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EditorsJan 17, 2012
The allure of Anthropologie
I was intrigued to learn that the new CEO of industry stalwart David Yurman Inc., Glen T. Senk, comes to the company from Urban Outfitters Inc., where he is credited with helping to grow the company’s Anthropologie brand from a...
I was intrigued to learn that the new CEO of industry stalwart David Yurman Inc., Glen T. Senk, comes to the company from Urban Outfitters Inc., where he is credited with helping to grow the company’s Anthropologie brand from a single-store prototype into what it is today.
That is: a $1 billion-plus brand with stores all over the country, as well as a few now outside the U.S., and a strong online presence.
According to Yurman, Senk was selected for his “creative vision” as well as his “exceptional record of success in developing and expanding powerful multi-channel, multi-national retail and wholesale brands.”
If Senk had a hand in developing Anthropologie, which I believe offers one of the best retail experiences available today, then it certainly seems he will be an asset to an industry that is in need of a creative spark, both in stores and online.
I don’t shop in many national chain stores. Smaller boutiques like those found around New York’s East Village are more my style. But I do love Anthropologie and will make it a point to go in every time I see one no matter where I am in the country.
I love the way the stores are configured. They’re more like a cozy house--with beautiful wood floors and vintage-inspired furniture--than a store. I don’t necessarily even feel like I am shopping while I am in there, though the credit card bill I later receive suggests otherwise.
On a recent visit to Anthropologie, I noticed that they had launched a do-it-yourself charm necklace feature. Not unlike Pandora, Chamilia or the other bead brands that have become major sellers in recent years, the DIY Charms gives customers the chance to pick a chain style and then build a personalized necklace by choosing their own charms.
Customers are free to pick as few, or as many, little baubles as they would like, with the idea here being that they, hopefully, return to the store in the future for more charms or to swap out old ones for something new.
Sound familiar?
Anthropologie also has do-it-yourself charm functionality on its website, a cleverly designed interactive 
it via Facebook and/or Twitter.)
But, don’t just take my word for it. Here are a few thoughts from my best friend, who is my age (we’ll say early 30s), also an Anthropologie shopper and who recently bought a suite of bridesmaids’ dresses from the store. After hanging on to the dresses for a couple months during some back-and-forth with her mother about the style, she returned them all for a full refund.
Here’s what she had to say about why she likes the store so much: “It’s not just the vast array of clothing and accessory lines from Anthropologie that I like or the fact that I know when I walk in, the problem won’t be finding something but, rather, finding too much. But it's the accommodating customer service that keeps me a fan for life. No questions asked on returns that can be taken back at any point, which they’ve been nothing but gracious about, emailing my receipts to me when asked, discounts in honor of a birthday and bending over backwards to help when I have questions about merchandise. The always-cheerful staff is obviously trained to know how to cherish their clientele and do everything in their power to keep them happy.”
The ability to establish and keep customers for life; that sounds like an asset any jewelry CEO should have.
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