ARTICLE SUMMARY: The old saying goes, “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again”. It’s never easy for a major brand to recapture the glory days once the subculture that made your brand a success starts to grow up or fade away.
Skateboarding has a rich cultural history, influencing music, fashion, art, and lifestyle. Revitalizing its cool factor can help preserve and celebrate this cultural heritage. This revitalization can also lift the Vans Shoes brand out of the slump it’s in.
“Operation Make Skateboarding Cool Again” by Michelle Wiles looks at Vans Shoes and it’s rise and decline riding on the coattails of the “skateboard subculture” and it’s attempt to bring back skateboarding and reignite the brands popularity. Michelle looks at
- What is a subculture
- Will Vans’ plan to reignite skateboard culture work?
- Growth through subcultures, a guide
Subcultures significantly impact brands in various ways, from influencing brand perception to driving innovation and often embody the values and aesthetics of the subculture, creating a sense of authenticity and belonging.
Subcultures value authenticity, brands that genuinely understand and respect the subculture can build strong emotional connections. At the same time brands that appear to exploit or misunderstand a subculture can face backlash resulting in major damage to the brand and causing financial distress.
As Michelle Wiles says, “To come back, it’s not as simple as re-marketing the subculture of the past. Subcultures are about subversion, newness, and differentiating from currently available cultures. Leading fashion marketers must identify who the cultural influencers are today (and if they are very good, the influencers of tomorrow) and partner with them to release new products that plant the brand firmly in the future.
This is a great article and it will be interesting to see if their strategy pays off.
Let us know what you think in the comments.
