Design a custom Burberry trench coat

UK luxury brand Burberry will launch an online bespoke service for trench coats starting early next year.

The announcement was made on November 9 by company executives during the International Herald Tribune's Luxury Conference in London. Chief executive officer Angela Ahrendts said Web users would be able to select the colors and styles of the coats online, as well as add unique detailing like buttons and initials. Chief creative officer Christopher Bailey said there will be almost "12 million options" for customers when it comes to designing the bespoke pieces.

The British apparel and accessories company has invested heavily in its online platforms and digital marketing strategy in the past few years and has quickly risen to become luxury's digital darling. Last month, Burberry crossed a social media threshold when it gained two million fans on Facebook. The brand currently ranks as the seventh most popular fashion brand on Facebook, according to Stylophane, an online-marketing firm tracks a brand's Facebook fan base daily on its Facebook Fashion Index.

In addition to maintaining a sizzling Facebook presence, Burberry also launched a separate website - artofthetrench.com - in fall 2009. Scott Schuman of influential fashion blog The Sartorialist teamed up with Facebook to create a social networking fashion blog centered solely around the iconic Burberry trench coat. Just like on Facebook, visitors can "like" or "leave a comment" or "share" the images.

Fashion companies that already offer online bespoke services include Ralph Lauren, which allows you to customize a Polo shirt, and luxury French house Louis Vuitton, which allows you to add monogram initials onto its Speedy handbag, Keepall travel bag, or Pégase 55 models. Customers can play with color swatches and designs via a Web application on Louis Vuitton's website to visualize how their bag will look. Once the order is placed, it will be sent to a Louis Vuitton workshop where the letters will be hand-painted.

To visit Burberry's Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/burberry

To visit Burberry's artofthetrench website: http://artofthetrench.com/