The concept of creative collaboration applied to the fashion industry

Co-branding is an interesting approach to building differentiation and reputation. In the fashion industry, one well-known example of co-branding is the creative collaboration between fashion designers and mass-market retailers. This paper aims to explore this specific example of co-branding. It first introduces the concept of co-branding and presents its application by the Swedish retailer H&M. An exploratory study with a convenience sample confirms the interest of the approach. Further analysis of the contrasting results of H&M's collaborations with Lanvin and Sonia Rykiel shows that if a co-branding strategy is well managed by integrating compatible elements between two brands – visions, values and wills, to create real synergies – it presents an interesting path towards creating sustainable brand differentiation.