Branded

By Liz Haggarty

Today jeans me took a walk through Regent Park. Jeans me couldn’t remember exactly how I should be walking, swaggering like a confident Levis’ rancher or striding languidly like the modern alternative Gap kid. Even if Jeans me could remember which company had been knocked off by the Brazilian manufactures I was wearing I wasn’t even sure that the advertising campaigns stored in my memory were up to date. Fortunately at this point Jeans me realized I was acting like skirt and heels business me, over analyzing and walking too fast. Jeans me told me to relax. Jeans me could define myself.

In every region, in every city and in every housing estate we define ourselves and each other to some extent by what we wear; Regent Park is no exception. Walking through an unfamiliar neighbourhood people’s styles cry out even louder as my brain makes snap judgments of those around me. But, does even the individual trying hardest to control their portrayal live up to the image of who marketing company think they should be?

Tyrone:

How would you describe your personality?

“I’m just a laid back person. I don’t like to exceed myself too, too much unless I really have to. I just like to chill hang out with my friends, play video games, go to the movies.”

What is your most important fashion item?

"My shoes. Air Force 1’s, Nike’s."

What do they say about you?

“They say my attitude, how I’m feeling. Right now I’ve green on. It means I’m laid back. My cool colours – stay with the cool colours. Always got to keep them comfortable make sure you don’t get no corns or blisters nor nothing on your feet.”

It seems that Nike’s marketing team might be asking Tyrone if he wouldn’t mind becoming perhaps a little bit more aggressive, please. Save that they might just threaten to take back his shoes until he anoints himself Nikefied by proclaiming in the streets that he and his generation are putting themselves first and are to be feared like no other.

You see Nike’s view of the Air force 1 customer isn’t quite Tyrone. He may look the part, but his mindset is all wrong. In 2007 a Nike Press Release announcing the 25th anniversary of the Air Force 1, described the ‘Force’ mindset as, “I’m going to go through you, not around or over you.” In case you need a reason why, Force clientele are reminded that they are, “The Second Coming: Our Game. Our Time.” With these mantras supposedly yelled over the official Air Force 1 soundtrack “Better than I’ve ever been” not wanting to push yourself too, too much maybe an obstacle to joining the official Nike clan.

Avoiding corns may also not play into Nike’s marketing plan. With a list of sports personalities such as Charles Barkley, David Robinson and Alonzo Mourning representing Nike’s Force words like perseverance, drive and testosterone come to mind. Tyrone does have a point though, what serious athlete would run for hours on the court with shoes that gave him bunions.

Marketing firms set the bar high for us. But, since most of us fail to live up their expectations, we can rest slightly easier walking through unfamiliar streets, as we define ourselves and judge others by our own swagger of the clothe.