Lorenzo Fluxà, founder of Camper, at ESADE: "Only time will tell whether we keep selling shoes or start selling design"

The design industry is undergoing a rapid transformation thanks to the digital revolution and the introduction of new technologies such as 3D printers, which could someday bring about huge changes in the design industry’s entire production and distribution structure. Lorenzo Fluxà Rosselló, founder of CAMPER, acknowledged as much at the opening session of the 9th ESADE-Deloitte Lecture Series, held this morning at ESADE Madrid. “Only time will tell whether we keep selling shoes or start selling design prototypes,” he commented.

The theme of the session was “Family Businesses in the 21st Century”. María José Parada Balderrama, Lecturer at ESADE, commented: “To survive from one generation to the next, family businesses must find the right balance between transmitting and preserving their core values, on the one hand, and updating those values by identifying and introducing the new impulses of the age, on the other.” Mr. Fluxà belongs to a prominent Mallorcan entrepreneurial family that, in addition to Camper, founded and owns Lottusse and Iberostar. The most important value for a family business like his, Mr. Fluxà said, is the “firm intention to stay in business for the long term”. He added: “This central value, in turn, triggers a series of other values that coalesce with it, and this translates into the adaptation of the business model at each stage.” However, he also noted that “family businesses are being transformed, as are business models and the very concept of family”. Camper must now face the challenges of globalisation and digitisation.

“Imperfect marketing”

Mr. Fluxà founded Camper in 1975, just as Spain’s transition to democracy was ushering in a new age. His idea was to create a different sort of product with a unique identity. The concept of Camper – whose name means “peasant” in the Mallorcan dialect – combines the authenticity of the company’s Mediterranean origins with innovative, irreverent design. Local and global; traditional and pioneering. Unlike Lottusse, the footwear company founded by Mr. Fluxà’s father, Camper started producing shoes without having its own manufacturing infrastructure. As a result, the focus of the company’s business model shifted towards creativity and ideas, without renouncing the value and quality of craftsmanship.

“Camper became known around the world for its ‘imperfect marketing’, a sales strategy that begins with, and focuses on, creativity, unlike the ‘perfect’ marketing of big multinationals, which have always been much more focused on efficacy and results,” acknowledged Mr. Fluxà, before adding: “In most cases, this is only possible in small, independent companies such as family businesses.” “From the beginning, we emphasised building a brand and telling the story of our products through transgressive graphic communication, packaging and advertising, as well as through the unique architecture of each of our stores and window displays,” commented Mr. Fluxà. Camper, he explained, has always tried to maintain “a touch of humour and ease that breaks away from uniformity, maintains a spirit of unexpectedness, and brings the product closer to consumers”.

Today, Camper is an iconic international footwear brand that transmits sensations and emotions through intangible values. In reference to the market transformations brought about by new technologies and globalisation, Mr. Fluxà commented: “At Camper, we’re setting our sights on the digital world. We’re enhancing the catalogue of our online store, which includes products from all of our warehouses. We’re exploring the possibilities for virtual interaction at our brick-and-mortar stores through iPads and smartphones. And we’re also experimenting with new technologies.” By way of example, Mr. Fluxà mentioned the pop-up store created by Camper in collaboration with Vitra, one of the world’s most highly renowned design brands, in the summer of 2015. The project integrated new experiences of interaction with customers and research into the concept of retail by means of specially designed technologies.

“We hope that future generations will be able to maintain the spirit of the brand while also improving management in ways that allow the company to carry on and expand,” concluded Mr. Fluxà. The session also featured the participation of Fernando Ruiz, Chairman of Deloitte; Pedro Navarro, Deputy Executive Chairman of the ESADE Foundation Board of Trustees; and María José Parada Balderrama, Lecturer in the Department of Strategy and General Management at ESADE.