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The news last month that George Zimmer had been pushed out of the Men’s Wearhouse, the company he founded and built into the most successful men’s clothing specialty chain in the country, caught a lot of retail watchers by surprise.
Not only was Zimmer the founder of the chain, but he was also the face and the spokesperson for the company which he grew from one store to over 1100 with nearly $2 billion in sales in 40 years at the helm.
George Zimmer founder Men’s Wearhouse
Many trade writers are skeptical that the company will continue to grow without Zimmer’s familiar face and closing line (“You’re going to like the way you look. I guarantee it.) in every commercial. It brings up the question of how important a CEO spokesperson like Zimmer (or Lee Iacocca for Chrysler and Dave Thomas for Wendy’s before him) is to the success of the brand.
I believe that Zimmer was critical to Men’s Wearhouse, but not because of his consistent presence in their commercials over the years. I, too, had the impression that he wasn’t much more than Fast Eddy in New York or Ollie Fretter in Detroit were as familiar faces on TV. However, over 10 years ago, I had the opportunity to attend a presentation by Zimmer at Texas A&M’s Center for Retail Studies Symposium and it changed my impression completely. It also helped me understand why the Men’s Wearhouse brand was so successful. The familiar CEO spent a little time talking about the chain’s history and their marketing efforts which featured him. Then, he went into detail about how critical complementary sales and training were to building profitable and loyal sales. The key, he said, was the ongoing training that every store associate went through repeatedly to insure they were giving the best service and were committed to selling wardrobes rather than items.
That’s the key to successful retail brands—making sure that your associates live up to the brand everyday, with every customer. We don’t know whether the board at Men’s Wearhouse accelerated Zimmer’s exit because he no longer believed in the importance of the service and training. One thing for sure is that if the board and Zimmer’s replacement at CEO, Douglas Ewert, want to move away from these important components of the brand. The company will, indeed, miss their longtime spokesperson. I guarantee it.
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