The New York luxury goods purveyor Tiffany & Co is one of the world’s most distinctive brands. To understand how it has become such an iconic brand we should look at the various things signified by the brand, namely:
l New York. Tiffany & Co has been based in New York since it first opened in 1837. Although there are now over 100 Tiffany & Co stores and boutiques around the world, it is still firmly associated with its home city.
l Tiffany Blue. The Tiffany Blue Box is a design classic. The brand’s signature blue was introduced by Tiffany’s founders, Charles Tiffany and John Young, in its very first year. Dark blue is a colour signifying luxury, because it used to be the hardest and most expensive colour for painters in the Italian Renaissance to find and make (it was therefore reserved for depictions of the Virgin Mary). Tiffany’s have never used any other colour as their signature.
l Breakfast at Tiffany’s. The brand was immortalized in the 1961 film, starring Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly, a character who adored strolling the aisles of the store.
l Jewels. In 1878, Charles Tiffany acquired one of the world’s largest and finest fancy yellow diamonds, uncovered from the Kimberley diamond mines in South Africa, weighing over 287 carats. The ‘Tiffany Diamond’ was worn by Audrey Hepburn in photographs to promote Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and today can be found on the first floor of the Fifth Avenue store in New York. In 1887, Tiffany’s even acquired the French crown jewels. It sells numerous items of diamond and other jewellery, working with high-profile jewellers such as Jean Schlumberger.
l Celebrity. Audrey Hepburn may be the most iconic face associated with the brand, but it has been associated with lots of high-profile figures. In 1861, Abraham Lincoln commissioned the company to create a pitcher for his presidential inauguration and, while he was at it, bought a Tiffany seed-pearl jewellery set for his wife. The company has also worked with high-profile designers such as Paloma Picasso and Coco Chanel.
l Silver. Tiffany’s has long been associated with silverware and even supplied swords for soldiers in the American Civil War. Charles Tiffany’s silver designs
were recognized by the Paris Exposition Universelle in 1867, which awarded him with the Award of Merit – making him the first American to receive such an honour.
l Gold. Tiffany also has a reputation for gold, and in 1930 designed the gold America’s Cup, the most prized yachting trophy.
Alongside these associations, which Charles Tiffany and his numerous successors have successfully strengthened in people’s minds, the Tiffany’s brand has also succeeded through inclusivity.
It is a luxury brand, for sure, but anyone can enter a Tiffany store. Although many of the products are out of the budget range of most people’s pockets, there are always cheaper items that anyone could afford, and they are packed in the same tantalizing blue box tied with a silk ribbon.
Even the cheaper products have the same hallmark of quality and attention to detail as the brand’s diamond-encrusted jewellery, so the brand’s high-class status is not watered down through some low prices. Indeed, if you look at many luxury brands, they make a large part of their income through their lower-priced products. For instance, people buy a Gucci aftershave to find an access point into a brand they may otherwise not be able to afford. Likewise, when people buy a small piece of china or some understated earrings from Tiffany’s they are entering into the same brand that owns one of the largest diamonds in the world. They leave the store happy to share something in common with Audrey Hepburn.
Innovation is another factor behind Tiffany’s success. Almost all of the brands in this book are innovators, and Tiffany’s is no exception.
When it opened in New York in 1837 its prices were non-negotiable. At the time, this was a policy unique enough to make front-page news. In 1845, the Tiffany Blue Book became the first retail catalogue in the United States. Another newsworthy innovation came when Tiffany was asked to redesign the ‘Great Seal of the United States of America’ in 1885. Its revised design is still used on every US one-dollar bill.
Now, although still a trailblazer in terms of many of its designer goods and accessories, Tiffany’s is a brand about consolidation. It is well aware of what it stands for and seeks to confirm and consolidate that identity as it continues to expand. Following successful Tiffany boutiques in Tokyo and London, there are now stores in major cities around the world.
The brand remains as bold and strong as the blue of its boxes, and is in no risk of fading yet.
Secrets of success
l Visual identity. Charles Tiffany was a branding genius long before the term
‘branding genius’ would have made any sense. His 1837 decision to tie the brand with one colour – what is now called Tiffany Blue – is still applauded by brand experts today.
l Innovation. Tiffany’s set prices and retail catalogues changed the way people shopped.
l Luxury. The Tiffany brand retains the same luxurious connotations it created in the 19th century. These have been sustained by working with some of the leading jewellery and accessory designers in the world.
l Mythology. Like the best brands, Tiffany has a rich mythology. Its associations with Abraham Lincoln, the American Civil War, the America’s Cup, Audrey Hepburn and Charles Tiffany himself have helped ensure that the brand remains more than just the sum of its well-designed parts.
Fact f ile
Web site: www.tiffany.com Founded: 1837
Country of origin: USA
Brand fact 1: Tiffany & Co’s first day receipts totalled US $4.98.
Brand fact 2: Jewellery represents approximately 82% of Tiffany’s net sales.
Brand fact 3: The United States represents approximately 60% of Tiffany’s sales, while Japan represents 25%.