Selling Without Showing
How Hermès, The Row, and Bottega Veneta Are Using Brand Storytelling Over Product To Build Desire
WHAT’S HAPPENING. When Story Speaks Louder Than Product
Sometimes all we need is a story well told.
In a time dominated by overexposure - where brands are sprinting to release new products, flood feeds with louder visuals, and chase social media trends - earning attention is harder than ever. Everyone’s trying to be seen. Few are remembered.
But some brands are choosing another route: they’re not shouting louder, they’re stepping back. Showing less, and saying more.
Let’s rewind.
In the 1970s, Hermès - still new to ready-to-wear - began publishing Le Monde d’Hermès. It wasn’t just a catalogue. It was a magazine, rarely featuring product on its covers, and instead , drawing readers into the brand’s world: equestrian elegance, quiet glamour in the South of France, close-up textures that hinted at craftsmanship without naming it. Yes, it was selling products. But more importantly, it was telling a story that was impossible to ignore.
Another iconic of the catalogues era: J.Crew. The tone was different, the positioning more democratic, but the principle was the same. More than just clothes, J.Crew sold a version of American life: family beach holidays, summer loves, road trips with the windows down, all wrapped in classic Americana. The product was front and center, but so was the narrative. It wasn’t just clothes; it was a lifestyle: aspirational but attainable, rooted in storytelling.
Fast forward to now: The Row has mastered the art of captivating without shouting. The brand takes a radical, counterintuitive approach to marketing. From confiscating phones at fashion shows, to curating an Instagram feed focused on art and design - with almost no product in sight - The Row’s quiet luxury aesthetic extends seamlessly to its communication: quiet marketing at its finest. And people are loving it.
And then there’s Bottega Veneta. In late May, they launched the “Craft is our language” campaign to celebrate 50 years of intrecciato, the brand’s signature leather weave. But instead of leading with product, the campaign focuses on process, touch, and memory. Creatives such as Julianne Moore, Jack Anthonoff, Zadie Smith, and Tyler, The Creator, speak not about bags, but about the power of hands; their work, their intimacy, their poetry. Intrecciato becomes more than technique; it becomes a metaphor.
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE. The Power of Silent Branding
Not all impact is loud. And some of the most desired brands today are the ones saying the least. And saying it best.
Everyone’s Tired of the Noise
In today’s digital era, consumers are overstimulated. Brands flood every channel with visuals, trends, and urgency - and it’s starting to backfire.
When everyone plays the same game of speed and spectacle, messages blur. Relevance becomes borrowed, not built over time. And attention, increasingly rare, slips away.
Marketing Week reports that consumers in the US and UK now skip digital ads after just over 2 seconds. Bain & Company shows luxury brands facing a 5-10% drop in online traffic. The message is clear: fatigue is real.
Even McKinsey & Company, in a report published just last week, is trying to quantify the shift, developing an "attention equation" to measure the value of consumer focus, factoring in media type, engagement level, and intent.
Maybe it’s time to stop chasing attention and start earning it.
Storytelling Creates Value
Storytelling isn’t just strategy: it’s emotional value. As Sonja Prokopec, Professor of Marketing and Head of ESSEC’s LVMH Chair put it:
“Luxury products can of course be very beautiful and are always beautifully made, but that’s not enough to connect consumers emotionally with a product”.
True luxury has always been about storytelling more than utility. Yes, a high-quality product is essential; but competing solely on product features is increasingly difficult. A compelling story creates lasting differentiation.
The challenge? Building that story takes time. It demands a long-term commitment to a clear vision, not chasing every trend or fleeting visibility. Brands like Hermès and The Row succeed precisely because they resist the fast-moving currents, carving their own paths with unwavering focus.
They’ve built entire worlds: Hermès with its French elegance, equestrian heritage, and exclusivity; The Row with its contemporary minimalism, quiet sophistication, and design ethos. These immersive brand worlds draw consumers in and inspire desire, making people want to be part of something bigger than a product.
This holds true beyond luxury. Brands like J.Crew found success not just by selling clothes, but by telling aspirational yet attainable American stories. Their catalogues were more than sales tools; they were deeply compelling narratives.
The Power of Purposeful Brand Moments
In today’s digital chaos, creating thoughtful, slower brand experiences feels revolutionary. For many luxury brands, embracing this deliberate pace isn’t a fallback; it’s a powerful strategy.
Hermès invites its audience to slow down and savor the moment, whether through tactile, beautifully crafted catalogues (Le Monde d’Hermès) or intimate, in-person events that showcase artisanship up close (Hermès in the Making). Maison Margiela takes a cinematic approach, using long-form fashion films to show its Artisanal collections (Cinema Inferno, SS24 Cinema Language), allowing narratives to breathe and resonate deeply. Meanwhile, Mytheresa builds loyalty among its top clients not through transactional points, but by offering exclusive access to money-can’t-buy experiences - from curated trips in Venice with Jimmy Choo to exclusive collection launches in Capri alongside Dolce & Gabbana.
These brands don’t chase fleeting viral moments. Instead, they invest in building meaningful connections that create depth, authenticity, and long-term brand equity.
In a landscape dominated by immediacy, the most powerful brands are doing the opposite: slowing down, saying less, and showing up with purpose.
Not everything needs to be louder. Sometimes, what lingers is what whispers.
Very interesting perspective. I believe our sentiments align on this, but correct me if I'm wrong—I don't believe storytelling creates value. They go hand-in-hand.
The years poured into the craft produces value and a story worth telling. Telling the story portrays its value. The story is inherent to the value. The value inherent to the story.
If you don't have value, you don't have a story worth telling. And if you don't have a story worth telling, you don't have value.
Why nit-pick this idea? Because today we see brands relying on storytelling without having the value. I.e. brands that rely *solely* on marketing to sell low-quality products. And low-quality products, in one-manner or another, exploit someone or something.
I believe this is what you were incapsulating when you said, "Building that story takes time. It demands a long-term commitment to a clear vision, not chasing every trend or fleeting visibility." ?
This is such an interesting piece. But to me, this kind of narrative rewards silence and invisibility as a luxury aesthetic. It ignores how hard indie and small brands work, not because they want to flood your feed, but because they have to stay visible to stay in business.
“Showing less” only works when you’ve already secured your audience. When you’re under-capitalized, underrepresented, and competing with algorithm-driven noise, disappearing isn’t a strategy. It’s a death sentence.
Respect!