Brand Builders

Brandweek, July 24, 2000 by Sandra Dolbow

Literary License

Thomasville was not exactly gung-ho about the idea of licensing a collection of furniture when Maria Metzner, president of Fashion Licensing of America, N.Y., approached the company with the idea for an Ernest Hemingway line. After all, the Thomasville, N.C., furniture maker had been growing steadily on its own, stocking the nation's homes at a time of robust housing starts. And the only other licensing effort in its 96-year history, an arrangement with Country Inns & Backroads in the early '90s, had failed due to a soft economy and a lack of commitment from retailers.

But when Metzner pitched the firm a second time with a leather-bound book about the famed author and adventurer, something clicked. "We were blown away by it," said Thomasville CMO Jim Adams.

"They loved the fact that they could create their own brand of furniture in the spirit of the Hemingway names," Metzner said, "as opposed to having a designer tell them what to do."

Thomasville could also take comfort in knowing there was precedent for such a move. In recent years, Metzner had struck deals that tied the Hemingway name to home furnishings companies such as Courtisan Rugs, Covington Fabrics, DJC Design Studio and Eastern Art Arcade, leather goods maker Bauer International and, most recently, apparel companies in Japan. In fact, her relationship with Hemingway Ltd.--comprised of eldest son, 75-year-old Jack Hemingway, his two brothers and their wives-- dates back to the mid-'80s, when Metzner was hired to approve the use of the author's likeness in ads ranging from Olds to The Gap. Her initial overture on licensing, she recalled, was: 'Your family name is extremely valuable. You should create your own brand.'"

The family eventually agreed, but set down a few parameters, including retaining rights to the Hemingway name in all future deals. "They insisted that any merchandise we license be upscale," said Metzner. "And there were certain categories they said we could never do: liquor, firearms, smoking, anything like that. They wanted to preserve their family name and the image of their father as a writer."

For a property built on traditional and upscale furniture, a Hemingway line seemed to hold appeal to those looking for "the romance and spirit and kind of life he lived," said Adams.

That assumption was borne out in research by agency Long Haymes Carr, Winston-Salem, N.C. "As a brand, Hemingway represents so many dimensions," said vp Pete Woods. "He was so many things: the young soldier wounded in Italy, the middle-aged guy boxing in Key West, the fisher, the hunter, the writer and craftsman, the father, the son. As we discovered him and began to work with this property it became evident he represented the range and depth and dimension that few brands can command."

No one was predicting, however, that the October '98 launch would bring in a record $100 million in sales in its first year, or that Furniture Today would declare it "one of the most successful new lines in industry history." Said Adams, "We didn't go into this thinking it would be this kind of business." (Though the financial terms of the deal were deemed confidential, Adams said Thomasville's first-year expectations were in the range of $15 million.)

With its rugged leathers, dark woods and masculine accents, the furniture draws its influences from the exotic places Hemingway called home. The first four product groups were inspired by Ketchum, Idaho; Key West, Florida; Havana and Kenya. The Paris collection is set for delivery to showrooms early next year, and at least two more iterations will follow. "The line has been able to romance furniture with the name of Ernest Hemingway," said Metzner. "Furniture as a category has never had a name that was as romantic and distinctive and as easy to advertiser

Marketing began in October 1998, when the collection was unveiled at the International Home Furnishings Market in High Point, N.C. Jack Hemingway was on hand at the showroom, where mosquito netting, ceiling canvas and sound domes with voiceover provided a complete Hemingway experience.

"It was important to generate that excitement for retailers," said Lisa Clark, director of brand development. "They had materials that were seamless with those [directed at] consumers: a launch book detailing why the line would be a success, the retailer assortment, the advertising campaign and the signage package."

In an effort to attract new, well-educated consumers, LHC eschewed conventional home decor media in favor of print ads in the likes of Food & Wine, Vanity Fair and National Geographic. Also in the mix were $2 million on cable's The Weather Channel during hurricane season. Retail support included newspaper ads in 11 configurations, customizable direct-mail pieces, signage and grand-opening and launch ideas.

The print ads feature dramatic photos of the furniture juxtaposed with black-and-white archival images of Hemingway or his trusty Royal typewriter. In one ad, a fruit-laden dining table graces a red-tiled veranda overlooking a tropical blue sea; in another, a sun-drenched bedroom is pictured with a travel case atop the bed. Tagline: "Ernest Hemingway The Collection of a Lifetime."