German affordable luxury brand MCM announced a new strategic direction and brand image, "presented with optimized design language, consumer experience, and lifestyle, facing digital nomads in the 21st century". The brand's new season's work completed its first show on June 18 during the current Milan Men's Fashion Week.
MCM pointed out that the latest positioning of the brand is a digital-driven, intelligent, and sustainable luxury brand. "This renewal opens up a new era of creativity, vision, and innovation for the brand, featuring an ultra-modern strategy, by revitalizing the brand's heritage codes and driving a change in the product portfolio to include a new and comprehensive range of ready-to-wear and accessories to realize the repositioning of the brand."
MCM's latest works
The new direction of MCM has also been accompanied by changes at the management level. Recently, Sabine Brunner (pictured below) was appointed President of MCM Global AG and a member of the MCM Executive Committee, responsible for a wide range of activities of the company, including creative, category development and planning, marketing, licensing, branding, commercial, etc., reporting to the Chairman and Reporting to Chief Vision Officer (CVO) Sungjoo Kim.
Prior to joining MCM, Brunner served as Brand Manager for Roger Vivier, where he led the transformation of the brand through directly operated retail stores into one of the most successful and unique brands in the luxury accessories market. She was also CEO of Bonpoint, a French luxury childrenswear brand, and developed the Asian market for Tod’s Group while managing the Hong Kong subsidiary.
In addition, three new leadership roles have been added, spanning creative, digital, and marketing, all reporting to Brunner.
Global Creative Lead: Tina Lutz Creative Director: Katie Chung Chief Digital and Marketing Officer: Marie-Laure Lequain
Among them, Tina Lutz (pictured left below) and Katie Chung (pictured below right) will jointly lead and develop MCM's global design and creative direction. Their first work will appear in the SS24 joint series, and this design will "reinvigorate the brand’s iconic DNA and transform conceptual design into a culture and a way of life."
As Global Head of Creative, German-born Tina Lutz will be responsible for leading the design and creative direction of the global design studio based in Milan. Previously, she was the creative director of her own brands, Lutz Morris and Lutz & Patmos New York, and also worked at Issey Miyake and Calvin Klein.
In 2000, Tina Lutz co-founded Lutz & Patmos, a luxury knitted women's ready-to-wear brand in New York, and has served as creative and brand director. After living in New York for 24 years, Tina returned to Europe and launched Lutz Morris, a luxury handbag brand which is made in Germany, based on her passion for craftsmanship, responsible production, and sustainability.
Katie Chung, originally from Seoul, South Korea, will take on the role of creative director "to lead the development of all categories in collaboration with Tina going forward". She served as the creative director of designer labels Wooyoungmi and Solid Homme, leading them to the next level.
In addition, in order to establish a new channel strategy, the company also appointed Marie-Laure Lequain (pictured below) as Chief Digital and Marketing Officer (CDMO), "responsible for leveraging market opportunities to accelerate commercial growth and, through sophisticated, strategic marketing planning, maximize profitability". The company explained that the new distribution model will highlight the brand's own digital presence through enhanced, powerful storytelling and a streamlined online and offline consumer experience.
It is reported that Lequain has more than 20 years of experience in the fields of luxury and fashion. He has held several leadership positions at Gucci. His past performance includes shaping the jewelry business from scratch, reshaping the watch series, and leading the digital business to great success. With a dual background in digital and merchandising, Lequain has an unparalleled understanding of value propositions, transforming customer experiences, and scaling businesses across channels and platforms. All of these are of great benefit to the future development of the brand.
Sungjoo Kim, Chairman and Chief Visionary Officer, MCM Group, said, "I am delighted to introduce this new leadership team who will be the engine and new chapter of MCM's business development, revolutionizing the brand to launch a higher level of future luxury, and (will make MCM) one of the foremost leaders in design, experience, and digital excellence in the industry. They bring a wealth of experience, knowledge, and expertise in luxury accessories and ready-to-wear, which will be critical to the Group's rebranding. Exciting new business directions are important."
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