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Group Project – Marketing 201 (Fall 2014)
Hadeel Al Dhubaibi
Zainab Babaaish
Aishah Yousef
Sabrina Anderson

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Table of Contents Page
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3
PART 1
1.1 Introduction (brief description of the selected company) 4
1.2 Corporate Mission 5
1.3 Core Competencies 5
1.4 Marketing micro-environment 5
1.5 Marketing macro-environment 9
1.6 Current Brand Portfolio. Gap Analysis (expected,augmented, and ideal) 11
PART 2
2.1 Summary of the intended strategy for the proposed new product/service 12
2.2 Value Proposition 12
2.3 Segmentation Strategy/ Target Consumers 12
2.4 Intended Positioning 13
2.5 Marketing Mix (proposed) 13
-Product 13
-Price 14
-Place (marketing channels) 14
-Promotion (integrated marketing communications) 14
2.6 Conclusion 15

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This report provides key findings from the situational analysis of the British fashion retail
company named Topshop in the United Arab Emirates. Topshop is a successful company in
strategically delivering the demanded products in the fashion industry, pleasing consumers of the
United Arab Emirates specific preferences according to styles, trends, and culture. Consumers of
the region have a unique consumer behavior in which companies can benefit from by expanding
their current marketing strategy. This can be achieved by creating a new division, brand, or line
extension and media relation channels.
Our recommendation to Topshop is to create a new brand extension of childrens
department that provides apparel, footwear, and accessories. Introducing a new brand extension
for children allows Topshop to adopt a new target market, profit greater, and meet the needs,
wants, and demands of the consumers of the region. The proposed marketing strategy for a new
brand extension is for the purpose of increasing sales, attaining a sustainable competitive
advantage, and most importantly, capturing customer value and satisfaction. Creating a new
brand extension of children’s apparel, footwear, and accessories will also build strong customer
relationships because consumers will find convenience and practicality in purchasing trendy
merchandise for themselves and children, all in the same one-stop shop.
Topshop currently has two websites; one for the Women’s department
(www.topshop.com/) and one for the Men’s department (www.topman.com/). Proposed key
marketing strategies for the new brand extension include the development of a new website just
for their children’s department. It will have featured items according to current trends, sales
promotions, and discount for students, similar to the already existing Topshop websites. In this
digital age, it is mandatory to have several media relations in social media, for example. There
will be an account for Topshop’s new brand extension on every media channel including
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, Pinterest, and Tumblr. Topshop also has the opportunity
to further utilize in their media relations by seeking to be featured in several popular fashion
magazine publications, billboards, advertisements, event sponsoring, and public relations. The
sole purpose of seeking these marketing strategies is to connect with more consumers, and reach
high exposure of the brand. Topshop could also benefit from scouting for brand ambassadors that
are hired by the company itself to market, promote and endorse the brand. Furthermore, Topshop
already showcases its Women’s and Men’s apparel in the London Fashion Week fashion shows

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continuously, therefore, the company should add a children’s department segment into the
fashion shows. Topshop can also begin to participate in international fashion weeks at top
destinations including New York, Milan and Paris. Fashion week is a week long fashion industry
expo which is held in many fashion capitals in the world where designers and fashion “houses”
showcase their newest seasonal collection for journalists, publishers, buyers, and consumers to
keep up with the latest trends and to forget about the old ones. In conclusion, Topshop has
successfully reached a stable position in their market, however there is an opportunity for them
to succeed further with a brand extension of a new children’s department.
PART 1
1.1 Introduction to Topshop
Topshop is a British fashion retail company that was founded in 1964 as a new brand
from the women’s department store Peter Robinson’s. Today, Topshop is owned by Arcadia
Group, Ltd. and has developed a line extension by introducing new apparel, footwear, make-up,
and accessories, as well as a whole new brand extension called “Topman” which targets young
adult males with trendy men’s apparel. Because the company Topshop has a wide customer base
that includes both genders from several age groups, it has branded itself through providing
trendy street style that has become extremely popular among its customers. Specifically,
Topshop caters to the younger generation by popular culture street trends, and also by giving
students a generous 10% discount on all items. Topshop has successfully delivered to the market
that they have now expanded their business with approximately 500 locations in over 37
countries, including over 300 stores in the UK. Also, Topshop is now a completely debt-free
company.
Topshop is present on social media and active in various activities that identifies as their
media relations. Topshop’s main media channels are mainly Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter,
Youtube. In addition, Topshop also owns an online blog webpage named “Inside-Out.” Topshop
also continuously participates in London Fashion Week fashion shows, charity sponsoring, and
designer collaborations with Christopher Kane and Kate Moss, that have benefitted their unique
image and importance in the fashion industry. Topshop also is proactive in displaying Corporate
Social Responsibility (CSR) by sponsoring mundane charities and organizations.

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Although, the company has reached astounding goals, an opportunity that Topshop has
not yet explored is the creation of a new department for children. This is a new brand extension
that has been proven successful, by Topshop’s fiercest competitor, Zara. This is an proposed
opportunity we will explore in this project, and will hopefully develop a marketing solution
which is a new brand extension that will broaden Topshop’s target market, reach a wider age
range, which in end will bring about more profit to the company and expand their consumer
satisfaction.
1.2 Corporate Mission
Topshop’s mission is to produce trend-setting designs at budget prices. The Topshop
Website reads that the company is “on a mission to bring style to [consumers], wherever they
are.”
1.3 Core Competencies
The main core competencies for Topshop is the brand name and the high street fashion
that it offers. Topshop is constantly on top of the newest trends in the fashion world, and it has
developed a brand name that has become known to those that are fashion conscious. Topshop
does not participate in the Government’s Workfare Scheme in the United Kingdom.
1.4 Marketing micro-environment
Topshop’s microenvironment includes its competitors, customers, suppliers, and
distribution channels.
- Customers:
The best way to group Topshop’s customer base is with age. The brand is youthful and
attracts males and females whose ages range from around 15 to 29 years old. The UAE having
one of the highest individual consumer spending habits in the Middle East provides Topshop
with a great opportunity to enter and develop in its market. UAE teenagers are also considered to
be some of the highest spenders compared to other teens in other countries around the world.
(News, 2012) Topshop targets those teens and attracts them to buy their products with incentives
such as 10% discount on the products found online and in store. (Topshop) Over 200

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nationalities are living in Dubai which means that Topshop in Dubai’s fashion market should not
only accommodate its products to the Emirati culture but also to the many other cultures that are
found there. (News, 2014) Hence, getting an even wider consumer base. The targeted age
category living in Dubai are used to luxurious living patterns and are very aware of trendsetting
fashion designs making it easier for Topshop to attract them through their different collections.
However, it also makes it somehow difficult for Topshop because they have to stay ahead of
their competitors in terms of their innovative designs and their strategies of reaching and
communicating with their consumers. Topshop has a strong position in the UAE market to its
targeted youth consumers because the products that it offers them meet their needs.
- Designers:
Topshop has collaborated with some of the biggest designers in the fashion industry to
produce glamorous pieces inspired by the catwalk for Topshop’s customers. Those designers
include Alexander McQueen, Christopher Kane, Kate Moss and many others. (Group)
- Suppliers:
Arcadia group is mainly responsible for supplying Topshop. Topshop works closely with
them. Arcadia’s relationship with their suppliers around the world is strong. 54% of Arcadia’s
suppliers have been with them for over three years. All of this group’s products have been
manufactured in around 983 plants through 757 suppliers. Its top suppliers deliver 43% of the
group’s products. China, Turkey, Romania, Mauritius and India made 75% of the products sold
in 2014. (Group)
- Distribution channels:
Topshop uses different physical and virtual channels to communicate with its audience
and distribute its products. Those channels include the following:
❏ Topshop App: Allows potential customers to easily shop, save, and share their favorite
clothing pieces across different social media platforms and by email. One of Topshop’s
innovative approaches is that it came up with a feature in their app that allows people to

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scan barcodes in any Topshop store in order to check for stock availability anywhere in
the world. The app is available and optimized for different operating systems. (Topshop)
❏ Independent Stores: Topshop is operating in 37 countries with around 510 stores.
(Times, 2013 ) Six Topshop stores are found in the UAE. Four of those shops are located
in Dubai in well-known shopping malls such as The Dubai Mall, Mall of the Emirates,
and Mercato. The other two stores are located in Abu Dhabi. (Topshop)
❏ Online Websites: Topshop has two websites. One for Topshop that sells female clothing
pieces and another for Topman, which is the male clothing line extension of Topshop.
The websites allows potential shoppers to explore different product categories offered,
shop online, share favorite pieces on different social media channels, and register for
newsletters regarding Topshop’s upcoming events and collections. The website also
allows users to register themselves to allow the track down of their purchases and to
remember them and their information whenever they visit the site in order to recommend
them about pieces that would match their styles or budgets.
-Product Analysis:
Topshop sells a variety of products that include clothing, shoes, make-up and accessories.
It has different collections for its various products, which are the following:
❏ The mainline collection that includes products with styles based on what is hot in the
fashion market in each season. (Topshop)
❏ The premium collection includes products that are slightly more expensive than the
mainline collection. The products of this collection are of limited editions and are of
more luxurious fabrics such as silk and organza. (Topshop)
❏ The boutique collection that is created by Topshop’s personal designers is also made
with luxurious materials. (Topshop)
❏ The unique collection differentiates Topshop from its competitors as Topshop’s own
designers work for an entire year to produce this valuable collection. This collection is
shown on the catwalk of London Fashion Week. Many of the pieces created for this
collection have astonished people in the fashion industry such as the Cruella de Ville
inspired pieces. (Topshop)

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- Competition:
Topshop’s competitors are other high street clothing companies with similar price points
such as Zara and H&M. Zara is considered to be Topshop’s most direct competitor because like
Topshop it has a higher price point while H&M has a lower one. Unlike Topshop, which is
horizontally integrated with all its supply chain operations being open and ran by different
suppliers, manufacturers, and distributers, Zara is vertically integrated and controls most of the
steps in its supply chain process. (CNN, 2001) One of the advantages that those competitors have
over Topshop is that both competitors have a higher number of stores than Topshop has in the
UAE market where Zara and H&M have 10 (Zara) and 24 (H&M) stores respectively. Also, both
Zara and H&M have a competitive advantage over Topshop because they have line extensions
for children unlike Topshop whose products are for men and women only. The availability of the
children’s line in Zara and H&M has made it more convenient for people to shop at these stores
because they were offered products for the entire family and not just for specific age groups like
with Topshop that targets a specific age category of males and females.
1.5 Marketing macro-environment
A company’s macro-environment includes the external factors affecting the operation of
the company. The macro-environment of Topshop is influenced based on the country it operates
in. Topshop is able to survive in a stable environment that is willing to adapt and grow. The
following shows a further analysis of the external factors that would affect Topshop’s operations
in the UAE:
- Demographic:
The UAE residents have some of the highest individual spending percentages in the
region, which provides Topshop with a great market opportunity. The UAE’s teenagers who are
also classified to be some of the highest spenders in the world compared to other teens in other
countries. (News, 2012) Topshop should take into consideration the Arab and Islamic culture of
the UAE and customize their products and services accordingly. However, it must take into
consideration that 87% of the population is of other nationalities and cultures. (2010) Those 87%

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include expatriates who went to the UAE because they were lured by a higher income and
standard of living. Hence, Topshop must reach a strategy that accommodates all of their target
customers of different nationalities living in the UAE. It should tae into consideration the
lifestyles of their target customers and their spending habits knowing that most of the people
living in the UAE especially in Dubai are conscious about fashion trends around the world and
about the way they look in society.
- Economic:
An example of how Topshop’s operations might be affected by economic factors of the
country it operates in is if the country had currency depreciation and volatile interest rates then
Topshop’s position will be highly affected in the market. However, the UAE has one of the
largest economies in the GCC and a total GDP of $570 billion in 2013. (Fund) The
unemployment percentage in the country is very low and it is 4.6%. (2013) The UAE has a no
tax system. Due to the low unemployment rate, high-income rates, and no taxation system in the
UAE, people have a high spending pattern and consumption rate. For potential customers who
are financially cautious, Topshop could use value marketing that involves ways to offer this
group of people the right combination of quality and service at the same time.
- Technological:
The UAE residents like many others around the world have been using technologies and
depending on them in their everyday lives. People use less of printed media, nowadays, and more
of digital media platforms. Shopping online has become very popular in the UAE as it facilitates
the shopping process and allows the shoppers to explore different fashion brands from all around
the world and have them delivered to their doorsteps.
- Political:
The UAE is a federal state. It has a hereditary absolute monarchy. It’s judicial system is
based on civil law and sharia law systems. Germany and UK are the country’s biggest exporters
commercial wise. (News, 2008) The duty rates when importing to the UAE has an average of
4.61% and there are no other taxes or fees when importing to the country.

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- Cultural:
Cultural differences might affect the market of Topshop because not every culture is open
to trends and has awareness or interest in fashion. Some cultures might be conservative and
traditional while others might be open and known of being trendsetter destinations for Topshop
such as Paris, Milan, London, and Dubai. People of the UAE are known for their good manners
and high etiquette. They respect their country’s visitors and expect them to respect their culture
and traditions in return. The UAE’s main language is Arabic and the second main language is
English. Lately, many Emirati’s have been seeking to follow the steps of their leaders, the rulers
of the UAE, by becoming entrepreneurs providing innovative ideas to become the best as their
country has become in a short period of time. Young Emirati females are now following the
steps of major fashion designers in the industry and applying their inspirations of those
designer’s works to their own Abaya designs, which is the traditional women clothing in the
country. Abaya designs have become provocative and artistic in a sense nowadays with different
shapes and colors. The Emirati youth are aware of trends around the world and seek to follow
them as they care a lot about their appearances. Also, owning the best and most expensive items
to show off has become part of the Emirati norms because this action is assumed to show others
the living status of the person.
1.6 Current Brand Portfolio and Gap Analysis
The Topshop brand has proven to be a hit. Its trendy designs and up to date fashion
pieces have been very popular, mainly among youngsters. After being solely a brand for women,
Topshop has created a line for men. This “Topman” section of the store has included a large
demographic section to the customer base of Topshop. The store has been, and still is doing
really well in terms of sales, word of mouth, and popularity. But, after observing the brand and
its functions, we have come to the realization that it is not fulfilling customers’ expectations to
the fullest extent. What this means, specifically, is that younger people who have been loyal
customers of Topshop for many years, have grown and many have made their own families.
What these people would like is to include their kids in the Topshop experience they enjoy,

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which they can’t because Topshop hasn’t created a line for the little ones. Because Topshop’s
customers place the brand in such high regard, they expect the best always, and they expect that
the brand would continue to serve them and their new families.
The reality of the brand, however, is that they haven’t thought about serving kids/babies
yet. The gap is wide in this respect. This gap between customers’ expectations and reality will
eventually create dissatisfaction. In order to close this gap, Topshop has to think about serving
the whole family, the wife, the husband, and their kids. This way, they would open more doors
for profit, but more importantly, for higher levels of loyalty. This approach of serving all
members of the family was made by Topshop’s competitors (ex: Zara), which puts Topshop at a
higher risk of loosing its customers’ to one of its’ competitors. Once Topshop creates a line for
kids, customers would have more faith in the brand that it is able to keep up with their changing
lives and their growing families.
The ideal state, at which the brand would be if it closed the Gap between customers’
expectations and reality, is a well-rounded brand that focuses on the family as a whole. It would
have a third line that serves the younger ones, and that provides them with the same quality and
up to date fashion trends as the older customers.
PART 2
2.1 Summary of the intended strategy for the proposed new product/service
Promoting a new line of products is not an easy task, since the process is associated with
a range of risks. First and foremost, by putting numerous resources at stake, the company risks
taking huge financial losses. In addition, deprived of proper financing, other departments of the
organization may begin to malfunction. Therefore, the costs must be reduced to minimum, which
is why the promotion via social network seems a legitimate solution (O'Guinn, Allen, Semenik
&Scheinbaum, 2014). By using social network as the placement for its advertisements, Topshop
will be able to attract a range of customers.

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2.2 Value Proposition
The new brand product promoted by the company immediately catches the eye not only
because of the unique design, but also because of its properties, particularly, durability and
comfort – the qualities that have become the trademark of the brand products of Topshop over
the years of the company’s operations. Clients have been waiting for years that children will
have an opportunity to enjoy the same combination of classiness and comfort that Topshop
products provide, and now their dreams have come true – the modest colors, the comfortable
experience and the reasonable pricing strategy will help the buyers realize that Topshop’s new
brand is the product that their children deserve.
2.3 Segmentation Strategy/ Target Consumers
There is no need to stress that the new product designed by the company is targeted
primarily at attracting the attention of parents and their children. Therefore, the segmentation
process will involve age distribution (i.e., shoes for toddlers, clothes for young children (aged 3–
5), shoes for children aged 5–7, clothes for children of 7–12 years, shoes for older children (10–
12). It would be wrong to claim that the specified categories have something to do with shoe size
– instead, the target groups in question define the marketing principles that the product will be
promoted with (i.e., the use of specific imagery attractive for the age groups, etc.).
2.4 Intended Positioning
The company positions the new brand product as the one that may not reinvent people’s
perception of what clothes for children must be designed like, but clearly has a range of
advantages to offer, such as complete comfort in wearing the shoes and clothes, outstanding
quality that presupposes a very long life and a high endurance threshold, and an adequate
pricing strategy, which includes discounts for the buyers of the company’s other products,
including the shoes for adults. In other words, Topshop positions the new brand as a desirable
and advantageous rather than indispensable.
Topshop’s intended position in the market is to be a hip fashion forward brand. They are a
representation of colors, cuts, designs, and affordability. They have the competitive edge over

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their competitors. Their lines suit any age and every individual’s personal style is whether its
formal, hip, or casual wear.
2.5 Marketing Mix (proposed)
-Product
The company is going to launch a new line of footwear for children. This stands in a sharp
contrast to the fact that the goods previously created by the firm were the shoes for adults.
-Price
As it has been stressed above, the organization is going to implement the pricing strategy based
on a set of rather lenient principles and allowing buyers to benefit extensively from purchasing
the specified product from Topshop. To be more specific, the shoes in question will be sold at a
price of $30.00, as the given price allows the company retain its benefits and at the same time
provides the customers an offer that is slightly more profitable than those in other stores. In
addition, seasonal discounts and discounts for regular customers will be included into the pricing
strategy for the clothing. Thus, it will be possible to trick people into frequenting the stores; as a
result, Topshop will gain a base of devoted clients within a relatively short amount of time
(Lamb, 2011).
-Place (marketing channels)
The chain of Topshop stores is going to be the key place for the shoes to be sold at. Located in a
range of cities across the United States, Europe, and the Middle East and having a very
reasonable pricing strategy, these shops are obviously the most reasonable choice for placing the
product in. The fact that people from different social and ethnic backgrounds choose the
specified chain of shops as the location for buying footwear is essential, as the company is going
to market the shoes and clothes to the general audience without being specific concerning the
lifestyle of the customers or the specifics of their culture.
-Promotion (integrated marketing communications)

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Despite the lack of focus on the ethnic background of the clientele, the company will focus on
other characteristics of the customers to a great degree in order to market the products
successfully. Seeing that, starting roughly from the age of seven, children begin to explore the
social representation of their gender, it will be reasonable to put a stronger emphasis on drawing
a very thick line between the products for boys and for girls in terms of color choices, imagery,
etc. The use of either copyrighted images with the permission of the owner or the mascots
created by the company will also be utilized in order to attract more customers (e.g., the image of
Dora the Explorer on the footwear for girls and the image of Batman on the shoes for boys, etc.).
It is also suggested that a series of billboard posters along with banners for e-commerce (White,
2012) will be designed for a more successful promotion campaign. The company has already
utilized several Promotion channels such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, YouTube, Inside-out
Blog, Style Q&A, and the Arcadia Group LTD website. However, Topshop can spread more
awareness through magazine publications, photo shoots and billboards, event sponsorship, kids
fashion shows, articles, mobile SMS, and social media. They could also associate themselves
with young brand ambassadors to endorse the new line.
2.6 Conclusion
As Topshop is one of the leading retail companies worldwide that appeals to both men
and women and is already a profitable organization. There is always room for improvement.
They are able to improve by expanding their marketing strategy with the extension of the
children’s department. Having a line extension will most definitely create a new target market
for Topshop allows to allow the company to achieve greater profit, and meet the needs, wants,
and demands of the consumers of the region. The proposed marketing strategy for a new brand
extension will allow Topshop to have increasing sales, attaining a sustainable competitive
advantage, and most importantly, capturing customer value and satisfaction against its
competitors. The above mentioned points is the main reasons for a successful business surviving
in the market against its current and future competitors.

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