Bringing the brands: Karin Adcock

ALEX AND ANI is one of the fastest-growing jewellery brands in the US, with eco-friendly bangles and charms that exude positive vibes, while Fleye is a Danish label that creates innovative eyewear using ground-breaking materials. Karin Adcock, the Founder and CEO of House of Brands, could see great potential in these two brands; she knew they would be embraced by consumers in Australia and New Zealand. She also knew that she had the experience, knowledge and passion to successfully bring them to those markets.

All from the heart

Karin is the woman behind Pandora’s foray into Australia — a Danish jewellery company famous for its charm bracelets — so she was well-versed in what kind of distribution model would work. "I was with Pandora for eight years," she recalls. "I was always extremely passionate about that business and very involved with the customers and retailers. In 2009, five years into the operation, the Australian business was sold back to Pandora in Denmark. We were turning over $187 million at that point and as part of the sale I had to stay on for another two years, but I ended up staying for three. Then in July 2012 I decided it was time for me to move on. I’m very much an entrepreneur at heart.

"I wanted to be bringing products to the market which were exciting and could make a great positive difference to people and society. That’s when I decided to start up House of Brands." – Karin Adcock

From 2010 Pandora was listed on the stock exchange and I felt it had very much become a matter of financials; it was all about quarterly performance and I felt some of the passion had gone. It was time for me to move on.

Pandora and passion

"I stayed still for a little while but quickly realised I wasn’t good at resting. I needed to have a purpose, work with a team of people I like, make a difference and show people how to create a great work environment. Furthermore, I wanted to be bringing products to the market that were exciting and could make a great, positive difference to people and society. That’s when I decided to start up House of Brands."

In 2013, Karin took on several brands to launch in the Australian marketplace; however, she soon realised this wasn’t quite the right approach. She wanted to be able to give her full attention to each and every client and she couldn’t do this when too many things were happening at the same time. She let all but one brand, Fleye, go and decided to focus solely on distribution and growing its presence. At around the same time she was approached by ALEX AND ANI and, following in-depth discussions over two years, it was agreed that House of Brands would take on the distribution of this socially conscious brand as well.

The ALEX AND ANI story

"I thought it was a very exciting brand which had a huge following," Karin says. "I felt compelled by the story of what ALEX AND ANI was, and still is, representing. It is a brand that is very much about giving back to the local community. In fact, over the last five years it has donated over US$36 million to charity, and the majority of pieces are created out of recycled materials.

So rather than producing new, it is taking old picture frames, old door handles, all sorts of items and making them into beautiful pieces which can be worn. I thought it was a new and different way of bringing jewellery to the market. The brand is very much about positivity. The bangles are infused with ‘plus’ energy, ‘plus’ meaning positive. Every piece has a little tag saying that the bangles are infused with this ‘plus’ energy technology and I think that is such a beautiful message. It is all about wanting to bring positivity into peoples’ lives. You can buy so much out there in the marketplace. Consumers need to have a reason for buying an item and for investing into a brand. ALEX AND ANI does that well."

ALEX AND ANI’s best-selling piece is the Path of Life charm bangle which represents strength, motivation and knowledge. Those three words are also a fitting description of Karin’s personal business approach. She says everybody seeks to have purpose in their lives and that is the environment she strives to foster within House of Brands. "It’s an environment where there is respect across the organisation, regardless of what your title is or what you’re doing," she says. "I think that comes across to the retailers we work with. We try to be very transparent in what we do, both internally with our team but also externally with the stores. When you are recruited into our team it’s all about having a shared value set. I’m not about micro management, I’m very much about empowering the team around me and giving them great responsibilities. We are aligned on the strategy and on the execution of it but then I empower them to just run with it. I think people respond well to being given that level of autonomy and also responsibility. They can be proud of what they do and achieve some great goals. It’s important to have a happy, healthy work environment. Our offices are bright and sunny and decorated very nicely with artworks; they are spaces that people enjoy being in. When people feel valued in the role they’re in, then they tend to give so much more back. I have found that works really well."

The future of Fleye

Through House of Brands, ALEX AND ANI is stocked in 120 retail outlets including nine branded ALEX AND ANI stores that will open in Australia before Christmas. Fleye has over 100 stockists. When asked whether more brands will eventually be added to the portfolio, Karin shakes her head. "We have a lot going on already; we have huge opportunities with ALEX AND ANI and with Fleye," she says. "Because of this massive potential we are going to be employing managers for each state and we have invested in a team of staff who will help us to grow the brands and successfully bring them to market. Having staff on the ground, out there in the different states who see the stores all the time is the best way to do that.

"I believe that at the end of the day, if you have too many brands and you try to do too many things at once then you end up not giving any brand the proper attention it deserves. We are sitting on huge potential with these two brands we already have and we want to make the most of that before we start to look elsewhere. It may be a while before we take on another brand. The focus now is just to develop Fleye and ALEX AND ANI and to make them key players in the marketplace. But never say never."