Listening to your customer base is a tried-and-tested method that usually leads companies to better results. For Lands’ End, it led to the creation of Lands’ End Baby.
The Dodgeville, WI-based apparel and home goods merchant will launch the product line on its Website on Nov. 1. Just ask Michele Casper, director of communications for Dodgeville, WI-based apparel and home goods cataloger Lands’ End. The babies’ apparel line will also be featured in holiday catalogs and in 50 Sears stores. Sears is the parent company of Lands’ End.
“We really listen to what our customers are asking us for,” says Michele Casper, Lands’ End’s director of communications. “It was an area where we were not meeting our customers’ expectations.”
Casper says Lands’ End Baby is a natural progression because “we have a kids’ business and we have a toddler’s business. Now, this will join the rest of the family. We didn’t want to forget about the newborns. It’s definitely a natural fit for us.”
Besides Lands’ End Baby, this month the venerable cataloger/retailer relaunched its lingerie apparel business, called Intimates. “We’ve expanded the assortment, adding more specialty products,” Casper says. “There was an opportunity with the Intimates business to offer her more. We’ve had an Intimates business for a while, but it was more of a basic line.”
Included among the newer items are lace, embroidered, and satin bras, camisoles, and hosiery. “We’ve made it more pretty,” Casper says. “Our tagline is ‘Beauty from the inside out.’ We want to add a beautiful selection and assortment in our catalog. We’re really rounding out the collection in terms of Swiss lace, embroidery, detailed trims, and different cuts for better fit and style options.”
And in July the 43-year-old company launched Cool Blue, a patented line of clothing and accessories for children and pets that has illuminated strips to keep the wearer visible from a distance of up to 1,000 feet. The garments, which feature a rechargeable battery pack and are based on technology used for airport landing strips, build on a line of children’s wear featuring reflective tape launched a few years ago.