Archibald London to ‘disrupt the market by nipping at the heels of luxury’

London - Most luxury shoppers are willing to pay through the nose for a premium item, as they understand in order to obtain quality, you must pay a certain price. But Rohan Dhir, CEO of Archibald London, an online-based luxury brand, is ready to put this concept to bed, as he aims to offer consumers the best possible quality product at the best possible price. “It’s quite a beautiful idea - you can have the best at a better price,” he says to FashionUnited. Now, after successfully launching Archibald London as a premium eyewear brand, offering eyewear handcrafted in Japan, he has expanded the brand’s product range to sweaters, scarves, leather goods, denim, homeware, knives and even footwear, all of which has been sourced from the finest producers around the world.

FashionUnited spoke to Rohan Dhir in order to learn more about his unique business model, what challenges he has faced in established Archibald London and his plans for the future.

“We started with glasses and then we branched out into all types of categories as we realized that we had a golden idea at our fingertips,” explains the 29-year-old entrepreneur. “We did not want to be seen as just a glasses company, we wanted to be seen as this company that offers the best quality products for the best possible price.” Dhir wanted to develop a more effective business model by going straight to the producers for his products and then selling them directly to consumers, in order to avoid the traditional retailer markup. He aimed to create a lifestyle brand which offered shoppers premium goods at a fair price, as the retail price of the majority of the luxury goods is usually grossly inflated up to twelve times of what it actually costs to make them.

Archibald London aims to offer the best quality products for the best price

But why did he chose to start with eyewear and not another fashion product, such as scarves or handbags? “Glasses was the obvious entrance product for us following the success of Warby Parker in the United States. And I think we were the first in Europe to bring that model here - expect we never really used their model because we totally changed the game in terms of the product we are offering,” he explains. After hearing about Warby Parker during a presentation as a Columbia graduate back in 2010, Dhir was keen to start his own business but take it one step further. Rather than just selling eye frames directly to consumers, he would sell the best possible glasses he could. He secured a research grant to work out idea. However, after being discouraged by the low-level of quality most eyewear manufactures offered in China during his research trip he was discouraged and his concept for his business shaken.

However, after a chance meeting with a Scottish man named Archibald, he was was given the name of one of the finest eyewear craftsmen in a small village in Sabae, Japan. Dhir managed to convince the family-run business to work with him after three months, after a falling out with Safilo had put them off working with international clients. But once they understood Dhir’s model, they were open to working with him and he managed to secure a lens produce for the eyewear frames nearby. Dhir maintains that it quite fortunate that he started out his business by focusing on glasses, as they are both a medical device, as well as a fashion item, making them a product people need. “In addition, when an eyewear brand has a fan, they usually have a fan for life. But the vision has always been that we go and we create a brand. And when I say a brand, I don’t mean a fashion brand, because that is not what we are going to do.”

“We are looking to build a brand that essentially is known to source the best in the world for any given product that we can think of and provide it through this model that we have already established”

For example, Archibald London glasses retail for 199 pounds, which is more than high street eyewear retailers like Warby Parker, but the frames are made from the finest acetate or titanium in Japan. Its lenses are made from the best glass in Japan as well, placing the product in the luxury end of the market, even if the price is not premium. Dhir notes that glasses were a good product for the brand to start with, although it is harder to convert glasses online and showcase how well they are made. In addition, his unique business model has been hard for shoppers to grasp, as shoppers do not always associate Archibald London products with luxury due to their mid-market price - even though the price is explained online in a very transparent way. Dhir sources directly from artisan craftsmen and takes a smaller cut than most traditional retailers, before selling on his products at a lower price than his luxury peers.

“By being mid-price in the spectrum, we are not expensive enough for a customer to understand that our glasses are the best quality, handcraft eyewear that you can get. There is a lack of perceived value in the product because of our disruptive pricing,” he adds. Which is why in part Archibald London began expanding its product categories, as Dhir realized that in order to appeal to a bigger market they needed to offer a wide range of goods, rather than converting customers in a slow way. He traveled the world to find the best craftsmen and artisans to create products for the brands, starting with cashmere scarves and stoles, as cashmere is another product where luxury shoppers are able to tell the difference. “If you have ever owned a Burberry scarf then you know it is a good cashmere product.” Whereas a Burberry cashmere scarf retails for 375 pounds, Archibald London sells its own cashmere scarfs, which are made in the same mills in Scotland which produce scarfs for the British heritage fashion house for 75 pounds.

Archibald London seeks to change millennials perception of quality

Afterwards, Archibald London launched small leather goods after locating a workshop in Ubrique, Spain, such as handbags and glasses cases as well selvage denim for men, made in Kojima, Japan. The brand is set to launch its first shoes for men, made in Mirandola, Italy, as well as homeware goods such as knives, throws, and linen. Dhir assures that all products sourced are of the highest possible quality and that he works hard to ensure it remains the same across the board, which can be tricky at times. In addition, the pricing of each product and ensuring the customer understands what level of quality they are buying into through Archibald London’s business model remains a challenge. “In retrospect, it was a very ambitious move - particularly when you are speaking to a generation (millennials) which is probably the first generation in the retail spectrum that has avoided a quality product for the longest time,” notes Dhir.

“For previous generations quality was a concept that was understood at the age of 24 or 25. With millennials, it is understood at the age of 35 or 36. Until someone reaches that age, I think they do not really understand what defines a quality product. Cashmere is cashmere to them for example. Zara does it for 50 pounds and Burberry does it for 350 pounds, but it is a completely different product. I think that is a big struggle, as it is essentially a very challenging task for us. We knew that this project was a success with the glasses, but it was not the success we were hoping to have.” Dhir is aware that with such a unique business model, one which some claim is at least 7 years ahead of its time, they have to re-educate the way customers see the product and perceive value.

Archibald London aims to become a luxury lifestyle brand

Now his next challenge lies in setting up his business in a way people can understand it and the products and why the prices are what they are. “We want to make our customers feel like they are the winner when they make a purchase.” One way to do this is by offering customers a physical touchpoint, where they can become acquainted with the brand’s full offering in person and immersive themselves in its story. “We would like to open our own showroom in London one day soon - where customers can come and see and touch the products in person and have a unique experience. If possible Dhir would like to include a coffee bar, offering the finest coffee available, as well as leading customer service to fully showcase the brand’s DNA.

“We need to touch customers in a whole new way, as the retail space is no longer the same.” By enticing customers to come to their showroom, Dhir hopes he will entice them to make a purchase. “Once someone has our product in their hand they don’t ever go anywhere else. That is our underlying success. Archibald may not be winning in the sense we are reinventing design, but we are disrupting the luxury industry.”

Photos: Courtesy of Archibald London