Luxottica Wholesale serves nearly 20,000 customers in the North America market with a portfolio of brands that ranges from house brands like Ray-Ban and Oakley to luxury like Chanel, Tiffany, Burberry and Versace to premium fashion brands such as Michael Kors, Coach and Tory Burch.
As part of its continued investment in the important ECP market, Luxottica has doubled down on education and training with two areas of focus: the first area of focus is in providing customers — from the single independent to larger groups like alliances — with the knowledge and strategies to help them grow their businesses. The second area of focus is on brand and product training.
When it comes to growth strategies for the independent, one example is "The Art of Retailing", a Luxottica-designed learning session presented to customers by Alessandro Baronti, VP of Industry Relations and Education for the wholesale division in N.A. "The Art of Retailing" takes the customer on a journey to understand how the consumer shops and thinks today and how ECPs can better respond to it. With 1 in 3 patients purchasing frames elsewhere due to poor merchandising, having the right assortment and strong replenishment, along with a knowledgeable staff and a compelling in-store experience can make a meaningful difference.
The second area of focus for business growth is LuxAcademy, a Luxottica education platform led by Senior Training Manager for N.A., Jonathan Smith. LuxAcademy leverages industry, brand and product training to build out experiences and opportunities for customers to learn more about how Luxottica frames are made, what kinds of materials and processes are used, and what makes each collection unique. The platform also looks at how to build brand loyalty and improve the shopping experience through storytelling. Brand storytelling helps establish a deeper connection between consumer and product, especially among millennials who now make up 30% of retail sales.
For more information on Luxottica customer education and training, please contact Alessandro or Jonathan at 212.302.1210.