La Senza

La Senza Corporation
Subsidiary
Industry Clothing
Founded 1990 (1990)
Headquarters Columbus, Ohio, United States[1]
Number of locations
 125 company-owned stores; 463 franchised stores (January 2011)[2]
Products Lingerie
Parent L Brands (2007–present)[3]
Website lasenza.com

La Senza Corporation is a Canadian fashion retailer that sells lingerie and intimate apparel. The La Senza brand is currently owned by L Brands which operates and owns La Senza stores in Canada and the United States and uses a franchise model for the operation of stores outside Canada and the United States.[4]

History

1990: Founding

Since its first store opened in 1990, the company has grown to include more than 120 stores in Canada and 300 stores worldwide.[5][6][7][8][9] Founders included Lawrence Lewin.

2006: Acquisition by Limited Brands Inc

In October 2006[3] La Senza was purchased by L Brands of Columbus, Ohio for $710 million CAD in cash.[5][10][11]

2012-2013: 1/3 Stores Closed

Limited Brands Inc closes a third of La Senza's stores[3]

Products

La Senza's products focus on lingerie and nightwear but also include loungewear, daywear, and accessories. The concept is similar to that of Victoria's Secret, which is also owned by the Limited Brands corporation.

Operating structure

La Senza comprises La Senza whose parent is Limited Brands Inc and La Senza UK whose parent is not Limited Brands Inc.

United States

In 2016, several La Senza stores opened in the United States on an experimental basis.[12] Two are located in L Brands' hometown Columbus, Ohio, at Easton Town Center and Polaris Fashion Place. One is located in Orland Park, Illinois, and another in Merrillville, Indiana.

Franchise

La Senza UK

Businessman Theo Paphitis bought the United Kingdom and Ireland franchise, called La Senza UK, and began expanding it, eventually with sub-franchises in parts of the European Union. In July 2006 Paphitis sold the company to private equity company Lion Capital, for a reported £100m.[13] Paphitis left the board and is no longer a shareholder,[14] and in the Spring of 2011 set up the new lingerie firm Boux Avenue.[15]

On 23 December 2011 La Senza UK filed for administration citing "trading conditions" as one of the conditions for closure. The company stated that it had 2,600 UK staff at 146 stores and 18 concessions, and announced plans to close 80 stores.[16]

On 9 January 2012, Kuwait based international retail franchise operator Alshaya announced it had reached agreement to take control of much of the ongoing La Senza business in the UK. Under an agreement with KPMG, administrators to La Senza UK, Alshaya UK Limited acquired exclusive franchise rights for the La Senza brand in the UK for an undisclosed sum. Alshaya said it would retain 60 stores, securing around 1,100 jobs while ensuring the continuation of a strong and popular brand on the UK high street.[17] The deal and subsequent plans for the business, which included new product collections and store redesigns, represented a planned investment of around £100m in the UK retail sector over the next two years by Alshaya.[18][19] Difficult trading conditions however continued and by June 2014 administrators were once again appointed to the struggling UK sector of the La Senza business. By this time the group was under the ownership of Marnixheath, which was operating 55 stores in the UK, employing 752 people.[20]

Production

La Senza manufactures some of its products near Kancheepuram in South India.[21] La Senza operates out of malls in India as well.[22]

Clothing Lines & Labels

Defunct

La Senza owned and operated other labels, including La Senza Girl clothing stores for teenagers as well as clothing for younger children, La Senza Express stores for bras and panties, and La Senza Spirit for activewear.

Lola and Coco

In 2008, La Senza launched Lola and Coco by La Senza, aimed at high school and university students, much like Pink by Victoria's Secret.[23]

Robin Antin

In 2008, the creator of The Pussycat Dolls, Robin Antin, was asked to design a Pussycat Doll-inspired lingerie collection for the La Senza brand. The collection uses fabrics imported from Italy and Spain.[24]

Corporate identity

Marketing & Advertising

Models & celebrity endorsements

La Senza does not limit their advertising to high fashion models and often uses high-profile celebrities to endorse their brand.

Models

Similar to Victoria's Secret, La Senza uses high profiled fashion models to endorse their product. Models such as Ginta Lapina, Lauren Gold, Petra Němcová, Isabeli Fontana, Bianca Balti, Yamila Díaz, Doutzen Kroes, Daniela Pestova, Sophie Anderton, Rebecca Romijn, Caroline Winberg, Emma Heming, Jessica Stam, Maria Sokolovski, and Niclyn Rendall have been featured in an array of campaigns.[25]

Celebrity endorsements

Previous celebrities to endorse the brand include Strictly Come Dancing's Tess Daly, Ex Hollyoaks actress, Gemma Atkinson, and English footballer Gary Lineker's wife and commercial print model, Danielle Lineker.[26]

References

  1. ↑ "L Brands (LB) vs. Francesca's (FRAN) Financial Contrast". Ledger Gazette. 2018-02-01. Retrieved 2018-02-02. It operates in the retail brands, which include Victoria’s Secret, PINK, Bath & Body Works and La Senza. La Senza is a specialty retailer of women’s intimate apparel. It sells its La Senza products at over 120 La Senza stores in Canada.
  2. ↑ Brands 2010 Annual Report
  3. 1 2 3 Shaw, Hollie (26 February 2013). "Will Canada's La Senza survive next to more productive, 'sophisticated' U.S. sister Victoria's Secret?" (Retail & Marketing). Toronto, Canada: Financial Post. Postmedia Network Inc. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
  4. ↑ Moin, David (20 October 2011). "Wexner Wary of Overseas, Sees Limited Sales of $20B". Women's Wear Daily (WWD). Retrieved 19 December 2012.
  5. 1 2 "Limited Brands buys La Senza". The Globe and Mail. Montreal. 2006-11-15. Retrieved 2018-02-02. As part of the deal, Mr. Teitelbaum and vice-chairman Stephen Gross will remain in their respective positions, together with Laurence Lewin, president and chief operating officer who co-founded La Senza in 1990.
  6. ↑ "La Senza - About". La Senza. Archived from the original on 2010-04-30. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  7. ↑ "La Senza Head Dies". Canadian Jewish News. Montreal. 2008-11-27. Retrieved 2018-02-02. Laurence Lewin, the president and co-founder of the La Senza lingerie chain who appeared as a judge on CBC TV’s Dragon’s Den in 2006, died Nov. 12 after battling lung cancer.
  8. ↑ "Dragon attack: Laurence Lewin, La Senza". Profit Guide. 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2018-02-02. In 1990, while working for apparel retailer Suzy Shier in Montreal, accountant-turned-computer programmer Laurence Lewin co-founded La Senza, a lingerie retailer that today boasts more than 700 stores around the world.
  9. ↑ "Deaths". Montreal Gazette. 2008-11-13. Archived from the original on 2014-01-23. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  10. ↑ "La Senza takes on Beauty! - Lingerie leader to launch Victoria's Secret Beauty in its Canadian stores". Newswire. Montreal. 2006-10-15. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  11. ↑ "Limited Tries La Senza on For Size". New York Times. 16 November 2006. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  12. ↑ Tim Feran. "L Brands' La Senza to open at Easton, Polaris". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2017-01-03. Martin Waters, president of international operations at the Columbus-based retailer, announced in February that five La Senza stores would open in the United States as part of an experiment to see how customers react to the Canadian chain.
  13. ↑ "La Senza sold to Lion Capital". fashionunited.co.uk. 2006-07-13. Retrieved 2006-07-13.
  14. ↑ "Theo-Paphitis-considers-La-Senza-rescue.html". 2011-12-18. Retrieved 2011-06-12.
  15. ↑ "dragon-takes-the-plunge-into-lingerie-2296348.html". The Independent. London. 2011-06-12. Retrieved 2011-06-12.
  16. ↑ "La Senza to enter administration in UK". BBC News. 2011-12-23.
  17. ↑ Dunkley, Dan (2012-02-06). "Rescue deals come back into fashion". Financial News. Dow Jones & Company. Retrieved 2012-02-17.
  18. ↑ "Blacks Leisure sold for £20m while La Senza finds buyer". BBC News. 2012-01-09.
  19. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-01-17. Retrieved 2012-01-16.
  20. ↑ "La Senza lingerie chain in UK goes back to administration". The UK News. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
  21. ↑ Bhalla, Nita (22 May 2012). "These Indian village women know Victoria's secret". Daily News and Analysis. Chennai. Retrieved Jan 2, 2015.
  22. ↑ "Deepika Padukone at La Senza's event". Times of India. Mumbai. 26 January 2012. Retrieved Jan 2, 2015.
  23. ↑ http://www.drapersonline.com/news/la-senza-to-unveil-leisurewear/834144.article
  24. ↑ "Pussycats on the Prowl at La Senza!". Reuters. 2008-08-28.
  25. ↑ http://www.fashionmodeldirectory.com/models/search/?sub=suchwort_suche&suchtyp=kriterien_suche&suchwort_suche_suchbegriff=%20La%20Senza&advanced_search=1&search_in=array&search_in_select[]=advertisements&start=12
  26. ↑ "Lineker's lingerie lovely: Gary's model girlfriend unveiled as the stunning new face of La Senza". Daily Mail. London. 2008-07-16.
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