Discussing luxury market trends: Alpenite and Thélios at E-Luxury Summit in Lausanne

Valuable insights of how Thélios revolutionizes the eyewear industry through digital innovation

Giulia Trincanato

Alpenite took part in the E-Luxury Summit 2023 hosted by Dagorà in Lausanne—an event dedicated to exploring how top-tier luxury brands foster innovation.

On this occasion, Alpenite seized the opportunity to share its insights alongside Thélios, contributing to the ongoing discourse on advancements in the luxury industry.

The discussions encompassed a wide array of topics, including luxury market trends with a particular emphasis on:

People & Change Management: Highlighting the human aspect of digital transformation, with a particular emphasis on the pivotal role emotional intelligence plays in effective change management and innovation.

Technology as Enabler: Exploring how technology empowers humans, enhancing craftsmanship, design, and the inherent artistry in luxury. This approach amplifies human roles rather than overshadowing them.
Art, Design and Craftsmanship as Keys to Innovation: Recognizing the profound legacy of art, design, and craftsmanship in driving innovative business models. This involves integrating traditional craftsmanship with contemporary methods, honoring heritage, and infusing it with modern strategies.

The exclusive event provided valuable insights into how brands are revolutionizing their industry through digital innovation.

The roundtable, featuring Gianluca De Santis and Federico Betti as key participants, aimed to showcase the significant progress Thélios has achieved in its digital journey over the past few years, with the support of Alpenite.

Gianluca De Santis, serving as the Chief Digital Officer at Thélios since its inception in 2017, has played a pivotal role in the company’s digital evolution. Joining him in the discussion was Federico Betti, Business Development Leader at Alpenite.

Federico Betti: Gianluca, could you please provide an introduction of yourself and offer a detailed overview of Thélios’ remarkable journey since its establishment?

Gianluca De Santis: I am Gianluca De Santis, and I’ve been intricately involved with Thélios since its inception. In 2017, Thélios emerged as a dynamic startup within the expansive landscape of LVMH. Our vision was clear from the outset – to drive innovation and redefine the eyewear industry. Over the ensuing years, Thélios has undergone significant evolution, solidifying its position as a key player in crafting eyewear for 10 esteemed maisons within the LVMH Group, featuring renowned brands such as Dior, Fendi, Celine, and Bulgari.

In addition to the success within the LVMH portfolio, Thélios has successfully acquired two exceptional independent eyewear brands, Barton Perreira and Vuarnet, and has strategically expanded its production capacity in Northen Italy to meet growing demands. Substantial enhancements to our manufacturing site in the northern region underscore our commitment to maintaining the highest standards of craftsmanship and innovation.

Federico Betti: Could you elaborate on the main challenges faced in developing a go-to-market strategy from scratch and concurrently enabling solutions to empower customer-facing processes?

Gianluca De Santis: The initial challenge was producing the first set of products in 2018. Establishing solid foundations and ensuring correct decision-making back then were crucial. In fact, various professionals working with Thélios offered different perspectives, contributing to the anticipation of potential challenges.

Decomposing the Customer Journey for B2B and B2B2C was vital, as Thélios is responsible for ensuring an excellent customer experience in the physical and digital stores not only in terms of product, but also of knowledge base. At the same time, aligning the ERP and having a clear vision were early priorities, intending to elevate eyewear industry standards.

To showcase our products effectively in boutiques, optician’s or department stores, ensuring they leave a lasting impression, earn recognition, and remain visible, all while honoring the unique heritage and image of each maison, we need a holistic approach.

Collaborating with Alpenite team, we developed a 360-degree view of the customer, employing a CRM initiative. This allowed us to identify and address pain points in both B2B and B2C journeys efficiently. Moreover, efforts were made to work in an agile manner, understanding store operations and establishing our position in the value chain.

With a CRM, the information was not only easier to store, but also made available for our team internally. It has enabled us to move faster, make more informed decisions, such as where to focus our largest digital marketing investments, when to do so, and which territories to target.

Moreover, structuring our product information has been a significant challenge in the industry, particularly in terms of educating and transferring information to opticians or store associates who ultimately influence decisions. Previously, this information was often fragmented across different tools, with each team creating its own content. With a PIM, we now have a single source of truth, providing up-to-date and reliable information and enhancing commercial effectiveness. This has made a dramatic difference in our commercial success rates. Addressing this cultural challenge requires a big effort in change management, as we recognize that digital transformation demands strong commitment and initiative from all involved.

Federico Betti: Alpenite has collaborated with Thélios from the outset, focusing on fundamentals such as data enablement, unification, transformation, and adoption. Looking ahead, what are the anticipated challenges for Thélios?

Gianluca De Santis: There are plenty of next. Thélios is currently undergoing a rebranding initiative and is redefining its brand identity. While we initially worked exclusively with LVMH maisons, the two recent independent acquisitions I mentioned earlier are putting Thélios in a different position.

Moreover, we are collaborating with Alpenite on the rebranding of the new institutional website and this is something quite relevant. Future challenges include reshaping Thélios’ approach to technology, emphasizing its role in supporting the narrative rather than becoming the narrative. Being part of LVMH certainly gives us a privileged observatory and the opportunity to reduce the noise and focus on the things that we know can influence the way we work, out of the many that we have on the table.

Also, the most important thing we are trying to achieve at Thélios is the way we look at technology, especially blockchain and AI, for their role in fighting the counterfeit market and improving information processing in both B2B and B2C.

Content creation, with a focus on maintaining high-quality standards in virtual products and 3D renders, is also a priority. Whether it’s a physical item or a new collection piece, the goal is to give each product a distinct identity that translates seamlessly between the physical and digital realms.

This integration facilitates the tracking of products through a digital supply chain, enhancing transparency and traceability throughout the production and distribution processes.