**UPDATE October 2022**: The Buyers Club initiative has been closed for re-structuring and with economic conditions worsening, we have decided to revive Archibald, Naked for Volume 2.
**The History**
At the end of 2019, we took a calculated risk. Archibald, Naked. We put the complete collection online for exactly what it costs to make. We stripped back the brand to bring you product with no operational costs, administrative fees, or other retail markup and ran a six-week initiative on the site.
**Why?**
It’s a question worth asking. Because without covering the costs required to keep a business afloat, any business will drown. But we had a clear, focused vision we wanted to share with our customers and the rest of the industry.
It’s not a business model we would recommend.
Archibald takes pride in standing out from other brands. We straddle two different sectors by process and design. Our products are made by master craftsmen and delivered ‘direct to consumer’, and we are transparent with our pricing.
We wanted to show people that there was another way than keeping to the traditional retail model. Obtaining true luxury quality could be fair for everyone involved. Direct-to-consumer retail can be more than just a vehicle for churn. We can protect both the artisan’s craft and the purchaser’s wallet simultaneously.
This industry needs to evolve.
We created Naked to show we were serious about paving the way.
The natural next step was to change the game... Let the product do the talking.
Archibald, Naked had no middlemen and no mark-ups. Rather than spin a story, we reduced the barrier to entry, letting people experience it themselves.
And they did, with overwhelming success.
By February of 2020, we concluded our Naked initiative, only for the global crisis to put the same small businesses and craftsmen our program had worked so closely with in peril.
**Archibald, Naked was resurrected. This time, it was different.**
It became an urgent means of support for the artisans whose careers were now uncertain. It was no longer about the brand or an audience, it was about the artisans and protecting their local industries.
Running from April 2020 to May 2021, we achieved something bigger than we expected. Our customers became part of our community and joined in on our highs and our lows. And as we put Naked to bed, we deliberated amongst ourselves… Could we keep this community going? Whilst also keeping our business afloat?
They say every problem and every idea is often a development of something already done. A retail strategy like the one we are proposing has, in fact, been implemented before. But never within the realm of artisanal luxury goods. So, inspired by some of retail's most innovative thinkers (thank you, Mr. Sinegal), we set out to find a way to make this strategy work in a broader sense…
We are delighted to announce the Archibald Buyers Club, our new membership program.
**The History**
At the end of 2019, we took a calculated risk. Archibald, Naked. We put the complete collection online for exactly what it costs to make. We stripped back the brand to bring you product with no operational costs, administrative fees, or other retail markup and ran a six-week initiative on the site.
**Why?**
It’s a question worth asking. Because without covering the costs required to keep a business afloat, any business will drown. But we had a clear, focused vision we wanted to share with our customers and the rest of the industry.
It’s not a business model we would recommend.
Archibald takes pride in standing out from other brands. We straddle two different sectors by process and design. Our products are made by master craftsmen and delivered ‘direct to consumer’, and we are transparent with our pricing.
We wanted to show people that there was another way than keeping to the traditional retail model. Obtaining true luxury quality could be fair for everyone involved. Direct-to-consumer retail can be more than just a vehicle for churn. We can protect both the artisan’s craft and the purchaser’s wallet simultaneously.
This industry needs to evolve.
We created Naked to show we were serious about paving the way.
The natural next step was to change the game... Let the product do the talking.
Archibald, Naked had no middlemen and no mark-ups. Rather than spin a story, we reduced the barrier to entry, letting people experience it themselves.
And they did, with overwhelming success.
By February of 2020, we concluded our Naked initiative, only for the global crisis to put the same small businesses and craftsmen our program had worked so closely with in peril.
**Archibald, Naked was resurrected. This time, it was different.**
It became an urgent means of support for the artisans whose careers were now uncertain. It was no longer about the brand or an audience, it was about the artisans and protecting their local industries.
Running from April 2020 to May 2021, we achieved something bigger than we expected. Our customers became part of our community and joined in on our highs and our lows. And as we put Naked to bed, we deliberated amongst ourselves… Could we keep this community going? Whilst also keeping our business afloat?
They say every problem and every idea is often a development of something already done. A retail strategy like the one we are proposing has, in fact, been implemented before. But never within the realm of artisanal luxury goods. So, inspired by some of retail's most innovative thinkers (thank you, Mr. Sinegal), we set out to find a way to make this strategy work in a broader sense…
We are delighted to announce the Archibald Buyers Club, our new membership program.
