1. Introduction
This article illustrates the detailed marketing strategy of Dior. It discusses every aspect of marketing mix, ranging from product, pricing, distribution and promotion strategies. Article also discusses Dior’s competitive positioning, and presents some useful recommendations at the end.
2. Dior Company Overview
| Company | Christian Dior |
| Sector/industry | Fashion and lifestyle |
| Headquarters | Paris, France |
| Year founded | 1946 |
| CEO | Pietro Beccari |
| Number of countries | 210 |
| Revenue growth 2022 | 28% |
| Brand value 2022 | 8.9 billion USD |
Source: Global Newswire| Statista
3. Dior marketing strategy
Dior marketing strategy is discussed in light of 7-P marketing mix framework.
3.1. Product strategy
3.1.1. Dior product mix
Being a renowned luxury fashion brand, Christian Dior offers wide-ranging fashion products including apparel, accessories, cosmetics, skincare products, designer jewelry and time pieces.
3.1.2. What is Dior unique selling proposition?
Luxurious craftsmanship, rich heritage, and a complete luxury package that makes women feel elegant and special from head to toe
3.1.3. Dior product strategy
Unlike a production-oriented firm, a market-oriented firm like Dior understands and captures the latest market trends, and aligns its product strategy accordingly. As Dior targets customers who value uniqueness, so, brand maintains exclusivity while extending its product line.
3.1.4. What’s Dior target market?
We can define Dior target market as high class customers (of all age groups), typically- urban, educated individuals, who love travelling and exploring different cultures. Dior brand mostly focuses on women, but it also offers some products for kids and men.
3.1.5. Dior segmentation, targeting and positioning
| Dior segmentation | Dior targeting | Dior positioning |
| Upper middle and upper class, both- men and women | Fashion conscious affluent customers, with needs for exclusivity and social distinctiveness | A complete luxury package |
3.1.6. What’s Dior competitive strength?
Dior derives competitive advantage from gaining recognition as seller of ‘Haute Couture’. Its secondary competitive advantage lies in its association with the founder Christian Dior who had vision of creating an extra-ordinary fashion by blending modern ideas with traditional techniques.
The product component of marketing mix contributes heavily to the Dior’s competitive strength.
3.1.7. Dior most popular products 2022
Based on online search, Dior’s most popular products in 2022 (in order of importance) were:
• Dior bag
• Dior perfumes
• Dior shoes
• Dior sneakers
• Dior makeup
• Dior t-shirts
Source: Luxe Digital
3.2. Pricing strategy
As Dior targets customers that value exclusivity and uniqueness, so brand adopts premium pricing strategy for all its products. Following graph show how Dior has been constantly raising its handbag prices to establish image as a unique and premium brand:
Source: The Fashion Law
Although, Dior charges premium prices for all its products, but its prices vary based on geographic area. Like, Dior products in USA are much more expensive than Europe and Singapore.
3.3. Place strategy
3.3.1. Dior distribution strategy
Dior adopts exclusive distribution strategy, which is well-aligned with brand’s product and pricing strategy.
3.3.2. Dior distribution channels
The company distributes products only through brand-owned boutiques. Currently, Dior has 210 stores in all over the world. Here is the worldwide distribution of Dior outlets:
Dior international stores (worldwide)
Dior does not sell products through its official website, but has allowed third party websites to maintain Christian Dior online boutique that carries a limited range of products. Retailers are only allowed to sell licensed Dior products.
3.3.3. Dior distribution initiatives 2022
As Brick and Mortar selling is on decline, Dior took social selling initiative by offering We-Chat users an opportunity to directly purchase Dior’s limited edition handbag through a post. Selling through We-Chat app signals Dior’s direct-to-consumer sales potential.
3.4. Promotion strategy
3.4.1. Dior promotion mix
Dior promotion strategy maintains exclusivity by avoiding sales promotion. The promotion mix includes advertising in highly specific, high end fashion magazines, celebrity endorsements, website, and social media marketing. Celebrities promote Dior products in different fashion shows, and website offers latest product information to customers.
3.4.2. Dior advertising strategy
Dior advertising strategy specifically targets the niche audience. Dior advertisements make an emotional appeal to the high-end customers, with an aim to connect with customers at some deep emotional level.
Company heavily relies on the star power of famous celebrities for brand promotion. Following graph shows Dior’s most expensive celebrity endorsements:
Source: Graph drawn based on information retrieved from ‘The Richest’
Dior adopts innovative high-tech social media marketing strategy. Like in 2018, Dior launched augmented reality filter in Facebook to promote Dior-color-quake sunglasses. From classy campaigns to celebrity influencers, Dior successfully translates its offline marketing strategies into social media marketing strategy. For example, its Instagram handle is full of aesthetically pleasing images of models that adorn Dior.
3.4.4. Dior advertising campaign 2021
Dior campaign 2021 starring Natalie Portman was highly successful in promoting the ‘Miss Dior Perfume’. The campaign captured media’s attention, and is considered Dior’s one of the most successful Miss Dior Campaigns.
3.4.5. Recent controversies and impact on Dior advertising and promotion
In recent years, Dior’s marketing model benefited from the controversies that surrounded its brand ambassadors- reported New York Times.
Take two examples below:
• Dior Sauvage sales increase and Depp-Heard lawsuit-In 2022, Johnny Depp-Amber Heard lawsuit resulted into Dior Sauvage sales increase by 1,899%, and Dior Sauvage became world’s second most searched brand on social media.
• Bella Hadid controversy and Dior- Does Dior support Israel? It was a much searched question over internet after Bella Hadid’s controversial remarks on Israel-Palestine conflict. Many people thought Bella would lose contract with Dior due to company’s support for Israel. But, maintaining a neutral stance, Dior continued its contract with Bella despite all controversy.
3.4.6. Dior CSR as promotional tool
Is Dior a good brand? Certainly yes!
But reasons are not limited to only high quality and unique/exclusive designs. Dior maintains a good and responsible brand image in customers’ minds by heavily investing on social responsibility initiatives.
In 2021, Dior obtained Butterfly Mark certificate that attests to the authenticity of company’s sustainability strategies. Dior’s four fold sustainability program rests of pillars of eco-designing, responsible beauty, regenerative farming, and women empowerment, and acts as a strong promotional tool for company.
3.5.People
Dior has well-trained customer service staff. Dior customer service is highly responsive and efficient, which makes customers feel special and respected when they interact with the brand.
3.6.Process
Dior keeps purchase process simpler by guiding customers to buy products from company-owned boutiques. Dior’s website gives complete information about latest product collections. Dior customer service number is also added on website on which customers can contact to file their complaints or ask queries.
3.7.Physical evidence
From physical stores, to staff uniform, product packaging, website, and business cards, Dior makes sure everything connected to it is aesthetically pleasing!
Here is the result of Dior marketing strategy success:
4. Dior competitor analysis 2022
In 2022, Dior was ranked number 1 luxury brand by Vogue Business Index based on- consumer sentiments, innovation, Omni channel retailing, digitalization, and ESG (environmental and social governance).
Dior’s top competitors in December 2022 are- Gucci, YSL, Chanel, Prada and Versace. Based on online visits, Dior and its competitors are ranked below:
Source: Similar-Web
5. Recommendations
• Pay more attention towards bags and perfumes (being top performing products)
• Increase variety for men and children as well
• Invest more on augmented reality technology and take more high-tech social media marketing initiatives
• Explore direct to consumer sales potential by experimenting with other social media apps as well (other than WeChat)
• Foray deeper into online retailing
• Take more sustainability initiatives to use CSR as a powerful marketing tool
• Continue with star endorsements, and hire celebrities who could offer high return on investment
6. Concluding remarks
Dior marketing strategy makes a direct contribution to the brand’s enormous success. We hope you learned a lot about Dior marketing strategy by reading this article. If you want to know more about Dior’s competitive strengths, click here (please remove this line, if we are not writing article on Dior SWOT, otherwise, internal linking will be done here, and red highlighted content will bring audience to Dior SWOT analysis)
7. References
Dior Se, C. (2022, October 11). Christian Dior: Growth continues at the same pace. GlobeNewswire News Room.
Statista. (2022f, November 3). Global brand value of Dior from 2016 to 2022.
Beauloye, F. E. (2023, January 11). The 15 Most Popular Luxury Brands Online. Luxe Digital.
Dior taps WeChat’s direct-to-consumer potential in social selling effort | Retail Dive. (n.d.).
Friedman, V. (2022, June 1). Dior Sauvage Is Still Using Johnny Depp in Its Ads. The New York Times.
Rhodes, G. (2022, September 27). Johnny Depp Inks Multi-Year Campaign Deal for Dior Sauvage. CR Fashionbook.
Vogue Business Data & Insights Team. (2021, December 10). Dior ranks No. 1 in latest Vogue Business Index. Vogue Business.
Access Denied. (n.d.-c).
