The allure of Anthropologie

I was intrigued to learn that the new CEO of industry stalwart David Yurman Inc., Glen T. Senk, comes to the company from Urban Outfitters Inc., where he is credited with helping to grow the company’s Anthropologie brand from a single-store prototype into what it is today.

That is: a $1 billion-plus brand with stores all over the country, as well as a few now outside the U.S., and a strong online presence.

According to Yurman, Senk was selected for his “creative vision” as well as his “exceptional record of success in developing and expanding powerful multi-channel, multi-national retail and wholesale brands.”

If Senk had a hand in developing Anthropologie, which I believe offers one of the best retail experiences available today, then it certainly seems he will be an asset to an industry that is in need of a creative spark, both in stores and online.

I don’t shop in many national chain stores. Smaller boutiques like those found around New York’s East Village are more my style. But I do love Anthropologie and will make it a point to go in every time I see one no matter where I am in the country.

I love the way the stores are configured. They’re more like a cozy house--with beautiful wood floors and vintage-inspired furniture--than a store. I don’t necessarily even feel like I am shopping while I am in there, though the credit card bill I later receive suggests otherwise.

On a recent visit to Anthropologie, I noticed that they had launched a do-it-yourself charm necklace feature. Not unlike Pandora, Chamilia or the other bead brands that have become major sellers in recent years, the DIY Charms gives customers the chance to pick a chain style and then build a personalized necklace by choosing their own charms.

Customers are free to pick as few, or as many, little baubles as they would like, with the idea here being that they, hopefully, return to the store in the future for more charms or to swap out old ones for something new.

Sound familiar?

Anthropologie also has do-it-yourself charm functionality on its website, a cleverly designed interactive

feature that certainly held my attention for a while. (See one of the necklaces I so lovingly constructed here--the site allows you to take a picture of your necklace and save it to your desktop or, of course, share