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| Peter Williams |
"We like our stores to be more than just shops. I went to a gig at our Kings Road store once – all the clothes were put away, it was sweaty and beer was spilling everywhere – just like a real venue."
Inspired by my fellow finance blogger's post about inglot's success story I would like to tell the story of a guy named Peter Williams, 35 who founded Jack Wills.
Jack Wills is a preppy youth fashion brand that relies on British heritage and values.
Straight after Peter left college 11 years ago he founded the brand out of pure arrogance and impertinence. Now he is chief executive of an upcoming international brand with a lot of potential.
His idea of doing business differs from Wojciech Inglot's. He feels like his imperium should grow slowly. He does not hurry from capitol city to capitol city in order to buy the next location for a new flagship store.
Jack Wills is a preppy youth fashion brand that relies on British heritage and values.
Straight after Peter left college 11 years ago he founded the brand out of pure arrogance and impertinence. Now he is chief executive of an upcoming international brand with a lot of potential.
His idea of doing business differs from Wojciech Inglot's. He feels like his imperium should grow slowly. He does not hurry from capitol city to capitol city in order to buy the next location for a new flagship store.
"Last night, while sitting in a bar, I watched a video on my iPhone of some of our staff cycling to work. The five British shop assistants share a big house two miles from the new store we opened last month in Nantucket island, off the coast of Massachusetts. They have posted online a video of themselves riding pink and blue Jack Wills bicycles, promoting the shop as they commute."
"Opening stores in the US is the culmination of three years of building our brand here from scratch. Many British retailers who try to make the leap across the Atlantic fail because they think “we’re a big brand in the UK, of course Americans will have heard of us”. Once people knew about us, our British look was really popular and I think we’ll make it."
He initiates events in order to promote the brand, and he said in an interview that the US was already speaking about the brand half a year before the first store even arrived in New England. Jack Wills, which is targeted at university students, thrives on word of mouth and viral marketing. Which to me is a success, that outgrows all these fancy revenue numbers from Abercrombie & Fellows. Peter Williams and his idea of a brand that is an event, a lifestyle, a tribute to its heritage and a very preppy fashion accessory is one of the most impressive business models that I have ever come across.
HIRE ME!!! :)
Video of the founder about his founding years:
