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| Kokie Childers |
A friend once asked me to help a sergeant he knew who was being released from active duty with the Marine Corps and needed to find a job. Which can be daunting under the best circumstances. But this particular jarhead was missing part of the left side of his face, including his left eye.
I wanted to reply, “I can barely keep my own job, never mind get one for anybody else.” But that seemed craven. I said I’d do what I could.
So I took sarge around, to City Club luncheons and such. We’d meet at restaurants to talk. At one point, I remember sitting across from him, wondering, “Is he getting better? Healing maybe?” Because his appearance, so unsettling when I first met him, now wasn’t as disturbing.
I immediately realized why. His face was exactly the same as when we met. What happened was, I got used to him. He had become familiar.
This came back to me last week when an advertisement popped up on Facebook for tank tops from Lululemon, the Canadian lifestyle brand.
The model was not the standard issue cookie-cutter athletic type seen in such ads, but had large blotches on her face. This is nothing new. Benetton did something similar in the 1990s. Catalogues now have models who are heavy, or trans, or otherwise outside the supposed mainstream. I’m not the first to notice.
“Classic models are by far more racially diverse,” the Washington Post observed in 2021. “Models are also more varied by ethnicity, size, age and disability ... In today’s fashion ecosystem, an amputee pinup pouts from the pages of a swimsuit calendar and a young woman with Down syndrome stars in a Gucci beauty campaign.”
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Trying hard not to be snarky here, Mr. S...just admitting to geezerly ignorance. I'm pretty sure I know what branding is, and the term lifestyle has been used for decades. But just exactly what the hell is a lifestyle brand? There's actually an entire Wikipedia page dedicated to the term, but my eyes soon glazed over, and trying to make sense of what I was reading left me even more puzzled than before. Can you enlighten and edify this poor confused old fogy? Thanks in advance.
ReplyDeleteNo, that's a good question. I guess it's the part of a brand that extends beyond the actual use of the products. Coke is not just a carbonated sugary beverage, but something you drink to be young and hip and part of a big mountaintop party. Lululemon doesn't just sell expensive spandex outfits you can exercise in, but admits you to a fresh and healthy "lifestyle" that allows you to pay $54 for a tank top. In that sense, all brands beyond hardware are lifestyle brands,— they're selling happiness — and even some of those are too. All things being equal, I like to buy DeWalt tools because, my God, they're DeWalt. And they're yellow.
DeleteBeautiful Post Neil. Thank you
ReplyDeleteWe've had "lifestyle brands" for a long time, Grizz. Back in the day, one was a "Ford man" or a "Chevy guy". A farmer was either a John Deere man or a Harvester man. You can even look at Cubs v. Sox fandom as a lifestyle choice, and we all certainly have opinions about what one's allegiance to either side implies about their lifestyle.
ReplyDeleteWhat happened is that marketers have just amped this concept up to the Nth degree. Now it isn't just participation in the "Pepsi Generation" that marks you as young and alive; it can be anything you like, buy and consume that will make you "part of the club". Add a big stinking glop of celebrity endorsements, and you've got a recipe for creating brands that purport to help you define who you are and what you're worth.
Me? I drink RC.
Yep. Nothing new, Grizz. Think of Michael Jordan and Nike. There's a very entertaining new movie, "Air" that can be viewed on Amazon Prime. Not that I imagine your lifestyle has been sullied by an Amazon Prime membership! ; )
DeleteIt's about the guy who signed Michael to endorse the "Air Jordan" basketball shoe, against great odds, as Nike at that time was overwhelmingly a running shoe company. But this guy just sensed that the soon-to-be-NBA-rookie Jordan was an unparalleled "get" and proceeded to go out on a limb to get him. (Much credit for the ultimate decision to sign with Nike goes to Deloris Jordan, Michael's mother, whose wisdom and savvy were crucial in the negotiations.)
"Be Like Mike," etc. That helped turn Nike into a lifestyle brand. A person paid a bundle for a pair of basketball shoes. Ostensibly the same shoes he wore. Did they enable you to shoot like him, defend like him, inspire like him or jump like him? Uh, no. But one felt like they were somehow identifying with him and that made them very desirable. Both Nike and Jordan made a LOT of money in the process.
I, kinda like EGD's own Mike above drinking RC, went the other way. I had purchased a few pairs of Nike running shoes before, when they were on sale and seemed like they'd fill the bill. But not exclusively; I'd buy any brand that was pretty good quality and on sale. And when I saw Nike leaning heavily into celebrity endorsements, I stopped buying them. I saw no reason to pay already rich athletes part of the cost of a pair of shoes just to be associated with a cool company.
In the same way, I've never understood why so many will essentially pay a surcharge for a t-shirt with a Nike "swoosh" on it and nothing else. The way it ought to work is they pay YOU to wear the shirt, since you're doing the advertising at that point. But that's the irrational power of a lifestyle brand.
I have never been a fashionista. More of a slob. My ancient Keds finally fell apart, so I bought a pair of Nikes in a mall while on a road trip down South,No particular reason...just liked the color.
DeleteAfter a dog ate my Nikes, during a poker game on New Year's Eve, I needed new shoes, so I bought a pair of New Balance running shoes...long before they were cool...in 1986. I've worn the same brand ever since, even after Bill Clinton started talking about them. Celebrity endorsements usually turn me off, but I ignored him.
They were well-made shoes and very comfortable and durable. Didn't change my lifestyle at all...just made me a flat-footed guy with happy feet. Hell, I don't even run. I just walk in them, until the winter weather gets too sloppy.
They were pricey when made in New England. They got cheaper when the factory moved to Vietnam, and cheaper still when they came from Indonesia. The quality went down, too. But I stayed loyal to the brand.
I've also owned and sported a ton of Cub merch over the years. Does that mean I'm a North Side yupster? A loser who backs perennial losers? Naaah...it just means I like the Cubs. And that I'm proud of it.
Presumably you missed the awkward period where NB shoes were co-opted as the “official shoes of white people” by white supremacists. Through no fault of their own, it must be stressed, but it was definitely a thing. So their later identity as “dad shoes” must have been welcome.
DeleteMe too. I only wear NB sneakers. Because they're wide.
DeleteNB shoes were fascist? I did not know that. Didn't even realize they were "dad shoes"...although that makes sense, because I do see a lot of guys my age who are wearing them. I don't always read the paper every day. And as the old Plain Dealer advertising slogan used to say: "Miss a day, miss a lot..."
DeleteA couple decades ago, after years of bargain-minded running-shoe-shopping, I ran a couple marathons. The preparation for which resulted in minor injuries that convinced me that maybe I should invest in something better for my feet. I went with top-of-the-line shoes from New Balance, which featured the bonus of still being made in the USA, when that had become rare. And I've stuck with them, through many "improved" versions since then. Still "Made in USA" today, though currently they define that as "contains a domestic value of 70% or greater." They've always been pricier than most, but now I see they list at over $200. Fortunately, I've never paid close to that. Also fortunately, shoes and good socks are the only expenses I have when it comes to running as a workout. Now, I'm more of a leisurely jogger than a runner, though.
DeleteAnyway, Coey's comment demonstrates one of the things I hate about our current culture war. Almost every freaking thing is viewed by many through the lens of which "team" you're on. White supremacists latched onto New Balance. Now, bigots boycott Bud Light (not that I care about that; Bud Light ceasing to exist would be a step in the right direction, aside from any political aspect, IMHO!) It's like the American flag. Redneck patriots long ago tried to co-opt that, before their chosen banners became the Stars and Bars, Nazi flags, and (shudder) Trump emblems. While guys like NS and me are still holding the line and showing that liberals can support flying a flag, too.
Of course, New Balance qualify as "dad shoes." I have cheaper versions for kicking around in, along with the pricey ones for running. To go along with my dad jeans, dad shirts and dad-bod, alas! ; )
"Their chosen banners became the Stars and Bars, Nazi flags, and (shudder) Trump emblems." And don't ever forget "Don't Tread On Me"--the official flag of the Untied Snakes.
DeleteYou state "I remind myself that the world doesn’t belong to the pretty, or the thin, or the white, or the straight, or the young, or me (or you) or anybody in particular. It’s shared by everybody. Everybody belongs. Everybody gets to use the playground. I wouldn’t have thought it possible to base an entire political party on disagreeing with that." Sadly, ginning up phony culture war controversies is the best way to get under-educated and intolerant people to vote against their own economic interest.
ReplyDeleteWonderful article. Decades ago I volunteered in a non profit organization that offered 24 hour nursing care to infants and children with profound disabilities. First I cried. Then it became a second home to me. They didn’t change; I did.
ReplyDeleteOne would think a dermatologist would be able to help them.
ReplyDeleteNot everybody wants to be "helped".
DeleteI think that's kind of the point of this article is that it's okay to be different and that you can have an expectation of acceptance from people who are the "norm".
And there's no reason to feel any shame and it shouldn't be heaped upon you.
Exactly. This woman is beautiful, and probably doesn’t want to bleach (or whatever) away what makes her her just for the comfort of someone else.
DeleteTwo things. I have no idea how to comment with my google account. 2ndly most of the comments seemed to get away from the main theme of Neil's post. That was. Some interesting thoughts on life styles. I don't know if this is aprapos as far as the people NS talked about. Harry Bosch in the Michael Connnely's detective novels has a saying everybody counts or nobody counts
ReplyDelete