer.  

       The most beneficial consequence of this target market expansion is that sales will increase because more people will be interested in buying Banana Republic product. With more consumers to target, the company needs more production of product made for both age groups and a new marketing mix in order to satisfy the entire target market. 

 

Chapter 11 : Developing and Managing Products

       Banana Republic is known as an innovative and fast moving retail company. Like other companies such as Inditex’s Zara, Banana Republic is a company that can be considered a part of the “fast fashion” movement of the past few years. This means that retailers are constantly changing product in order to keep up with changing trends and consumer wants as opposed to releasing collections every season. As a result of this, their product life cycle is somewhat skewed; they don’t have just one product making its way through the life cycle but rather a steady supply chain. However, it is clear that Banana Republic products are not in the decline stage, since the company is still growing and expanding.

Banana Republic and H&M : Two companies constantly releasing products to consumers

      
       This expansion comes as a result of Banana Republic’s constant adaptation to the changing fashion environment and its customer base. There is always new product development since the company is constantly making products the consumers want. They base this development off of customer service surveys as well as market research. Also, since Banana Republic is heavily customer service based, this development applies to its services as well. An example of this is when Banana Republic created their Reserve-In-Store service for customers. Banana Republic is innovative with its products and services, however, it can be seen as a store trying to please its customers, in which case they focus more on what their customers want as opposed to trying to be creative. A good example of this is during their last winter 2013 collection. Banana Republic attempted to stand out by creating their clothing in tons of colors and styles rather than just focusing on what the consumer really wanted. That is why in the future they are shifting their model to specifically provide clothing in the colors and styles that sell the best and please the customers. However, Banana Republic still continues to use a team of experts to develop new products that will keep the customers returning to its stores.

Chapter 12 : Services and Nonprofit Organization Marketing

       Not only does Banana Republic treat their customers with care, but they also treat their employees well. They are a company that utilizes internal marketing, which is when a company is treating their employees as customers by developing systems and benefits that satisfy their needs. Yes, they may be looking for employees to purchase product, but they do this by providing the employees with all kinds of different benefits. According to a store employee, one example is their employee discount, which is an incentive for employees to purchase clothing not only in Banana Republic, but at all the Gap Inc. brands. The company also allows employees to extend this discount to spouses of employees as well as in certain cases partners (for same-sex relationships). Banana Republic and Gap Inc. are some of the few company's that actually recognize LGBT relationships (non-marriage) with their discount. Banana Republic also allows employees to take out Banana cards which allows employees the freedom to participate in regular customer sales. Banana Republic offers their employees these discounts and opportunities because they want to show their employees appreciation for what they are doing for the business. Not to mention, if employees are able to buy their clothing due to the discounts awarded to them, they are more likely to wear that clothing in store. This is a cheap marketing technique, since customers and people outside the stores will see Banana Republic clothing being worn by the employees.
 

The Banana Republic/Gap Inc. Employee Discount Policy

       As mentioned in previous posts, Banana Republic is a very customer service oriented business. One thing they are known for is their reliability and responsiveness to customers. Someone looking to buy Banana Republic clothing knows that they can walk into any of the store locations and be helped immediately. If they can’t find an item, an employee is there willing to find it or locate it at another store. They offer customers empathy when they come in looking for clothing for a specific reason and they go that extra mile to make the customer’s experience a great one. This type of service is intangible; it’s not like the product that they can buy. Banana Republic goes above and beyond just providing a core service because they really want to be seen as a business that cares for its customers. 

Chapter 10 : Product Concepts

       Banana Republic is a distinguished brand that many people associate with good quality products and customer service orientated employees. The products this company offers can be considered shopping products, which essentially means that the products are usually more expensive than a convenience product and they can only be found in a few stores. Typically, these kind of products don't have substitutes, but the consumer does their research in order to find the right product for them. In Banana Republic’s case, there are substitutes for clothing, but a customer would consider the style they are aiming for, their price range, lifestyle compatibility, etc. and make the decision whether to purchase their products or not. There are two types of shopping products: homogeneous and heterogenous. Homogeneous shopping products are mainly for consumers looking for products at the lowest price with the desired features. Meanwhile, when a consumer is shopping for heterogenous shopping products, one can’t really compare them because the price, quality, and features are so different. Banana Republic’s products would thus be considered as heterogenous shopping products. 

       Banana Republic’s products are also released in product lines, typically during each new fashion season along with the company’s different ad campaigns. These lines can include anything from handbags and jewelry to suiting to every day casual attire. In terms of branding, Banana Republic has made great efforts in establishing themselves as a company of distinct quality and customer service and their products are evidence of that. Also, the brand name, including the Banana Republic logo lettering is distinct and known to be that of the company. 

Banana Republic's logo with its iconic lettering

       Hand in hand with Banana Republic’s aim to provide the best customer service possible, the company also offers guarantees on their products to help satisfy their customers. Banana Republic offers an express warranty, meaning they have a written guarantee for their customers. Should the customer need to return a product or they were sold an incorrect item, the Banana Republic written policies would help protect the customers. Not only that, but the policies and guarantees provide customers with knowledge. This is just another way in which Banana Republic is working for their customers. 

One of Banana Republic's guarantees on returns and credits

Chapter 17 : Personal Selling and Sales Management

      Since Banana Republic is a company so heavily concerned with customer service, their selling strategy seems to be that of relationship selling, meaning that they want to interact with their customers so they can get to know more about them and what they want to get out of their experience at Banana Republic. This process helps build, maintain, and enhance customer-business relationships and ultimately long term satisfaction from the customers. This is carried out by the Banana Republic store employees, either through general interactions or services the company offers such as personal shopping and styling. 

  Banana Republic is very customer-centric, and although they pay attention to certain trends happening in the fashion industry, they never fail to consider the opinion of the consumer. The company is always gathering information to help better the customer experience in their stores and there are several touch points such as customer surveys and requested services that help Banana Republic acquire this information. 

An example of a survey given to Banana Republic customers

       As mentioned previously, a huge goal of Banana Republic’s is to retain loyal customers. They do this with their loyalty rewards program, or their Banana card. This rewards program offers Banana Republic’s loyal customers additional discounts and rewards to apply towards future purchases. 

An exclusive discount to loyal customers [cardholders] at Banana Republic

Another exclusive discount available to loyal customers of Banana Republic

       Banana Republic has a pretty straight forward business model, and therefore it requires no sales presentations, negotiation, or cold calls (speaking in terms of in-store employees, not upper management). The in-store employees are focused on developing those long term relationships with its customers and the strategies they have put into place in order to do so continue to bring the company success. 

Chapter 16 : Advertising, Public Relations, and Sales Promotion

       Banana Republic is a company that has used several types of advertising throughout its company’s history. They have utilized institutional advertising in order to enhance the image of the company as a whole and they have also been known to use product advertising, which is specific to certain clothing lines they want to sell. This could be seen with the release of such collections as the Mad Men collection, and their collaborations with designers such as Milly and L’Wren Scott. With their latest ad campaign, it seems theirs advertising has taken on a few of the characteristics of advocacy advertising. It includes images and video of a homosexual couple (as well as many other people in different types of relationships). This demonstrates the company's support of LGBT rights and only a few companies have ever done something like this in an ad campaign.  

An ad/promotion for Banana Republic's L'Wren Scott collection

Banana Republic's latest ad campaign demonstrates support of the LGBT community

       The company doesn’t just use one medium when advertising. They are a big enough company and have enough funds allocated to marketing that they can market their stores and products in many ways. Banana Republic ads can be seen on TV, magazines, the Internet, and on many sources of outdoor media such as billboards, bus stop shelters, buses, etc.. Banana Republic’s marketing team extensively researches the best places to place their ads in order to reach the most eyes and this is all part of the company’s marketing mix. 

One of Banana Republic's ads on a billboard

       In terms of publicity, Banana Republic (as well as its parent company, Gap, Inc.) has been known to send press releases in order to draw attention to new products or something the company is doing. Good press releases can often build up consumer excitement and goodwill about the brand. Should anything go wrong within the company, a crisis management team will step in in order to communicate with the public in a more efficient way. The company’s website is also an integral part of the company’s public relations. It introduces new products and provides information to the media. There are online reviews and it is also connected to the company’s social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. 

       One of the most important aspects of the buying experience at Banana Republic is their frequent buyer program, or their Banana card. Banana Republic believes that by getting a consumer to take out a Banana card it will create longterm customer loyalty. It also makes for a happy customer. With a card, customers get special promotions they wouldn’t normally, special services are offered to them, and rewards are received for every purchase (almost like a “cash back" that can be redeemed at all Gap, Inc. stores). Banana Republic believes this program is important for maintaining a good relationship with its customers. 

The "frequent buyer program" or rewards program that is offered to Banana Republic customers