Rugby fashion brand for men, women and children, Eden Park was established in 1987 in France. Florent, UK business development manager of the global fashion brand, has been operating for over 15 years in the UK. Florent came to The Work Crowd to refresh their social communications.

Florent, Eden Park has an interesting history, please tell us about it.

In 1987 Eden Park’s founder Franck Mesnel himself played at the very first Rugby World Cup Final against the All Blacks at the Eden Park Stadium in Auckland, New Zealand, after also playing his first two selections against the All Blacks in France.

The boys had a formal dinner post the Championship quarter-finals of 87 and they were trying to think of a fitting accessory to represent the spirit of their team.Someone came up with the idea of wearing a bowtie with a tuxedo in their trademark colour pink.

A week later, true to their decision, the Showbizz lads played in the grand final against Toulon sporting their distinctive pink bow ties. This became somewhat of a tradition, appearing on the pitch in impeccable pink bow ties and thus, Eden Park was born.

Eden Park has been operating in the UK for a decade and a half, why are you seeking extra support now?

We have always used traditional agencies, and had large communication teams in place in France. Fifteen years ago when we launched in the U.K, consumer use of technology very much mirrored the French consumer and we could transfer practice quite simply. France was shaping the way fashion consumers engaged. However, in the last 10 years, technology has changed vastly and how consumers in the U.K market rely on technology and social to buy has diverged very much from how the French consumer utilises technology and social. Ultimately, we needed to be educated on the U.K fashion consumer and their social habits.

You could have continued using traditional methods here in the U.K., so why chose a freelancer and why The Work Crowd?

We were looking for a single expert that could educate us. Retail marketing is no longer just about buying press and we needed to adapt ourselves to these changes. In the U.K the channels of communication have narrowed a lot, so we chose to work with a freelancer who had extensive experience here in the U.K that could work with us closely.

You’ve chosen to work with freelance marketing and comms consultant, Veronica. What are you working on with her to achieve?

Currently we are putting a lot of our emphasis on using Instagram.  Veronica is using her expertise in this market, to educate us on how to campaign through Instagram. The approach in the UK is very different to how we currently use instagram for our french market. We do have a social media manager in Paris, but with our current knowledge, we felt we haven't been reaching our full potential with U.K consumers, so  are working with Veronica to grow our expertise in the U.K market.  

If you have been wanting to break into a new market, or refresh your current practice like Florent, pick up the phone and chat to us on 0203 828 8440 or drop us a line