Talbots Celebrates 75 Years in Business, But Looks Ahead, Not Back
In this age of consolidation, downsizing and mergers and acquisitions, Talbots’ 75th anniversary carries some weight.
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In 1947, Nancy Talbot started the company and unveiled the first store in Hingham, Massachusetts. The following year she and her husband, Rudy, moved into a house with a red door, which would become the retailer’s signature. By the ’50s, Talbots was known as ”The Store with the Red Door.”
What started out as black and white fliers mailed to a few thousand names culled from The New Yorker magazine subscribers developed into a mail-order catalogue. By 1965, the company had produced its first full-color catalogue and images with models were introduced the next year. By the time that Nancy Talbot retired in 1982, the company had 30-plus stores and a catalogue circulation of more than 10 million copies a year. In 1997, the retailer passed the $1 billion in sales mark.
Chief executive officer Lizanne Kindler said, “When you’re so fortunate to have 75 years of heritage, what we balance every single day is, ‘How do we stay true to the roots of what has made the brand exist for 75 years and ensure that we’re relevant and modern? We want to be sure that the targeted customer demographic understands that we are here for her today in the way that she wants to shop.”
Through the years Talbots has changed hands a few times — first General Mills purchased it, then years later the the Japan-based Aeon took a controlling stake. In 2010, the two companies parted ways, with Talbots paying debt owed to Aeon and boosting its liquidity to overhaul its business. In 2012, Sycamore Partners revealed that an affiliate TLB Merger Sub Inc. had completed its acquisition of Talbots and Kindler was brought in as CEO.
Knowing that the youth-driven fashion industry can be fickle about tried-and-true brands, the omnichannel business strives to maintain its loyal shoppers while also attracting new ones. Talbots has 393 freestanding stores, 96 outlets, an online business, monthly catalogue drops and nearly 9,000 sales associates — 96 percent of whom are women. The woman-founded company takes an extensive approach to sizing, ranging from 0 to 24. Collections are offered in misses, petite, plus and petite plus.
As part of its “Cheers to 75 Years” campaign, Talbots has developed a 75th-anniversary collection comprised of red styles, playing off its signature red door. Hilary Rhoda was photographed by Daymion Mardel for the new campaign. The company will also be working again with the social media star Barbara Costello, who is better-known as @BrunchWithBabs, to talk up Talbots before the holidays. The alliance came together after Talbots executives noticed that she often wore the brand. They later learned that Costello had done so for decades.
Having served a decade as CEO, she believes that Talbots’ level of quality and style DNA have stood the test of time, but the company is responding to customer demand for fashion-centered and trend-aware styles through its T By Talbots merchandise. Known for a modern, classic sensibility, Talbots stays true to such winning designs as the ”Charming Cardigan,” which is offered in prints and solids. Last year the company sold 245,000 units of that cardigan style. Other 2021 standouts were the 3/4 sleeve bateau T-shirt — 678,000 units; the slim ankle jean — 311,000 units, and the relaxed chino — 260,000 units.
Talbots omnibusiness formula is reminiscent of the founder’s original plan, which combined catalogues, mail-order sales and stores. The retailer is of course now digital, but the catalogue still exists primarily as a traffic-driving vehicle and for marketing purposes, according to Kindler. In October 2020 during the dearth of the pandemic, the company launched Haven Well Within, a wellness-driven, at-home brand and platform that is said to be performing well.
Talbots also likes to have a little fun, which is clear through its ambassadorship with the lifestyle hacker “Babs.” Teaming up with Babs has attracted new customers of all different age ranges and an enhanced TikTok engagement. “When you think about Talbots you wouldn’t necessarily think about TikTok. But it’s good for customer acquisition and for current customers, who use all the forms of social media. We stay on top of that to attract them and to stay relevant,” Kindler said. In terms of the company’s more memorable moments, Kindler noted how Talbots this summer ranked 16th on Forbes’ list of Best Employers for Women among 400 companies. Talbots is counting on Costello, who is the first official brand ambassador, to help rev up more interest over the holidays.
Michelle Obama has provided some of the brand’s livelier moments including wearing Talbots while doing the mom dance with Jimmy Fallon on his late-night talk show. Such public sightings of Talbots-clad celebrities results in an immediate spike in online traffic, brand interest and a boost in social media followers.
Obama’s choice of Talbots — “28 times, but who’s counting” — was “tremendous for us,” Kindler said. Having celebrities wear the brand like Taylor Swift, Reese Witherspoon, Kelly Ripa, Drew Barrymore and Gayle King has been moments of pride.
Kindler said, ”We also typically see the item that they wear sells out, which is of course super exciting for us. Ariana Grande wore a snowflake holiday sweater in an extra large as a dress. She looked amazing. That instantly attracted traffic, new consumers to the brand, and the sweater sold like hotcakes. I mean, you wouldn’t naturally associate her with the brand, but she made it look really great, different and new.”
To celebrate its hometown roots, a series of special events are planned. On Dec. 2, Talbots will be the lead sponsor of “Christmas in the Square,” a holiday celebration in the town of Hingham, where the company has its headquarters as well as a store there. The anniversary collection will be launched in November in stores, online and in the catalogue.
As for what the company’s namesake would make of the business today, Kindler said, “I like to believe that she would be very proud that we have managed to stay true to our heritage with classic styles, quality, versatility and service, while being very modern and relevant in how we engage with our customers. She was someone who was always out there looking for what’s next, what’s new, how do you serve your customers better and how do you build the business.”
To some extent the brand’s heritage has greater impact with consumers, given the past few rocky years, ongoing shipping issues and price increases prompted by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Kindler said. “Customers today look to brands for more than just products. They look for an authentic relationship, an emotional connection. We’re here to not just sell product. We’re here to serve, we’re here to provide an optimism, we’re here to engage to make customers’ lives interesting and frictionless. My goodness, if we focus on what’s going on in the world around us or what we’re just coming off of from the pandemic, you start to realize that the relationships that we have built and the depths of the authenticity that we have in those relationships truly made a difference. That is even more important today. Our customers have endless choices. They shop for anything at any prices they want.” As a woman-founded brand that is women-led, Talbots boasts that more than 90 percent of its associates are women. Women helping women is a huge theme for the company and its customers, the CEO said.
Recalling how the company’s founder abided by the saying, “Take care of your customer first and the business will take care of itself.” Kindler said, “That mantra is very much what we live by and I see that continue. It’s a matter of always being on the lookout for what’s next — whether that be fashion, social media influencers, customer shopping behavior, customer service or anything in the macro environment. We want to ensure that the foundation of what we have built today will secure that there will be decades of growth coming for us.”
Using a digital clientele tool, sales associates can access, track and input information about individual customers’ preferences to better build relationships. Incorporated several years ago, the tool is used to prepare for sales appointments, rejigger shoppers’ memories of specific purchases, discuss loyalty points and other discussion points. “It’s incredible what this has done for relationships with customers and it really arms our associates with data and information to help them create a better experience.” Kindler said. To woo new shoppers, the retailer has aligned with fashion lifestyle influencers, ramping up social media including adding TikTok and giving considerable thought to making window displays that play up the timely relevance of the brand whether that is polished styles or athleisure.
As part of its women-helping-women ethos, Talbots has a long-standing alliance with the nonprofit Dress For Success that helps women become economically independent by offering career guidance and professional attire among other support. Over the last eight years, Talbots has raised more than $9 million and helped 250,000-plus women. For a select period of that time, Talbots partnered with O, The Oprah Magazine to create a capsule collection with some of the proceeds benefiting Dress For Success. Talbots is the organization’s largest corporate donor. In October, Talbots is teaming up with another Massachusetts institution that is in its 75th year, the Dana Farber Cancer Institute to raise money for breast cancer research.
While some of the lessons of the past few years have been about inventory levels, pricing structures, promotions, the most effective management in a constantly shifting environment, Kindler said the real question is, “How do you ensure that your brand, business and customers are satisfied with how the dynamics of today are being dealt with.”
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