The brand avoided falling into the trap of burning cash on Facebook ads for cheap, only to get cornered as prices rose. “Over the last few years, we’ve pivoted to say, well, we can’t just be somewhat profitable. We need to be more profitable to continue investing in growth. I don’t want to raise more money right now,” Zuccarini says. “It’s tempting when everyone else is ‘growth at all costs’. We’re very thoughtful about what we need to do to achieve the level of expansion that we want on our terms.”
Ad spend is tightly managed, and as performance marketing becomes more expensive, the brand has opened stores in high-earning markets. Two more stores are set to open this year. Online, the brand is investing in a new website optimized by AI, as Zuccarini witnesses more traffic coming from ChatGPT. Fleur du Mal is also homing in on Reddit and YouTube, where more people are going for information and inspiration.
Zuccarini sees potential in wholesale. Current partners include Net-a-Porter, Revolve, Saks (though the brand hasn’t shipped in some months during the bankruptcy filing), and Harrods, as well as boutiques and specialty stores around the US and beyond. Her dream is to help fuel a rethinking of the department store lingerie section, where currently “no one is shopping. Those brands don’t get any love.” Cracking that — with clearer placement on ready-to-wear floors, for instance — would unlock more sales and discovery potential for the brand. It’s also looking abroad: the Middle East, despite being a region dominated by conservative dress, is a market it sees an opportunity in. Its biggest international markets now are Canada, the UK, Australia, Germany and France.
How big Fleur du Mal can become will depend on how far Zuccarini can push her prerogative for sexy. The new fitness line will be a barometer for future categories beyond its knits, loungewear, ready-to-wear, and lingerie. “I want to grow. As you get bigger, sometimes it gets watered down, and people get afraid because they don’t want to offend anybody,” says Zuccarini.
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