Our approach with Archibald is (at the moment) exclusively direct-to-consumer, meaning our full price comes in at roughly half-to-a-third of the price traditional luxury brands would charge for the same item, made to the same quality. However, in saying this, we do not ignore the fact that Archibald (at the moment) doesn't carry the same name or brand power as the traditional luxury players, isn't as established, doesn't engage in the same (at the moment barely any) advertising, and operates a very lean organization that lives entirely online. So it isn’t alchemy but rather a different approach that comes with its trade-offs. In selling directly, the cost of sale is internalized, and you lose out on leveraging other people’s distribution. So sure, you might pocket a little more per transaction once you consider what it costs to sell the item, but you make a fraction of the sales because you don’t have the distribution.
That is really all that is happening here. A better value proposition is possible, and we are currently operating at the worst end of the value we can offer, given we have yet to hit the scale game. So even though, because of the small quantities we deal with, it costs us more to make an item to a given standard with an equivalent (or better) level of materials and equivalent (or better) craftsmanship than the traditional luxury houses, due to everything we don't do (above) - we can sell items for much less. To achieve scale, we need to convince people of the value of Archibald’s offering and this only occurs when we deliver an item. Hence, initiatives like (Un)dressed.
"Luxury" as a category no longer exists. You have premium fast-retail (Massimo Dutti as an example) quickly closing (sometimes, exceeding) the gap with your premium-to-luxury brands (Burberry, for example) in style and quality.
High luxury, on the other hand (Loro Piana, Brunello Cucinelli, Zegna, Loewe, Brioni), is beyond most people's reach, but ultimately, it is where true quality exists.
Beyond these names, you have smaller, more niche, mid-sized luxury brands that are still compelled to a 6x + markup on their cost to allow for wholesale programs and, of course, mark-down during seasonal sales because, at this point, no one wants to pay the full price. Tack on design costs, inventory pressure, predatory tactics by discount retailers buying excess inventory below the brand’s cost, high cost of borrowing, staying relevant, etc.. and when you consider these challenges, you won’t be surprised why, over the years, much of the production for these smaller/medium-sized brands has shifted to cheaper countries (e.g., from Italy or the UK to Romania) whilst prices have increased.
Retail has become an impossible game unless you are playing at the ends of the spectrum - fast retail or high luxury - or selling something unique or truly innovative. And just to be clear, there isn't anything wrong with them moving their production as the work completed in some of these countries is on par or superior to what's available in, many countries that are still living of their heritage, like the UK. The missing ingredient, over say, truly crafted items made in an Italy or a Japan, is often the experience of the craftsmen, understanding of the product being made, and the surrounding ecosystem that allows for obsessive dedication and for that next-level product to be achieved. Under the right guidance and tutelage, the workmanship is still top-notch, but the brands aren't providing or encouraging that and often further skimp out on the quality of materials used in these outsourced lines.
Finally, you have little-known artisanal brands, often specializing in single products such as handwelted shoes or woven scarves - and you can find many of these peppered around small towns in Italy and Japan. These brands are often owned by the makers themselves, who are also designers, and their focus is to continue a tradition, remain limited by their capacity, and have contained ambitions with what they want to do. Often,, the best brands to learn from are those that offer unique interpretations when it comes to design because you can’t manufacture passion. Part of our vision is to give these brands a platform to reach more people eventually. Pricing here is pretty fair, even at 6x their cost, given what they are delivering and the limitations on their scale.
So, the opportunity for us to capture exists in the gap created in retail - and it's a sizeable one. Notice also that we focus on modernized classics made exceptionally well. So we aren’t looking to replace anyone but rather give customers better access to exceptionally well-made classics (therefore better value) and give artisans more consistency to carry on their work and be fairly compensated without worry.
At (Un)dressed, the value is even more significant, and we hope you use this opportunity to grab whatever you like so you can experience that we are every bit what we say we are.
