国际知名品牌Burberry最近不惜重金砸了一部广告大片——The Tale of Thomas Burberry。结果，很多人的朋友圈就连续多日被这部微电影刷屏了。

https://v.qq.com/txp/iframe/player.html?vid=m0350zhihml&width=500&height=375&auto=0▲ The Tale of Thomas Burberry

截止目前，这部影片在YouTube上的点阅量已经超过了1,400万。

故事围绕Burberry品牌创始人Thomas Burberry的事业与爱情展开，英格兰取景。影片对Thomas当年伦敦工作室的场景，进行了精准的还原。

▲影片中 Burberry品牌创始人Thomas Burberry

（Domhnall Gleeson饰）

别小看这短短的三分半钟影片，取景、拍摄、制作的功夫都在画外。

要在短时间内呈现品牌创始人的个人经历，又能诠释出一个160年知名品牌自身的底蕴与价值，这比一两个小时的电影难度要大得多。

▲ 影片中Thomas Burberry的初恋爱人（Sienna Miller饰）

担任此片导演的Asif Kapadia，正是去年获得奥斯卡最佳纪录片的导演。

▲ The Tale of Thomas Burberry导演Asif Kapadia

有人好奇，这部广告片动用电影级的制作，得花多少钱？

1000万英镑！

没关系！Burberry本就是奢侈品的态度。

这是Burberry给自己160周岁量身定制的生日礼物。所以，影片时间越短，越发显得每一格画面的金贵，每一个镜头的考究。

正如影片所传达的， Burberry曾用一块面料和一件衣服改变过世界。它让人们重新记得品牌背后的故事，当然，同时也在唤起人们思考，究竟什么是时装？它们究竟能给世界带来些什么？

新加坡国立大学商学院策略与政策系的副教授Marleen Dieleman，对Burberry这个百年时装品牌有深入的研究，她为我们揭示了Burberry核心竞争力的内涵。

Marleen DIELEMAN

新加坡国立大学机构与组织管理中心（CGIO）副主任

新加坡国立大学商学院企业政策系副教授

荷兰莱顿大学 博士

研究领域：亚洲家族企业、新兴市场策略、印尼企业文化、商业集团、制度创新精神

一个品牌的“核心竞争力（Core Competency）”就好像企业的DNA一样，它并不是指某件产品或某项技术，而是一家企业各类技能和资源的综合运用。强而有效的核心竞争力，一定是独特的，且不易被模仿的。

专注于核心竞争力的培养和运用，能够帮助一家企业在激烈的竞争中脱颖而出，成为行业的佼佼者。

2006年，全球奢侈品行业出现了惊人的增长，但是Burberry却被落在了后面。为了让公司有所改变，Burberry聘请了一位新的CEO——安吉拉·阿伦茨（Angela Ahrendts）。 

▲ Burberry 时任CEO安吉拉·阿伦茨（Angela Ahrendts）

这位受命于危难之时的新任CEO来自美国，强烈的文化差异和地域之别，让她看上去似乎不像是一位合适的人选，人们怀疑她能否带领这间老牌英国公司走出泥潭。

阿伦茨走马上任之初，先对公司进行了整体评估，以求找出问题的所在。之后，她得出这样的结论： 

“我们做了这么多五花八门的事，出售了很多不同的产品，但没有一个是我们独有的，或是能够引人注目的”。Burberry已经失去了自己的道路，失去了独特性。

https://v.qq.com/txp/iframe/player.html?vid=a03585whyen&width=500&height=375&auto=0▲ 新国大商学院副教授Marleen Dieleman

解读Burberry 品牌故事

1856年，Burberry由托马斯·博柏利（Thomas Burberry）创立。

托马斯·博柏利是纺织工业的创新者，他的公司发明了一种新型的纺织面料，叫做“华达呢”（Gabardine）。这种面料暖和易穿，并且防水。

▲ 《The Tale of Thomas Burberry》剧照

1911年，Burberry设计出可抵御低温和寒风的服装和帐篷，被使用在人类史上第一次成功的南极远征中。

几年后，他们又为首次横跨大西洋的长途飞行提供了服装。第一次世界大战期间，Burberry推出了它最为经典的风衣款式（Trench Coat）。

接下来的几十年，风衣成为了Burberry的标志性产品。1970年代，从电影明星到皇家卫兵，乃至普罗大众，任何追逐“经典”的人都会拥有一件Burberry风衣。

▲ 《The Tale of Thomas Burberry》剧照

2006年，当阿伦茨接手这家老牌公司时，Burberry产品已经涵盖了各种样式的服装和奢侈品。

但是，风衣在哪里？Burberry风衣依旧是公司最有名的产品，但却被忽视了。

阿伦茨发现即便是公司高层，也没人再穿Burberry风衣了。

阿伦茨当即宣布，Burberry既要与时俱进，又要承袭经典，而这两者要同时进行。Burberry需要围绕自身历史重塑品牌核心竞争力。要对服装做创新，特别是具有标志性的外套和大衣。

针对新兴市场的年轻客户，阿伦茨将经典设计与现代风格融为一体，并在数字媒体上进行推广营销。

2010年，阿伦茨在接受《华尔街日报》采访时说道：

如果要选一间公司作为榜样的话，那一定是苹果公司。这是一家辉煌的公司，他们致力于创造一种生活方式，而这也应该是Burberry要走的路。”

从那时起，Burberry始终把“质量”和“传承经典”作为品牌的核心。作为Burberry曾经的核心竞争力：质量、工艺、独特的资源、历史传承和品牌价值，再次回到了企业发展的舞台中心。

这一整套的资源和技能深植于Burberry的DNA当中。这些东西不容易效仿，但当只要能够成功培育出来，并聪明地加以运用，就可以成为一笔无价的财富。

核心竞争力帮助Burberry重新获得了优势，并改善了公司的财务状况。同时，它也为公司在新兴市场和年轻人群中开辟出了新市场。总之，建立和保持核心竞争力是所有企业战略家最关键的任务之一。

最后，如果你好奇阿伦茨现在哪里的话：她在Burberry成功转型之后，于2014年被苹果聘请，出任苹果零售和网络商店的高级副总裁，为全球的苹果商店重塑品牌。

编辑：王彤

视频翻译：杨嘉铭

Marleen Dieleman教授访谈视频来自新加坡国立大学商学院Think Business

Burberry广告片及部分图片来自网络

Marleen Dieleman 教授采访英文视频文字版：

Understanding Core Competencies—the Burberry Story

How focusing on skills and resources restored Burberry’s fortunes

I am Marleen Dieleman, Associate Professor in the department of strategy and Policy at NUS business school. In this video, we are going to look at how focusing on core competencies helps leverage business success. Core competencies are bundles of elements, which help you to compete.

You might think of them as the DNA of an organization. They are not one product or one technology. They are a collection of skills and resources working together. To be really effective, they shouldn’t be too easy to imitate.

Let’s take the example of British luxury goods brand Burberry. Back in 2006, the global luxury goods industry was seen spectacular growth, but Burberry on the other hand, was not. To turn the company around, a new CEO was hired.

Angela Ahrendts, and an America, an unlikely hero to lead the revival of this old British firm. When Ahrendts came on board, she made an assessment of what was wrong with the company.

“We were doing so many different things and were selling a lot of different products, but none of it was exclusive or compelling”. Burberry had lost its way and has nothing to distinguish itself.

Burberry was established in 1856 by Thomas Burberry, a leading innovator in textile manufacturing. His company invented a new method for producing textiles called Gabardine. That were warm, easy to wear and water-resistant.

In 1911, the Burberry firm designed the clothing and tents used in the first successful expedition to the South Pole. A few years later, they created the clothing for the first-ever transatlantic flight. And, during World War 1, Burberry came out with its all-time classic trench coat.

In the decade followed, the trench coat grew to become Burberry’s the iconic product. Movie stars and Royalty warden, and in the 1970s, anyone who was or wanted to be classic had a trench coat.

When Ahrendts took over in 2006, Burberry had expanded into a wide range of luxury clothing and other goods. But, where were the trench coats?

They remained the company’s most famous product but were neglected. At one top-management meeting, Ahrendts noted that even the company’s bosses didn't wear them.

Ahrendts declared that it was time for Burberry to both modernize and go back to its roots. Burberry needed to build upon its history, reinventing the brand around its core competencies of iconic, innovative clothing, especially coats and outerwear.

Targeting younger customers in the emerging market, she merged classic designs with modern style and launched campaigns on digital media to market them. In a 2010 interview with Wall Street Journal, she reviewed one of the influences on her strategy. “If I look to any company as a model, it’s Apple. They’re a brilliant company, working to create a lifestyle, and that’s the way I see us”.

Burberry today continues to put quality and heritage at the heart of its brand. What made the company famous is core competencies of quality and craftsmanship, unique resources, heritage and brand, is back at center stage.

This package of resources and skills is rooted deeply into the company's DNA. These are not easy to imitate but when nurtured and used wisely, they can be priceless.

Competing based on their core competencies helped Burberry to get an advantage and rebuild its financials. It also opened up a range of new markets including the emerging markets and young people.

Building and maintaining core competencies is the key task for any strategist.

By the way, you may be curious to know where Angela Ahrendts is now. On the back of her success at Burberry, in 2014, she was hired by Apple to rebrand their global network of Apple Stores.