For nearly a decade before COVID-19, the coach was in a slow decline. Despite its reputation for luxury materials and craftsmanship, the brand was increasingly seen as merely an outlet for thought. But in recent years, the 85-year-old handbag maker has seen a stunning comeback. Thanks to the colorful “Tabby” from a few years ago, and the more recent, street-chic “Brooklyn,” along with the casting of young Hollywood icons like Selena Gomez and Elle Fanning, the Coach brand is suddenly cool again. All of this suggests that the turnaround under the leadership of Joan Crevoisrat, CEO of Coach’s parent company Tapestry (which also owns Kate Spade), is working.
The secret formula is all about the young consumer. “We made a strategic choice to focus on the young consumer. The younger generation sets the tone for all generations, and we see that in our business.” Krevoisrat said during an on-stage interview at Semaphore World Economy in Washington, D.C., on Monday (April 13).
“We laugh around our executive committee table, but no one asks me what’s cool or what’s trendy,” the 62-year-old executive added. With a chuckle.
Generation Z shoppers represent approx A third of Tapestry’s new customers The company said during its most recent fiscal quarter ending in December, which contributed to strong revenue growth. Tapestry’s total sales rose 14 percent year over year to $2.5 billion, more than 85 percent of which came from Coach, whose sales jumped 25 percent compared to the previous year. Tapestry is seeing double-digit growth in all of its major markets, Crevoiserat said.
Coach’s strong performance stands in stark contrast to a sector-wide slowdown at the upper end of luxury retail and weak consumer sentiment among the middle class. “People ask me all the time: ‘Isn’t this young consumer under stress? “How does your business stay healthy?” The answer is to stay close to our customers. said Crévoisserat. “We really want to understand what they’re going through, how they’re feeling.”
This understanding is rooted in data-driven insights as much as it is in creative intuition about what resonates with the consumer – what Crevoisrat He calls for a balance between “logic and magic.”
“We harness a lot of data to understand the consumer at a really granular level, but then we go that step deeper, going into their homes to really understand where the tensions lie in their lives. It’s not just about their transactions that we’re after,” she explained.
“Nothing matters more than listening to the consumer. [Coach] Don’t try to push designs onto them. Determine what? [the consumer] wants and needs” Mary Driscoll, president of the Retail Marketing Association and an adjunct professor at Parsons’ New School, told the Observer. She pointed to the launch of Coachtopia in 2023, a sub-brand focused on sustainability, as an example of Coach speaking to a young customer base concerned about the environment.
Crevoiserat became CEO of Tapestry in 2020 after serving as the company’s CFO for a short year. It initially intervened on a temporary basis after the sudden overthrow of the government Good Zeitlin But she eventually earned the permanent role for her steady leadership. Prior to joining Tapestry, she held senior positions at retail giants including Abercrombie & Fitch and Kohl’s.
For many decades, Coach has been the go-to choice for your first luxury handbag or a landmark purchase as an aspirational symbol of success. This appeal faded in the 2000s as its designs stagnated and its brand lost clarity. Under creative director Stuart Vevers, who joined from Loewe and Mulberry, Coach has taken on a new look in recent years. The company’s strategy is now focused on reviving that feeling of excitement of owning something special for the first time.
“Fashion has always been an emotional purchase. For these young customers, even though they know that some of their big life moments may not be accessible in their immediate future, they want to enjoy the life they have, and they are investing in things that bring them happiness.” Crevoisrat He said. “We want to earn the right to be the first luxury bag you buy. It reinforces a lifelong love of the brand.”
Georgia Fearn contributed to this story.
Correction: An earlier version of this article stated that Tapestry owns Stuart Weitzman. Tapestry sold to Stuart Weitzman in August 2025.
