Superdry PLC tests it product ranges with influencers to become

Superdry PLC (LSE:SDRY) chief executive Julian Dunkerton said improved products and influencer marketing are key to the company’s long-term strategy, after it returned to profits in the first half.

Having stepped down from his role in 2015, before battling his way back onto the board four years later, Dunkerton believes the company remained static during his time away, which in the clothing sector means you are “moving backwards”.

“When I left this business, it stopped looking forward in terms of product,” said Dunkerton.

To rectify this and keep the brand moving with the times, the man who built the company up from the market stall said the FTSE 250-listed company is now regularly trialling ‘test products’ in a small number of owned stores, finding out what works and what doesn’t.

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That allowed the company to turn an initial product into multiple, slightly different products that it aims to appeal across multiple demographics, with Dunkerton citing the success of jacket sales as evidence the method works.

“You will notice that jackets are up 40% up year-on-year in this 11-week period between October 24 and January 8. That is because we put in a test period of some new styles and trends before putting them into the mainline range,” he said.

Similar methods have been trialled with other product types, such as knitwear, shirts and skirts.

Extending this approach is expected to lead to “huge improvements over the next 12 months from a product perspective”, the CEO predicted.

A shift in marketing strategy is also key for Dunkerton and Superdry, with social media influencers becoming a vital part in ensuring the brand reaches all its target markets.

Use of influencers is becoming an increasingly effective marketing tool, especially in clothing and fashion, with a lot of JD Sports’ recent success attributed to its canny use of these masters of Instagram.

Dunkerton says Superdry has increased the number of influencers on its payroll from 200 to 2000 in the last 12 months.

The push, however, does not stop there, with plans to increase that number by five times over the next couple of years as it targets the French and German markets, before moving across the pond and into America.

Evidence is emerging that the strategy is starting to gain traction.

According to broker Peel Hunt, the average customer age in Superdry’s email database is five years younger than in 2019, which also coincided with the return of Dunkerton.

And, as the analysts also note, Superdry’s new Oxford Street flagship is outperforming Regent Street despite the collapse in West End footfall, with the womenswear mix rising, and latest sales on an upward trend.

Peel Hunt reckons the shares are “cheap” at just over five times underlying earnings (EBITDA)