For three days in October, fans of the Swedish fashion retailer Acne Studios had the opportunity to access the Acne Archive website and purchase a selection of items on sale. Acne Studios is known for never offering discounts, so it was no surprise to find that, by the end of day one, most products had sold out — including those that had already been sold on sale by a number of retailers.

All in all, it was a perfect example of brands’ hesitation to rebel against the discount-driven retail culture. Many continue to make short-term efforts to salvage the old-fashioned retail model, but they don’t have to: Today, competitive advantage can be achieved less by having the best promotions and more by devising smart ways to avoid them.

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