French Connection is a fashion chain that was battling other fashion chains in the UK. None of them stood out from the rest of the crowd. That is until 1997 when the CEO Stephen Marks decided to try and break from the crowd and stand out. His goal was to make his company one of the most talked about brands. But how could he do this?
The idea came when they were communicating by fax with their new Hong Kong store that was opening up. They came across a fax “From FCHK to FCUK”. The new brand strategy was to use the shortened FCUK as the company logo.
Mr. Marks was willing to risk insult to break from the mold. The result, while very controversial, increased the profits from £6.0m to over £20m. There are FCUK stores in over 20 countries and new ones opening yearly, and the company’s stock price has gone from £3.00 to over £9.
FCUK has become a brand in and of itself away from just the clothing line. Now you can also get FCUK Him and FCUK Her Fragrances. It has opened more profit centers that wouldn’t have been available or successful if the name was still French Connection.
French Connection UK stands out as a company that found new potential with a risqué name. They were willing to take risks that others may have seen as to dangerous and have reaped the rewards because of it.
Are you willing to take risks to grow and prosper?