The Rise and Fall of Sexy Advertising
When I was a teenager, practically no one outside of the garment industry and/or downtown LA knew about American Apparel. As I was interested in starting my own clothing line, my internet research landed me at the American Apparel website (it looked far different then than it does today). They produced sweatshop-free comfy cotton clothing in nice cuts. It was the first time that I saw a basic t-shirt that was really designed for a woman's body. I was thrilled and I wanted to try their products but it was for a wholesale market only at the time. Sure, you could find printed shirts in stores that used t-shirts manufactured by American Apparel, but I wasn't really into cotton baby tees with sassy sayings written across the chest in pink glittery letters such as, "I'm hotter than your girlfriend." Those shirts ruined the very things that I liked so much about the American Apparel garments in the first place: the lack of advertising (whether for the brand or for one's own ridiculous self image).
A few years ago American Apparel became a retail establishment. I remember when people first noticed the store and wondered what it was. I already knew. And I was really excited.
Simultaneously, American Apparel started to run advertisements in newspapers and magazines. The ads involved predominantly young women dressed in 1970's style cotton outfits (tube socks, terry cloth, running shorts, etc.) in what appeared to be polaroid snapshots taken in someone's home. I loved their advertising campaign. It didn't reek of the contrived overpolished content that I was used to seeing in advertisements. They felt unstaged and carefree.
As American Apparel has expanded and grown in popularity, their advertisements have become more prevalent and more racy. On their website they even have a section called Recent & Provocative Ads, which is hilarious because all of their ads are provocative. There is also a Models of American Apparel page where you can watch slideshows of all of their scantily clad models. (These are a must see.)
Am I the only one who wonders if all this T&A is really necessary? I thought their ad campaign was sexy to begin with. It seems to me that they are leaning toward the raunchy side at this point.
Note: I had compiled the gems of the slideshows here until I read about American Apparel's Image Request Agreement on their image request page. I don't want to be sued for breaking copyright laws so you should check out the slideshows on your own. It will make this article much more meaningful.
I always thought American Apparel ads were a plot between the company and Vice Magazine to get Crack Whore shiek into the mainstream. Cause it was always the trashiest side of hip that both seemed to fetishize. PS - When should I come to visit in the next month or two?
more hate on thatsplenty! :) i love the AA ads!
wow. My friend Erik actually worked breifly for AA as a verticle market agent or something silly with viral marketting and stuff. You must have been absent when i was handing out the 1500 Dov Charney business cards he gave me to do 'evil with.' Dov's a weirdo, and when Erik was at AA was when the focus was sghifting from sweat shop free to sexy sexy.
he did a nifty rip off Media is the Massage with his ex girlfriend and my ex roommate Amber based on this http://www.uni.edu/chen/mcluhan/skin.jpg
clicky?
except amber looks prepubscent so it was a little unsettling.
I'm writing this book, and the first chapter (which succeeds an Intro) explains why the T&A are so necessary.
By the way, I met Erik while working for American Apparel, and remembered when he tried to get that ad run by them. Those sycophantic fashion whores weren't very fond of him, though -- or me for that matter.
LOL. What I think is more interesting is how cranky women get about these ads.