Alton Lane and a Blue Ocean Strategy in Men's Clothing

I wasn't raised in an environment where custom clothing was the norm. My dad's dad had one suit. It was a quality piece because that's what you did back then. He was a brick mason and contractor and he called that suit, his "puttin away suit". He was buried in it. My dad, I don't recall ever seeing him in a suit. He was a fireman, mechanic, and painter. His idea of dressing up was a shirt and tie for a funeral or special event. Jackets weren't his thing.
This all having been said, they would laugh at the thought of my owning custom shirts, made to measure, and experiencing shopping for them the same way.
I share the background of my own life to cast some light on what is likely the case with most men who end up in a custom clothing experience.
I've spent most of my life at the TJ Max or Marshall's type of stores going through racks of shirts occasionally finding that awesome high-end shirt in my size for $12.00. Score!
When life got a bit more financially stable, I opted in for an appointment with a Trumaker Fitter who met me at the office, measured me up and in about three weeks, my first custom shirt arrived. It was a great experience. I enjoyed the young lady who served as the fitter and we stay connected. I bought a second shirt and with a strong referral bonus, I referred a half a dozen men to this particular rep.
The experience and vibe during the entire process was far better than scouring through bins of shirts.
About a year and a half ago, I experienced what is an even newer disruption of the personal shopping space.
Alton Lane is a custom clothier that marries technology and personal touch in some masterful ways. I'm writing about them in Blue Ocean Strategy context as I would argue they are finding noncustomers and uncontested marketspace by virtue of their specific business model.
As a quick review, a business is entering Blue Ocean Shift territory, where uncontested marketspace exist, if the cost of production, delivery or sales lowers while value to the customer increases. Blue Ocean success stories are identified by their discovery and acquisition of noncustomers.
I was a classic tier-three noncustomer of Alton Lanes. Tier-three noncustomers don't know you. They don't have your business on their radar. They have to be identified via buyer personas, then found, then talked to, and then served with testing roll-outs and then surveyed to know what will keep them coming back.

I was invited to a business mixer by a friend that was held at a Nashville Alton Lane location. There was a shortlist of invitees to this mixer as the Alton Lane location is approximately 750 square feet or so. I'll describe the initial impression so you have some context around their unique experience.
As one finds this particular Nashville location, one notices that the location is in the rear of a converted warehouse facility that now hosts upscale restaurants, shops, and bars. The entry is marked but upon stepping up to the door, one experiences an automated door that is somewhat hidden. One feels as though they've entered a speakeasy or secret location. The establishment is scented in what may be a custom scent or at the least has the scent of new clothing.


One is immediately offered a drink. Each showroom features a well-stocked bar where their relationship with Heaven Hill Distillery is clear to those with trained eyes in the spirits space. The experienced showroom manager serves as narrator and host for the event and each is trained to carry on conversations that lead to data gathering that lead to a better understanding of what one seeks in their clothing.
In the case of this event, each attendee had an opportunity to experience a digital body scan with technology patented by Alton Lane. A brief video describing the tech is featured here.

Once one is measured, the showroom manager tightens up the data with some hand measurements and then it's back to the bar or a comfortable leather couch for a visit with the massive collection of swatches. The personalization of one's shirt, suit, trousers, etc really gets taken to a new level at this point.
During this entire process, one is still enjoying the event, the conversation, and the environment.
It is easy to see how this process differs from a visit to a department store. Even a high-end establishment with comparable pricing, i.e. a Nordstrum or custom men's clothier.
One tool that demonstrates this distinction visually is a Blue Ocean Strategy As-Is Strategy Canvas.

View the vertical axis as a measurement of value in this case. The horizontal axis demonstrates strategic factors associated with the purchase of men's clothing. The two strategic profiles studied in this canvas are traditional retail, not discount retail, and Alton Lane.
As you can see, price is not all that different when quality becomes the benchmark. Convenience is a strong strategic factor for Alton Lane. When you have your appointment set at Alton Lane, you are taken care of individually and personally. That's not common in a traditional department store setting.
Fit is a game-changer for Alton Lane as a strategic factor. As one who has ordered and received custom clothes before, there is no fit quite like the one received after a digital scanner reinforced by manual measurement. If the item, for any reason, isn't satisfactory, take it back and with few questions, the item is made right. This isn't an endorsement of Alton Lane, it's simply a discussion of the strategic factors. 
Personal service and customization are strong features in the strategic arsenal for Alton Lane. The experienced staff who knows you or who can pull up your data and details and pick up where the last conversation left off is not available in the traditional retail environment. Customization around fabrics and design choices make every piece uniquely one's own.
Both strategic profiles feature quality clothing so the distinctions in this area often have to be perceived. That is to say, what does the narrative around quality sound and read like? How are staffers trained to speak to quality?
Finally, the after purchase experience has to be considered as a strategic factor. How does an after purchase experience make a company unique? With Alton Lane as with some other custom clothiers, one receives a login and can then order anything online and thanks to the stored data, the fit is perfect, time after time. That's not happening in traditional retail. The data stored by Alton Lane lends itself to one's receiving great experiences on every return shopping trip as well as giving the showroom staff context and history on the individual visiting or calling the showroom.
The "As-Is" strategy canvas is just one tool that is used in the Blue Ocean Shift journey. There are many other shift related processes to go through when a company seriously enters the Blue Ocean journey.
A part of the narrative from Alton Lane includes the following: "From our design bar and personalized service, to our collection of over 3,000 premium fabrics and our 3D body scanning technology, our experience is designed to help you find the perfect fit in the most comfortable and convenient way possible."
Recently, Macy's made the news with their additional use of technology to enhance the online experience customers will receive in the future. They are linking up with Google to use its Cloud platform in its warehouses across the U.S. Through its data analytics, the platform will help the department-store chain manage online orders, merchandise and deliveries — including of bulkier items such as furniture — one “of the key challenges” Macy's has been trying to solve, says CNBC. While the store reported lower second-quarter profit and has lowered its earnings outlook for the year, it’s seen a rebound in online sales.
If you or your company is interested in discussing how Blue Ocean may work for you, please don't hesitate to reach out. An initial discussion is completely complimentary.
Sherman Mohr is an Insead Blue Ocean Strategy Institute Certified Blue Ocean Strategist. He is located in Nashville, TN.