Humor
and retro-Americana prove a successful blend for a popular new line of pajamas.
When Linda Rae Tepper first told people about her idea to
create an original line of pajamas, they thought she was crazy: Nobody wears
pajamas anymore, they informed her. True as that fact may have been, Tepper
believed it was because, with the exception of the very expensive variety,
there were no appealing pajamas on the market. So Tepper forged ahead with her
idea and designed a line of sleepwear she hoped would make people smile.
However, even Tepper didn't realize then that her whimsical
"PJs" would do more than make people smile; they would cause people
to buy them by the bushel. The quirky flannel pant-and-shirt sets — whose
designs include "Cowhide" (a cow print), "Counting Sheep"
(sheep jumping over fences), "Breakfast in Bed" (bacon, eggs and
coffee), "Cloud Nine" (clouds), and "Jungle Jim" (leopard
print) — are now pampering slumberers across America. Even FOX's Ally McBeal is
wearing them.
These now-famous pajamas are marketed under the label Nick
& Nora, a Manhattan-based company that evolved out of its founders'
previous entrepreneurial ventures. Tepper and partner Steven Abrams entered the
fashion business in the mid-1970s when they opened Ruby Slippers, an antique
clothing store that sold clothing and accessories from time periods ranging
from the Victorian era to the early 1960s. The entrepreneurs, native New
Yorkers who grew up within blocks of each other in Brooklyn and attended rival
high schools, scoured old warehouses and department stores and purchased
never-been-used inventory to sell at Ruby Slippers. In one warehouse, the pair
fortuitously discovered an immense stash of vintage eyeglass frames dating back
to the 1920s, and stumbling upon a gold mine in the process. The discovery of
the eyeglass frames led Abrams and Tepper to found another company, aptly named
Shady Character, in 1976.
"We went all over to find warehouses that had vintage
eyewear and bought everything we found," says Tepper, who first met Abrams
when she was just 14 years old. "We began to focus our efforts on selling
vintage eyewear and accessories."
Tepper and Abrams went to international trade and boutique
shows to market their old-yet-new products, gaining Shady Character
international attention at a time when punk was just hitting the scene, but before
the era of what Tepper calls the "mega fashion brand." As Shady
Character, which resided in a little warehouse in the basement of a Greenwich
Village yogurt store, built up an international clientele, it began having
trouble keeping up with the demand for vintage eyewear. To meet the demand, the
founders took to manufacturing reproduction frames, using old factories in the
United States that had produced similar types of frames at one time.
In the process of building up Shady Character, Tepper and
Abrams found that they could no longer support Ruby Slippers, so they closed
its doors.
"Shady Character became so big that we had to devote
all our time to it," says Tepper. "Also, it got hard to find really
fabulous old clothes like the kind we had always sold at Ruby Slippers."
In the mid-’80s, Abrams and Tepper expanded their offering
beyond eyewear. This time it was boxer shorts, originally created and marketed
under the label Shadow Boxer, and other accessories, such as suspenders, caps,
hats, gloves, scarves, shawls — and pajamas. However, to avoid confusion with
the Joe Boxer brand, Abrams and Tepper
changed the label name to Nick & Nora, after "Nick and Nora Charles of
The Thin Man," Dashiell Hammett's novel chronicling the escapades of
private eye Nick Charles and his wife Nora.
In the midst of all this, Tepper, in true entrepreneurial
style, taught herself the art of textile design to create the designs for the
Nick & Nora product line. "We design all our own textiles,"
Abrams says. "That way, we're able to produce a better, more fashionable
line."
Although Tepper says it took about three seasons for the
pajamas to catch on with customers and industry insiders, once they did, the
response was impressive. In 1987 and again in 1989, Nick & Nora won the
Printed Textile Council's Tommy Award for the use of printed fabric in the
men's sleepwear and loungewear category. And that was only the beginning.
Any "Ally McBeal" fan can recall the show's famous
"dancing baby" episode — the show in which Ally, clad in, yes, Nick
& Nora pajamas, dances with a computerized baby to the tune of B.J. Thomas'
"Hooked on a Feeling." It's not the only episode in which Ally can be
seen in the whimsical pajamas, but it perhaps the most well known. And it was
the show's staff that solicited Nick & Nora, not the other way around.
Originally, Loree Parrell, the show's wardrobe supervisor, bought the pajamas
at retail. And at the time, Calista Flockhart, the actress who plays Ally,
already owned Nick & Nora's "Counting Sheep" pajamas. Now, when
the show needs pajamas, Parrell calls Nick & Nora and orders them.
Being featured on the hit show brought Nick & Nora quite
a bit of recognition and new business, says Abrams. And the additional revenue
that followed allowed Abrams and Tepper to contract a product-placement company
that represents the Nick & Nora line to movies and television shows needing
pajamas and other accessories. "Friends" and the recently cancelled
"Cybill" are among the other series that have featured the company's
loungewear.
"People go into stores and say they want the pajamas
Ally McBeal wears," says Tepper. "We gained enormous recognition from
being on the show."
In addition to Nick & Nora's success on the small
screen, the company also won a coveted spot in the Victoria's Secret (VS)
catalog in August 1997. Once again, the business came to Nick & Nora. As
often happens via the networking process, the Nick & Nora name came up at
Victoria's Secret business meetings through the persistence of a woman who had
previously worked with Abrams and Tepper on a private label. Now Nick &
Nora pajamas boast a full-page spread in the lingerie catalog, complete with
brand name and trademark, in the Victoria's Secret catalog — an honor not
bestowed on any other private label, according to Tepper. The comfy,
full-coverage Nick & Nora sets may seem an ironic addition to the skimpy
teddies and negligees typically found in the VS catalog, but their inclusion
illustrates what Tepper and Abrams have known all along: When consumers want to
relax after a long, hard day, they want feel-good loungewear in which to do it.
Some of Nick & Nora's retailers fretted that the
Victoria's Secret deal would draw sales away from them, says Tepper, but they
soon realized that the exposure gave Nick & Nora national credibility,
which actually bolstered their sales. "'Ally McBeal' gave the pajamas
visibility, and Victoria's Secret put our name on the map," she explains.
Despite the extensive play the Nick & Nora line was
receiving, the company still had to do its share of work to market its products
and promote the label, especially since it competes with the likes of giants
Ralph Lauren, Donna Karan and Calvin Klein. But Tepper and Abrams are
steadfastly confident in their competitive edge: knowledge of the market and a
superior product.
Says Abrams of his strategy for dealing with the
competition: "Other designers have their own look, and we have ours. We
rely on the integrity of our product, [and we] make ourselves visible and
important in the market."
Abrams and Tepper consider their target market people who
yearn for nostalgia, and they have developed a strategic plan to effectively reach
that group. The plan combines the insistence upon a quality product, controlled
distribution and a throwback to "retro Americana," all blended
together with the intention of making people smile.
"We're not selling a commodity. We're selling a
lifestyle. Our product puts a smile on people's faces," says Tepper, who
says that she designs for customers, not for buyers. "I know that if I
design something that makes people smile, they'll come back."
All Nick & Nora products are completely produced in the
United States and distributed, aside from the Victoria's Secret channel,
through boutiques and lingerie stores. The Nick & Nora line also retails at
higher-end department stores, such as Nordstom and Bloomingdale's. Abrams says
that customers appreciate that the company's products are only available in
select stores.
The "retro Americana" feel of the Nick & Nora
product is evident in all of their pajama designs, including the one they
designed for Nabisco last year featuring Oreo cookies. Additionally, every year
Tepper designs a set of pajamas based on a different episode of "I Love
Lucy." The theme has also been extended with a line of matching slippers
and fleece robes, and a line of infant pajamas, which debuted in Spring
1999.
The company has strategically aligned itself with various
other companies and licensed its products in order to expand the Nick &
Nora brand and product exposure, says Abrams. For instance, the company's
recently developed line of bedding and bathroom accessories are licensed for
sale by Wamsutta, while Nick & Nora table linens and other kitchen
accessories are under license with Bardwil Industries. And, according to
Tepper, a children's sleepwear company also wants to license Nick & Nora's
designs for their own flame-retardant pajamas.
Abrams says this approach has turned the Nick & Nora
brand into a lifestyle. "People can sleep in it, on it, have it in the
kitchen, the bathroom," says Abrams. "People want our designs around
them."
Nick & Nora's growth has not been without its share of
hurdles. As Tepper says, in the fashion business, a label is only as good as
its next season. However, Abrams and Tepper have stuck to their vision over the
span of Nick & Nora's existence, and thus far it has paid off for them. At
this point, all profits are fed back into the business and debt is paid off as
quickly as possible. This fiscal conservatism has led to financial stability,
and stability can be a rarity in the fashion business, says Tepper.
"A lot of fashion is hype," Tepper says. "The
question is, 'Do you have a bottom line?' Volume doesn't mean anything. We're
not greedy; we just want to build a brand."
An unwavering commitment to brand growth keeps Tepper and
Abrams globetrotting regularly to trade shows in California, Tokyo and Paris.
And the knowledge that Nick & Nora merchandise makes consumers happy
reinforces Tepper and Abrams' feeling that they've started something big.
"We're proud of our product and love what we're
doing," says Tepper. "Money was never our first priority when
starting the business. We're so fortunate to make a living doing what we love
doing. Our product is us."
Nick & Nora is in the heart of the busiest time of its
season. And on top of that, they just added a new design facility, established
an e-mail system, and a Web site is on the way. In the midst of all this,
Abrams and Tepper are not losing sight of their short-term goal, which is the
same every year: to get through the season, keeping the customers and consumers
happy. Not far out of their minds is their long-term goal: to truly make the
Nick & Nora label a well-known brand people can trust. Through licensing of
their product and other joint ventures, Tepper and Abrams hope to do just that.
"The business is growing very well, but it's controlled
and solid," says Abrams. "We can't be everything to everyone, and
that's part of our philosophy. We've created a niche and we're sticking to
it."
Nick & Nora's success is evident in the numbers.
Although this privately held company declines to share specific revenue
information, Abrams will say that Nick & Nora's business has increased 100
percent during each of the last two years.
As a team, Tepper and Abrams are on the same wavelength.
Nick & Nora is a completely joint venture between these two Brooklyners who
nearly grew up together. Yet when it comes to favorite designs, the pair parts
ways. Tepper's is leopard. Abrams' is whatever is selling best.
Company: Nick & Nora
Founders: Linda Rae Tepper and Steven Abrams
Industry: Fashion
Location: New York City
Employees: 12 full-time (plus additional temporary help
during the peak times of Aug.-Dec.)
Revenues: undisclosed
Copyright © 2000 by Virtual Advisor, Inc. All rights reserved.