By Allison Zisko
NEW YORK–Can a towel translate overseas?
Christy is confident that it can and, two years after being acquired by Welspun, the former British company is primed to build its brand name in the United States.
Christy’s 150-year-plus heritage and history of innovation made it one of the only recognizable towel brands in the United Kingdom, according to President Oliver Newman. Welspun, a private-label supplier that is trying to make a name for itself in the branded arena, coveted Christy, according to Newman, for its “fabulous foothold in Central Europe and the U.K. Here [in the United States], it gives them a brand to manage and market themselves.”
Welspun relocated the Christy factory from Manchester, England, to its facility in Anjar, India, completing its gradual transition to a Far Eastern-based manufacturer. By the time, the Manchester plant closed last year, only 30 percent of its total business was manufactured in the United Kingdom. The Indian facility is exactly the same as the one in Manchester, down to the internal climate that mimics the temperature and humidity levels of north-central England, as opposed to northern India.
“It was a seamless transition,” said Newman, who joined the company in 1992 and managed the Christy brand and its private-label business in the United Kingdom before moving to the United States in 1997 to run the American division.
Christy, which credits itself as the first to create the terry towel, the first to introduce Egyptian cotton to the United States and the first to experiment with silk and modal blends, has expanded beyond its solid-color roots into new areas. It has added a children’s line, a jacquard collection and a new towel called Prism, a zero-twist construction in a vibrant color palette designed to appeal to younger consumers.
The company introduced the Christy Organic line in 10 colors last year and will launch an organic waffle-textured towel in four colors this fall. At the market this past February, it debuted two collections of bed linens, a 700-thread-count Egyptian sateen and a 464 thread-count Egyptian percale, a new category for the American market.
The next step is to sell all of this to American consumers. “We’re putting our energies and efforts on the brand,” Newman said. “It takes a long time to build brand awareness.”
Using Welspun’s marketing capabilities, the company conducted extensive consumer research and found that, contrary to Newman’s belief, American women were more interested in the product itself than in its British heritage. Women also gravitated to the word “luscious” in describing the towel’s hand, Newman said.
Thus a new consumer advertising campaign, currently running in luxury lifestyle publications, features a close-up of the towel in all its lusciousness.
Christy is also trying to raise its profile in the trade. It moved its New York showroom to 295 Fifth Ave. from 261 Fifth Ave., opened an Atlanta showroom at the beginning of the year and hired two representative groups, one in California and one in Texas.
Newman wants to expand Christy’s presence in the independent specialty-store market, already a strong base for the brand, through more available inventory, increased customer service and more point-of-sale materials.
“I think we’ve supported that market well for the past 10 years, but want to support them more by giving them more tools to get the message across about our key attributes,” Newman said.
Newman also wants to increase Christy’s business at department stores through new placements and is targeting the hospitality market, particularly boutique hotels, where he sees tremendous potential.
Long regarded as a premium towel manufacturer, Newman is trying to reposition the Christy brand as an affordable luxury. “When you position yourself as high end, you miss part of the market,” said Newman, who sees potential in the aspirational segment of retail.
Christy will continue to promote its heritage, but the most important thing, Newman said, is the product itself. “At the end of the day [consumers] want to see quality and product innovation. Innovation is an important feature of our business.”