Business

* Introduction:

Starting as a family run business in 1941, Coach has a rich history of integrity, innovation, and collaboration. Grounded in a strong brand identity and built on quality, Coach has always been concerned with being a socially and environmentally responsible organization. For over ten years, Coach’s commitment to environmental and social practices has been outlined in our Global Business Integrity Program. Under this program, we have worked closely with our supply chain to ensure that our products are manufactured in a healthy and safe working environment. We have maintained respect for and commitment to the environment in the design, production, and distribution of our products, and have always operated under the premise that our people are our most valuable asset. Coach, Inc. is an upscale American leather goods company known for women’s and men’s handbags, as well as items such as luggage, briefcases, wallets and other accessories (belts, shoes, scarves, umbrella…). As the firm was founded in 1941, in a loft in New York as a partnership called the Gail Manufacturing Company. As of July 2, 2011, the company operates in over 20 countries with more than 1,100 retail stores and around 15,000 employees worldwide. Today, Coach Inc. has distribution, product development and quality control operations in the US, France, Italy, Japan, Hong Kong, China and South Korea. From 2001 to 2011, Coach launched a series of activities to take great control over the brand in the Asian markets, and it also accelerated its European expansion with the help of its European joint venture partner in 2011. Continuous innovation and affordable price are two keys for Coach to conduct international business. In addition, owing to its multi-channel retail network, Coach, Inc. has successfully enhanced its brand image all over the world. Luxury goods industry is highly competitive due to a low market-entry barrier. It has experienced ups and downs during the 2000s. And in recent years, the industry has recovered and developed rapidly. More and more luxury goods corporations have expanded their operations in emerging markets through Internet and e-commerce. The future outlook of this industry is optimistic. The competitions in the luxury goods industry are pretty intense. Many competitors of Coach are from France and Italy such as Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Gucci, and Prada. Having superior brand recognitions and strong impacts on global luxury goods market make them become dangerous rivals of Coach, Inc. Even though Coach Inc. has come up with good strategy, it still suffered from harsh competition. The profit margin was still below the level achieved prior to the onset of a slowing economy in 2007 and its share price had experienced a sharp decline during the first six months of 2012. Due to the changing environment and harsher competition, it was not clear whether the company’s recent growth could be sustained