Charles & Keith recently entered into a partnership with L Capital Asia, the private-equity arm of luxury group LVMH, when the latter acquired a 20-percent stake in Charles & Keith for more than S$30 million in 2010. For the Saudi Arabian and Jordanian markets, it partnered Alhokair Fashion Retail, which imports international brands to those markets. 15 To do so, the company sought out new partners – in Japan, for instance, Charles & Keith teamed up with Onward Holdings to bring the brand into the local market. 14Ĭharles & Keith has also looked to expanding its overseas network in Latin America and China. To penetrate the higher-end market, the company launched the Signature Label, which retailed more expensive and higher-quality shoes. In 2007, Charles & Keith expanded their product range to include accessories such as sunglasses and belts. 13 A year later, it introduced the Pedro line of men’s footwear. This allowed the company to sell its products to countries where it did not have retail presence. In 2004, it became the first local retail company to launch an e-commerce site.
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In addition to setting up outlets, Charles & Keith made a series of expansion in other aspects of its business. 11 In 2013, it had close to 400 outlets overseas. 10 Besides the Middle East, the company also boasted outlets in other countries like Australia, Japan, China and Panama. 9 By 2005, Charles & Keith had expanded into Egypt and Turkey. 8 From 2004, it began to venture into the Middle East, beginning with Dubai and followed by Bahrain, Oman and Saudi Arabia. 7 Initially, the company started in markets within Southeast Asia. Seeing the potential for the brand to do well in global markets, Charles & Keith began expanding its business overseas in 2000. 5 As at 2016, there are 29 Charles & Keith outlets in Singapore, located in major shopping centres and suburban malls. By 2001, Charles & Keith had grown to comprise 14 outlets locally, which accounted for more than S$10 million in sales. 4 These strategies proved to be a success. 3 Further, they adopted a more trendy marketing strategy such as by using European models for the product photoshoots and advertising through social media website Facebook. 2 To retain the exclusivity of their products, the brothers ensured that these manufacturers would not produce and sell their shoes to other retailers.
The brothers also made the business cost-efficient by buying directly from manufacturers instead of wholesalers. Keith was responsible for designing the shoes while Charles managed sales. 1Īs a result, the brothers opted to design their own shoes, and selling them at affordable prices. They had observed that the traditional model of merely selling shoes purchased from wholesale suppliers was unsustainable as it was unable to provide customers with a variety of options and design. In 1996, the two brothers decided to open their own shoe store in Amara Shopping Centre and launched their own label because they wanted to adopt a new business model in footwear retail. In 1990, Charles and his younger brother Keith learned the ropes of managing a shoe business by helping their parents at their shoe store in Ang Mo Kio. The company has received several awards including the Singapore Retailers Association’s Excellent Service Award 2002 and the Enterprise Award at the Singapore Business Awards 2008. By 2013, the company had grown into an international chain with close to 400 outlets.
Established in 1996 by brothers Charles and Keith Wong, Charles & Keith started out as a shoe store in Amara Shopping Centre. Charles & Keith is a Singapore brand known for its women’s footwear and accessories.
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