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Mulberry commits to British manufacturing and will consider third factory here

Lauretta Roberts
31 January 2018

British luxury house Mulberry may consider opening a third UK factory despite the higher import costs for leather it has faced since the Brexit vote of 2016.

Chief executive Thierry Andretta told Reuters that the business, which has two factories in the west of England, was committed to manufacturing in Britain. “We want to continue this and I hope one day when we grow perhaps we will even consider opening another factory,” said Andretta.

In the interview Andretta, who joined the business from fine jeweller Buccellati in March 2015, explained the challenges the slump in the value of sterling had presented saying that every supplier it dealt with traded in either USD or Euros.

This put pressure on its aim to keep the majority of its prices below £1,000, he said: "[...] we are still committed to having two-thirds of our collection at (up to) £995, but it is becoming challenging."

The focus on price is key for Mulberry. Under its former CEO Bruno Guillon, the business made an ill-fated move upmarket increasing its prices and ultimately alienating its customer base. A disagreement with Guillon over this strategy led to the departure of then creative director Emma Hill, who has since gone on to launch her own label Hill & Friends with former Mulberry marketing chief Georgia Fendley.

Hill was eventually replaced by former Céline accessories designer Johnny Coca in July 2015 and his focus on re-imaging the Mulberry classics, alongside the introduction of new styles, while keeping the quality high and the price accessible has proved to be a much more successful formula.

Its half-year results for the six months ending 30 September 2017 showed a £0.6m pre-tax loss (2016: £0.5m) on total revenue of £74.6m (2016: £74.5m). Retail sales in the period were up 2% with the UK up 1% and international sales up 8%.

Last year the group officially launched Mulberry Asia, a new company established with majority shareholder Challice to run its business in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. It also signed a 50:50 joint venture agreement with Onward Global Fashion Co, Limited (OGF) to operate its business in Japan.

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