With the brand 𝙀𝙎𝙋𝙍𝙄𝙏 filing for bankruptcy once again and the company’s impending liquidation, a very special chapter in the fashion world is coming to a close. In the mid-1980s, I had the pleasure of working for ESPRIT—it truly was a pleasure. For me, it was an intense, busy, and educational time—essentially my second apprenticeship. There, I learned how to build a brand, communicate its message, and establish high international brand recognition.
How to conceptualize a product line and give it strength under a unified design umbrella. I experienced internationalism from within (people from 17 nations worked at the EU headquarters in Düsseldorf) and diversity as a core value. ESPRIT stood out because it recognized the transformative impact of architecture and communication design very early on. Above all, however, it understood the importance of architecture for brand-building and brand communication. At that time, ESPRIT was a pioneer in so many areas. While other fashion brands released two collections per year, ESPRIT offered four collections with 12 delivery dates that built on one another. For retailers, this meant continuous sales thanks to a consistently attractive product range at low costs!
I was fortunate enough to work for a time at the U.S. headquarters in Los Angeles to soak up the “essence” of the company. What truly set the company apart was its spirit—the Esprit de Corp.
After the brand, which had been so successful in the U.S., initially failed to catch on in Germany, Karin Köppel was brought on board as chief designer.
𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙜𝙡𝙤𝙗𝙖𝙡, 𝙖𝙘𝙩 𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙖𝙡—that was the recipe for success. She had adapted the American concept for the European market and tailored it to fit. Then things really took off. Incidentally, this is still a mistake companies make today when they internationalize and bring their businesses from China or the U.S. to Europe. They fail to take regional culture into account.
𝙄𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙚𝙧𝙪𝙣𝙜 𝙗𝙚𝙙𝙚𝙪𝙩𝙚𝙩 𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙝𝙩 “𝙘𝙤𝙥𝙮 & 𝙥𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚.”
In my view, it was the innovative power of the ESPRIT concept and the mix of bright minds that allowed the company to grow rapidly. Unfortunately, this innovative power has been lost in recent years. In the end, the company lacked a sense of identity.
What a journey… from a small sewing workshop in an American garage to a global company that generated 3.5 billion euros in revenue and then fell back to zero… and all of that in just 50 years.
Back then, ESPRIT revolutionized the retail industry as a vertically integrated company. ESPRIT’s recipe for success still holds true today and can be applied across any industry.
By the way, I don’t believe that the struggling 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣ä𝙧𝙚 𝙃𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙡 is the result of strong online retail. Rather, the strength of 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙚-𝙃𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙡 stems from the weakness of brick-and-mortar retail. But that’s another topic…
