Samsonite, the big international luggage company recently acquired by CVC Partners in a $1.7 billion transaction, has budgeted global sales of about $50 million in its first year of operation for Samsonite Outlab, a nicely designed new range of outdoor products that it introduced with much fanfare last month. The company estimates that it should be able to double sales of this range each year in the near future.
The Outlab range comes after several other sub-labels introduced by Samsonite over the last years to diversify its offering. Its new outdoor-oriented bags and backpacks were designed by Quentin Mackay, Samsonite’s creative director, who comes from the luxury goods business. Fabrice Faurie, former European sales manager of CamelBak, joined in January as marketing manager for the line, while Reinald Lampe was placed in charge of European sales. He previously handled sales of Timberland bags, for which Samsonite holds a global license.
Samsonite Outlab will strongly benefit from the international infrastructure of the company, which reported sales of about $1.1 billion for the year ended on Jan. 31, 2007. Among many other resources, Samsonite Outlab will also lean on Samsonite’s development centers in Boston, London and Brussels, as well as a network of about 400 mono-brand stores around the world, including about 150 in Europe. Samsonite Outlab will also use many of the sales people who already work on the Timberland and Lacoste ranges licensed to Samsonite.
Presented at the OutDoor fair in Friedrichshafen last month, the initial Outlab range comprises some medium-priced backpacks as well as waterproof duffel bags worth up to €700. The emphasis of the range is on the fast-growing segment of outdoor travel, featuring among other things backpacks that can hold lap-top computers and large-scale duffel bags on wheels. Samsonite’s extensive marketing plan for the launch includes a partnership with Fabien Cousteau, grandson of the famous French underwater explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau, who has been testing Samsonite products on his latest trips.
