LIBBY CHAMBERLIN AD6605 CONCEPT DIRECTION AND DEVELOPMENT 1903788 WORD COUNT: 3501
Contents 1-2 INTRODUCTION 3-14 PART ONE : 5-8 COMMUNICATION 9-10 STRENGTHS & WEAKNESSES 11-14 CHILDHOOD 15-48 PART TWO : 17-18 PERSONAL INFLUENCES 19-30 BRAND INFLUENCES 31-34 MARKET LEVEL 35-36 BRAND VALUES 37-38 MY MESSAGE 39-40 CONSUMER 41-42 BRAND CONCEPT 43-46 LOGO DEVELOPMENT 47-48 CONCLUSION 49-50 REFERENCES
BRAND ME INTRODUCTION
Over the summer of 2021 we were given tasks to complete in order to successfully respond to our ‘Brand Me’ module. These tasks have helped me to develop a personal brand concept. This part of the module needed to be well researched and include areas such as self-reflection, influences and best suited market sector. This report looks at how the brand me module has helped me gain a better understanding of myself as a marketing and communications student. I will explore how the areas I have researched have helped me to figure out which market I best fit into and helped develop my brand. To begin this module I was given various questions to answer in order to gain a better understanding of myself and to find out who I really am. My summer research and secondary research really helped me to discover the values I believe in and the most important influences to me. 1.
I realised that my childhood played a massive part in the person I am today and the beliefs I believe in. I will explain the areas I have researched which have helped me to figure out which market my brand fits into and the key concepts to my brand. Initially, I struggled to get started on these tasks as I rarely take time to think about who I really am. However, all of the questions I answered throughout these tasks have helped me to gain a better understanding of myself.
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HOW SAFE ARE YOU AS A COMMUNICATOR?
One of the first questions we had to answer as part of our summer research was “How safe are you as a communicator?”. It took me a while to answer this question as it is something I have never really thought about properly before. When communicating something It is crucial that I am 100% sure on the matter I am speaking about before sharing the message. In terms of how safe I am as a communicator I would say I don’t tend to take big risks but equally I don’t think I am particularly safe. The biggest thing for me is the fear of failure however I am starting to learn that no matter what the outcome I will have learnt something and become stronger and more resilient. If I think back to times where I have communicated messages I would say generally I am more safe, however I have taken slight risks at times. Overall, I would say when it comes to communicating I am in the middle between safe and taking risks.
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WHO DO YOU SURROUND YOURSELF WITH?
Throughout my life I have always tried to surround myself with positive, funny and kind people. I have experienced many situations during my teenage years where I realised people weren’t really who I thought they were. Since these experiences I have been cautious about the people I surround myself with. I think it’s a good thing I experienced failed friendships so I know which type of people to avoid. My friends are loyal, caring and trustworthy. I have always been around charismatic people growing up which really brings the best self of me out. I’ve realized that the people I surround myself with can affect my attitude and outlook. It’s important to surround yourself with people who will lift you up.
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STRENGHTS AND WEAKNESSES
I have found this part quite challenging as I tend to doubt myself with a lot of things I do. It also took me a while to understand that in order to grow as a person I need to reflect on myself. In terms of my strengths in my work and studies I would say I work very well in a team and I’m versatile and determined. When thinking about jobs after graduating I think I would work more effectively in a team. Some strengths which I have been able to improve on through being a fashion communicator are creativity, communication, social media and content creation using various computer softwares. From a personality point of view some of my strengths are being positive, loyal and very caring towards others.
I don’t really like to think too much about my weaknesses but I do think it’s important to acknowledge them in order to develop as a person. One of my main weaknesses is that I am a big overthinker and sometimes lack self confidence and belief. I tend to overthink every little detail and situations which really don’t need to be over thought.
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MY CHILDHOOD
Throughout my summer research I have started to learn a lot about myself in a deeper sense which I don’t normally take time to think about. I tend to shut past experiences from my childhood out and try not to dwell on it too much, however the summer homework has helped me to open up more to myself about certain things. I was born on the 15th January, 2001 in a small town in North Wales. I was my parent’s first child and my younger sister was born two years later. For the most part, my childhood was very happy and fulfilling. My mum and dad separating at a young age meant it was just my mum, sister and myself for a long time. However, this also taught me how to be resilient and strong for the first time. This affected my childhood greatly but also on deeper reflection has made me the person I am today. Without the things I experienced in my childhood I believe I wouldn’t be the strong and resilient person I am today. I don’t have a relationship with my dad, however I have an amazing step dad who Is always there for me. I feel very grateful to have grown up with such a supportive family. I feel extremely lucky to have grown up where I did, surrounded with beautiful scenery, countryside and wildlife. I have always been grateful that I grew up where I did and not in a heavily built up city. Since an early age I have always loved the countryside and exploring new beautiful places around my area.
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My childhood has taught me many things which I still carry with me today. My childhood has influenced me and how I view things today hugely. From a young age I was always told what was right and what was wrong. I was taught to always be kind to people and never judge someone and their situation. I am very lucky that I was brought up in a cultured and happy family, I have also had the chance to experience many travel and lifestyle opportunities. Being able to see different places from a young age has enabled me to learn about different cultures and people. I believe this and my upbringing is why I am such an understanding person today.
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PERSONAL INFLUENCES
In terms of my personal influences I am greatly inspired by people I follow on social media, mainly Instagram. I also get a lot of style inspiration from Pinterest. I would describe my style as versatile, comfortable, and casual. I like to wear clothes which I feel comfortable and relaxed in so I feel my most confident. I wear a lot of tracksuits and oversized clothing. My colour palette is mainly monochrome and muted colours such as navy and grey. However, sometimes I do like to add a pop of colour with my accessories. Athleisure and streetwear play a huge part in influencing my style. My two favourite brands for athleisure wear such as tracksuits are Nike and Sisters and Seekers. Some of my streetwear influences are brands such as Supreme, Palace, Stüssy, Off-White, and A-Cold-WALL.
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New York’s Supreme is one of the OG streetwear brands and one that revolutionized the scene of streetwear. Supreme is targeted at skateboarding, hip hop cultures, and youth culture in general. The brand has become one of the most known names in fashion today, with collaborations with the likes of Louis Vuitton and Commes Des Garcons. Off-White is a luxury fashion label founded by Virgil Abloh. The history of OffWhite started with a ‘vision from Virgil’, and soon became a brand on everyone’s lips. Off-White is best known for its diagonal lines and industrial yellow tape. The designs of Off-White flaunt streetwear in a unique light. Virgil states he is ‘defining the grey area between black and white’.
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BRAND INFLUENCES
The next step in identifying my personal brand was to research and explore what influences me and my work. I have researched areas which have helped me paint a clearer picture of how I want my brand to be including values and influences.
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In order to develop my brand I began by researching what influences me and my work. I researched brands which I could see myself working for and those who are influenced by similar things to me. I began by creating mood boards which helped me realise who I take inspiration from and which brands influence me. I soon realised that I am definitely more interested in menswear, streetwear and athleisure. Although I am interested in luxury brands my personal style is mainly influenced by streetwear and is usually quite an androgynous style. I also like how luxury brands can be influenced by streetwear in various brand
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A-COLD-WALL
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Through my research I have found that the brand A-Cold-Wall fits my brand’s values as well as aesthetic. A Cold Wall is a fairly new brand to the high luxury world of fashion. A Cold Wall has made a massive impact with its aesthetic consistency of innovative structured compositions, blurring the boundaries between streetwear and high end fashion. This brand was founded by Samuel Ross in 2015, he self-funded his clothing line and brought his artistic essence to life. Ross took basic closet pieces and transformed them into unique statement apparel. Samuel Ross was brought up in a working class environment and has been influenced by the community around him, public housing and the concept of clashing class systems. This is referenced throughout the high end luxury collection with working class uniforms implicating motives of capitalist retaliation. His collection merges British working-class uniforms with elements of Savile Row tailoring.
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I discovered A Cold Wall has collaborated with lifestyle brands such as Nike, Converse and Dr Martens. I found this interesting as it is an example of high luxury brands including cultural references into their brand which will appeal to Generation Alpha consumers who care about the brands they are buying into rather than the products they buy (DeAcetis,2019). A Cold Wall’s aesthetic and colour palette resonates with how I want my brand to look. The brand has a minimal approach and combined with their colour palette creates a contemporary presence. A Cold Wall also combines high luxury fashion with cultural references which is what I aim to achieve in my brand. I also chose this brand as it lies in the luxury menswear market which also has a strong emphasis on tailoring and streetwear. A Cold Wall is a clear indicator that luxury menswear is the area of the industry which interests me the most.
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Figure 1
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PALACE
Palace is a London based clothing brand established in 2009. From starting out selling t-shirts in only a handful of London stores, Palace has turned into one of the biggest streetwear brands in the world. The USP of Palace is its sporty aesthetic. Palace is very well known for not sticking to the rules and traditional regulations. Palace has been putting the UK firmly on the streetwear map since 2010. In this short time the brand has achieved a level of hype not dissimilar to its transatlantic doppelganger, Supreme.
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Apart from the clothing I am influenced by the brand as it isn’t too serious, they like to be humorous and light hearted. Palace also aren’t afraid to clap back at negative comments on their Instagram posts. Palace uses every new release as an opportunity to take the piss and use their online product descriptions to insult their customers in a jokey way. There is also a lot of depth to the backstory of Palace beneath their obnoxious exterior.
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CRAIG GREEN
Craig Green is another influence of mine and I am inspired by his themes of structure and community. Since launching his own label in 2012, he’s won British Menswear Designer of the year twice and his clothes have been worn by the likes of Drake, Kendrick Lamar and Rhianna. Although Green’s designs are inspired with commitment to concept and challenging forms, his true genius is in his ability to translate his inspirations into unique yet wearable clothing with a utilitarian edge.
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I was inspired by Green’s AW 2020 collections and the meaning behind it. The collection’s first half included outerwear resembling that of protective armour. Craig Green said ‘It’s the idea that you’re given an outfit from birth, and you’ve unfolded it and adapted it, but you’re still carrying it all with you.
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OFF-WHITE
Off-White is another influence of mine. Off-White is a luxury fashion label founded by Virgil Abloh. The history of Off-White started with a ‘vision from Virgil’, and soon became a brand on everyone’s lips. Off-White is best known for its diagonal lines and industrial yellow tape. The designs of Off-White flaunt streetwear in a unique light. Virgil states he is ‘defining the grey area between black and white’. Its guiding principle is just “everything in quotes,” as in, “everything is ironic and also the main recognizable design element on the clothes is chunky quotation marks”(Alex Castro/Vox, 2022). As stated by Virgil Abloh, it isn’t easy to categorize it as a fashion or an art brand due to its diversity.
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Off-White has successfully collaborated with the brands and designers such as Nike, IKEA, Louis Vuitton, Levi’s, Moncler, Rimowa and ASAP Rocky. Virgil has made diversity the heart of his brand. To ensure inclusivity in all sectors of the industry he recently launched the ‘Post-Modern Fund’ to help Black Students in the fashion industry. Though fashion has long been open to diversity, Abloh is nonetheless one of the few Black figures to have reached the summits of its hierarchy. And in the context of George Floyd’s death, Black Lives Matter and the acceleration of anti-racist protest, he no longer hides his desire to help his community (Alexis Thibault,
MARKET LEVEL
When thinking about which market level I want my brand to sit in I started by thinking about which market level I want to work for in the future. From my research, I have concluded that my brand will sit in the accessible luxury market. I noticed that the main brands I am influenced by sit in the lower end of the high-end sector of fashion. Brands within this market level embody values and aspirations of their consumers.
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I think luxury fashion is the future however I want my brand to be accessible for everyone with a lower price tag. It is important that my brand is inclusive unlike many luxury brands. As Vogue’s International Editor Suze Menkes says, “Luxury today needs to redefine the way it’s presented to be comprehensive to different generations and different cultural groupings.”
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I believe it is important for brands to have a more accessible attitude in order to resonate with the more politically engaged, globally aware consumer who values diversity and ignores the status quo. Streetwear brands are a prime example of engaging today’s youth and have a very open and diverse attitude. Virgil Abloh said “My approach is to make the creative industry inclusive, not exclusive, shifting the veil of secrecy feels new.”
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Through drop culture streetwear brands have created clothing which is both accessible and exclusive. The effect of this is Gen Z and Alpha value inclusivity and expect luxury brands to create accessibility. The future of the luxury market is transparency and sharing values with their consumers. Accessible luxury can still be exclusive. Limited editions, localised products and unexpected collaborations are just some of the ways streetwear brands ensure this. ( News, 2022)
BRAND VALUES 35.
My summer research helped me to discover my core values and what I believe in. I want my brand to convey these values that relate back to my childhood and culture. From my research I discovered my main values are acceptance, kindness and consciousness. My brand will be a principled and positive brand which supports the importance of acceptance for all cultures and backgrounds. The colours of my brand will be contemporary by using greys, balck, white and hints of muted colours such as blue throughout. I will include a pop of blue which represents peace and harmony. As well as this it adds a splash of playfulness to my brand.
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MY MESSAGE 37.
The message of my brand will be looking at future streetwear accessible luxury brands which are working towards pushing the boundaries and creating cultural awareness. I want my brand to create awareness for all different shapes, colours and cultures from around the world. The message behind my brand will be accepting and positive. I had a very privileged upbringing into a cultured family and therefore want to use my platform to create cultural awareness and positivity.
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CONSUMER
From my decision on the accessible luxury market, I turned my focus to my target consumer.
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The generation that I am targeting my brand towards is Generation Alpha. This generation has been born into a world dominated by technology and has become very influential. Generation Alpha have become more aware of what brands they are buying into and their relationship they have with these brands. We can predict that they will be a more culturally diverse generation and socioeconomics (slightly wealthier). Generation Alpha are also referred to as the ‘Glass Generation’ as their glass-fronted devices will be their main source of communication starting from a young age. Generation Alpha are extremely tech savvy and fluently understand social media which is where I want my brand to be based for people to see.
BRAND CONCEPTS
The concept of my brand will be influenced by culture and my values. I want my brand to emphasize the message of acceptance and diversity creating positivity and a sense of meaning. I want my target consumers to relate to my brand and appreciate their cultural backgrounds.
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I want my brand to be a reflection of my own style and dedicated to the appreciation of art and aesthetic. My brand will have a simplistic and minimal aesthetic which will reflect within my branding. I want to create a contemporary look by using greys, balck, white and hints of muted colours throughout my branding. My brand will have a strong emphasis on the future consumer and creating an inclusive yet still exclusive brand.
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LOGO DEVELOPMENT 43.
I want my brand to be structured and minimalist as this is the style I am drawn to and which influences my work and style the most. I also know that the colour theme will be mostly monochrome with hints of muted colours. The brands which I am influenced by are mainly structured and mochromic with pops of colour throughout. As my brand will be placed in the luxury market it is important that it fits into this market visually. In the summer research I identified myself as the colour blue due to it having meanings such as conservative, reliable and trustworthy. People with the personality colour blue are also known to take time to process and share their feelings.This colour represents my personality the most and therefore the colour which I want to move forward with in my branding.
For my logo, I experimented with different aesthetics whilst trying to keep it minimal and structured. I want my branding to represent my brand and my overall aesthetic. I also had to think of a brand name in order to have my own identification. I decided I wanted to use my own name as it’s quite an unusual name and nothing describes my brand better than my name. As you can see I experimented with many different fonts and styles before deciding on my final logo.
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LOGO TESTING
Chosen Logo
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, I have learnt a lot about myself and been able to develop my understanding of myself as well as how I want people to see my brand. Brand Me has taught me a lot about the values I want my brand to have, with most of these values stemming from my childhood and upbringing. I have discovered where my brand sits in the market- accessible luxury and I have discovered how culture is my main influence. Moving on from this I will continue to develop my brand concept and develop my 360 campaign, researching and planning my FMP. I want to continue looking into my personal influences including streetwear and athleisure. I need to look into forecasting and identifying issues in the market. I will continue to research how other brands in the luxury market portray cultural commentary throughout their brand. I also need to decide how I am going to present this project. In the future I see myself going into a social media marketing role so I think it would be best suited to create something along the lines of a social media campaign.
REFERENCES
Acne Studios. 2022. About. [online] Available at: <https://www.acnestudios. com/uk/en/about/about.html> The Business of Fashion. 2022. Craig Green is part of the BoF 500. [online] Available at: <https://www.businessoffashion.com/community/people/craiggreen> tribute to magazine. 2022. How streetwear and accessible luxury sneaked into high fashion tribute to magazine. [online] Available at: <https://tributetomagazine.com/accessible-luxury-street-style/> Highsnobiety. 2022. Off-White: What You need to Know About the Clothing Brand. [online] Available at: <https://www.highsnobiety.com/tag/off-white/> FashionBeans. 2022. The Best Streetwear Brands In The World Today | FashionBeans. [online] Available at: <https://www.fashionbeans.com/article/beststreetwear-brands/> Dalziel & Pow. 2022. Why accessible luxury is winning over Millennials and Gen Z | News. [online] Available at: <https://www.dalziel-pow.com/news/accessible-luxury-millennials-gen-z> Numéro Magazine. 2022. Interview with Virgil Abloh : “Diversity in fashion is not a marketing technique”. [online] Available at: <https://www.numero.com/ en/mode-homme/virgil-abloh-louis-vuitton-off-white-diversite-interview>
IMAGE REFERENCES: Figure 1: Dazed. 2022. Making streetwear inspired by working class Britain. [online] Available at: <https://www.dazeddigital.com/fashion/ article/30454/1/a-cold-wall-is-streetwear-inspired-by-working-classbritain> Figure 2 : Palaceskateboards.com. 2022. Spring 2016 | PALACE. [online] Available at: <https://www.palaceskateboards.com/lookbook/ spring-2016/> Figure 3. W Magazine. 2022. Jaden Smith Wants to Set the Standard for Sustainable Luxury Streetwear. [online] Available at: <https://www. wmagazine.com/fashion/jaden-smith-fashion-line-msfts-interview> Figure 4. Ceros Inspire: Create, Share, Inspire. 2022. Who is Generation Alpha? A Guide to Winning Over Gen A - Ceros Inspire. [online] Available at: <https://www.ceros.com/inspire/originals/who-is-generation-alpha/>
LIBBY CHAMBERLIN AD6605 CONCEPT DIRECTION AND DEVELOPMENT 1903788
