H&M Autumn/Winter 2016 Advert Analysis

AW16 ‘She’s a Lady’ Campaign Analysis Group 2: Hollie Tansey, Chloe Rianne Woods, Lotti Martin-Fuller, Joanna Patulot, Marta Bielawa

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H&M’s Autumn Winter 2016 advertisement aims to promote more diverse ideas of femininity within fashion and society. The advert which includes many different types of women doing various everyday activities - received a lot of attention in the media, producing both positive and negative opinions surrounding its themes. An analysis of the advertisement’s content along with investigations into the meaning of femininity and the contemporary canon of beauty will help to determine whether H&M have produced an advertisement which is fully inclusive whilst providing its audience with a more realistic version of beauty; or whether they have been exclusive or partially bias towards the existing ideas of beauty within the media.

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What does the advert actually show?

The Autumn Winter H&M advert rethinks what a lady should look and act like; breaking down social norms about female beauty and welcoming diversity with open arms – it is a breath of fresh air. The advert paradoxically shows society’s ideas of ‘unconventional’ women doing conventional every day, normal things such as being at work or just simply lying on a bed alone eating chips. As Logan (2016) says, “the whole commercial takes the idea of one-size-fits-all beauty and flips it on its head”.

The advert is set to the song “She’s a Lady” originally by Tom Jones, reworked with a modern interpretation by Lion Babe to update the meaning of lady to represent independence and strength.

The song has some very sexist messages such as “she always knows her place” and “she’s never in the way” however the advert depicts empowered females doing supposedly unladylike activities, who are being the centre of attention in the spaces they feature, and the central focus of the campaign overall.

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A wide array of women from different ethnicities, ages, and body sizes are used in the ad, Ilyashov (2016) praised H&M for their choice of eclectic cast of women that the brand called bad-ass and independent. The cast includes Fatima Pinto (a muscular female boxer), Cajsa Wessberg (a bald headed female model), Hari Nef (a transgender female model) and Lauren Hutton (a septuagenarian model from the 70s). The use of these non-conventional models for the fashion industry coincides with the feminist movement that has rose to prominence in the past few years, as they are celebrating the individuality and diversity of beauty in the 21st century.

There is an array of social situations and spaces the models are portrayed in, unlike previous fashion adverts disseminating “faux-empowering girly vibes” (Logan, 2016) this advert shows women in the context the customer would actually wear them. Although it shouldn’t actually be radical seeing these women doing everyday things in their H&M clothes, it actually makes the campaign extremely effective, with the consumers at home identifying heavily with their day-to-day activities. Both the choice of the models and the situations in which they are presented lead to the conclusion that it is no longer a man’s world, with females now taking front stage.

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What is the contemporary canon of beauty and how does the advert relate to this?

According to the Cambridge Dictionary (2016) beauty is “the quality of being pleasing, especially to look at, or someone or something that gives you great pleasure”. Nowadays, the idea of what is beautiful is presented mostly by media such as fashion magazines, movies or TV adverts, unfortunately they are often impossible to reach.

Interestingly, the 21st century contemporary canon of beauty differs in opinion between males and females. The majority of females aspire to the thin ‘supermodel look’ with 40% of teens wanting plastic surgery to feed this catwalk-fuelled obsession (BBC, 2005).

However, in stark contrast to this, Goldman (2017) states that “78% of men would rather date a confident plus-size woman than an insecure supermodel” suggesting that beauty is actually self-confidence and happiness rather than the shape of your body.

The modern canon of beauty ideal of being thin, tall and with flawless skin has caused a number of problems within the younger generation with eating disorders, depression and various other mental health issues rising constantly (Epigee.org, 2017). This suggests that trying to obtain the media’s ideals of beauty leads to a deflated self esteem rather than a positive ‘love your body’ attitude. Herrick (2015) argues that happiness is beauty and whilst we constantly change our looks to appear beautiful, beauty is seen in “the true essence of our happiest moments”.

Therefore, the general consensus could be that beauty is happiness. In the H&M advert, whilst the women are all of different body shapes, ethnicities and ages, there is one thing they all have in common: they are happy, confident and relaxed. These aspects could indeed be what makes them beautiful - showing how beauty comes from within and isn’t just about aesthetics.

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Does the advert propose a more realistic and inclusive version of what it means to be beautiful?

Ideals of beauty are constantly changing which makes it difficult to define what makes a woman beautiful. So many different players in the media are involved in defining and shaping these ideals and influencing the general population’s ideas and preferences in terms of what makes a woman beautiful. Those who shape these beauty ideals are the ones who choose the faces of campaigns, advertising and spreads, such as magazine editors and designers. Also, these players may have completely different opinions and ideas, meaning the fashion industry is always saturated with different types of women who are all seen as beautiful. However, often despite variations in hair colour and skin tone, the prominent ‘beautiful’ women in the media tend to have very similar body types and generally under 30 years of age. Examples include models Gigi Hadid and Joan Smalls, actresses Blake Lively and Emma Watson and pop stars such as Rihanna and Selena Gomez. The latter prominent figures, and many more, have featured in many huge fashion and beauty campaigns such as Louis Vuitton, L’Oreal, Burberry and Tommy Hilfiger. Whilst older or plus size stars are a lot less likely to land major campaigns, aside from a few exceptions such as Madonna, who has starred in Dolce and Gabbana’s SS10 advertising campaign at 49 years old and Versace’s AW15 at 56 years old.

Yet when speaking about modelling success, Godart (2011) states that “the great uncertainty of beauty standards makes success uncertain” which could raise the argument that one person’s idea of beauty at any given time can be completely different to another’s. This is supported by the many studies into attitudes towards the use of plus-sized or ‘normal’ models in fashion advertising campaign. Whilst Bian and Foxall (2011) argue that normal sized models are received as no more attractive than skinnier models in the advertising campaigns of well established brands, Peck and Loken (2004) found that larger-sized models are viewed more positively. This means that larger models in fashion advertising are often well received, however the traditional use of smaller models is also still accepted by consumers. Therefore in theory, whilst beauty is becoming more inclusive as there are a variety of types of ‘beautiful’ women used in advertising, as shown in the H&M advert, the use of smaller models is still accepted as normal by the public. This is where the H&M advert is effective as it includes a variation of women with different figures, who are all considered beautiful. As H&M is a huge key player in high street fashion, it has the potential to influence consumer opinions on beauty ideals and the advert does promote an inclusive version of beauty which the audience see from the various kinds of women and the styles and roles they assume.

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Yet despite the increased diversity within the advert, it is still somewhat unrealistic in terms of representing the general population. Dorothy Smith argues that women are constantly striving to change and improve their looks because of media images and the consumerist society which promotes perfection (Mears, 2011). If H&M’s advert is aiming to promote inclusive beauty in all shapes and sizes, it doesn’t fully accomplish this, as it shows only two plus size models, Katy Syme and Paloma Elesser, throughout the whole advert and the rest have slimmer than average body shapes. In the UK the average dress size for a woman aged between 16 and 24 is a 14 (Bates, 2016). Moreover, only one model is visibly above a size 14 – Paloma Elesser, who is in her underwear – as Katy Syme is dressed in loose fitting clothing so it could be argued that they’re masking her body shape instead of embracing it and showing it off.

A lack of age diversity is shown in the advert too, which could lead to the assumption that H&M are saying that a woman is not beautiful once she passes a certain age. Although one older woman is shown, Lauren Hutton, they’ve chosen a woman who was previously a model and in her youth would have fit in with the slim and tall beauty ideals that the advert is trying to abolish. Also, 72 year old Hutton reportedly weighs 53.5kg (Celeb Riot, 2017) whilst in the UK on average women between 63 and 74 weigh 71kg (NHS, 2013) so whilst H&M have chosen an older model, they haven’t chosen one to represent realreal istic women of that age group. However, it must be kept in mind that H&M’s core target customer is between 18 and 30 years old (Goldfingle, 2012). Therefore the brand’s marketing team have prioritised more representation of this age group rather than older women. It could be said that the significance of Lauren Hutton’s presence in the advert is related to her nonchalant attitude in her scene, which demonstrates she is confidence in her own skin - which seems to be the running theme of the advert.

Whilst the advert perhaps isn’t a realistic portrayal of all types of women, the women in the advert all look beautiful, even if they would appear unconventional within normal fashion media. Due to the women’s confidence in their skin, they feel beautiful and most of all, happy. Feingold (1992) supports the theory that women who are have more self esteem feel more attractive, thus more beautiful, so it could be seen that H&M are promoting confidence and self esteem as being key to feeling beautiful rather than attractiveness through physical attributes.

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Is the advert fully inclusive or have certain issues or bodies been excluded?

If so, why do you think this is?

Despite the advert being described as the ‘feminist advert we all need in our lives’ Edwards (2016), H&M’s AW16 campaign is arguably not as inclusive as their previous sustainable fashion campaign that was released in 2015. The Autumn Winter 2016 advert attempts to portray a realistic version of what it’s like to be a lady, going against some ideals of beauty. In some respects, the campaign is extremely inclusive, featuring women who wouldn’t often be featured in fashion advertisements on TV, in magazines or on the catwalk. However, the short video does exclude some bodies and issues that could have been included such as someone with a disability, a petite body and a Muslim woman who wears a hijab. These body types were all featured in the 2015 sustainable fashion campaign that included the message ‘there are no rules in fashion’ (H&M, 2015) so it is questionable why they weren’t included in the 2016 campaign, She’s a Lady.

According to Thesander (1997:203) ‘the feminine ideal of the 1980’s ‘was tall, slim and supple with long, well-shaped but not muscular legs’.

This would suggest that curvy women and women with muscular features are not to be considered ‘feminine’. Because of this, both body types were featured in the advert to try and re define the term feminine. Some body types and issues are controversial and despite the advert getting a mostly positive response, there were some social groups and people who disagreed with some issues shown in the advert. There was a lot of backlash regarding a lady with armpit hair, two women kissing and a transgender model being featured in the advert: Higgins (2016) stated that Amy Childs spoke up about armpit hair saying she ‘didn’t approve’ and excess hair wasn’t ‘ladylike’ whilst the Christian social group, One Million Moms, released a statement saying the H&M advert was offensive to families by showing a woman wearing skimpy lingerie and two women kissing. The group said that ‘parents find this type of advertising inappropriate and unnecessary’ (Nichols, 2016).

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Another segment in the advert features a woman walking with confidence into a room where she is holding a large meeting. This scene challenges the gender pay gap issue, showing a woman is fully capable of being a boss. The gender pay gap is protested against by equality groups and is featured a lot in the press with women in Britain earning 14.2% less than men in 2015 in full time jobs (Kollewe, 2015). By including this scene H&M have acknowledged the issue as it is closely related to femininity, equality and challenges what a woman is capable of achieving.

By looking at the body types and issues featured in the advert, it is clear to see they have all been included because they are either controversial, unusual or there are mixed opinions based around them. A lot of the issues are constantly being protested by feminist groups and are not widely accepted by some social groups and the general public. A possible reason for someone with a disability not being included in the advert is because it is more accepted by society that someone who has a disability can still be feminine. On the other hand, the issues and body types included in the advert are not widely accepted by society and this is why H&M included them, they are controversial and they want to change people’s opinions and perceptions of the term ‘feminine’.

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What is the broader meaning of the advert?

Many ideas and connotations are seen within H&M’s advert but what really is the broader meaning of this campaign?

Essentially we are shown how women are beginning to embrace their individuality with boldness and grace; overcoming the assumption that the fashion industry predominantly supports the generic size six model. During one minute and twelve seconds of pure female domination, we are given a broader image of how times are changing: women are getting bigger and better and moreover, society are beginning to accept that the social norms of beauty and size aren’t necessarily realistic and are therefore beginning to embrace diversity.

H&M have produced a sufficiently diverse campaign, having consistently displayed all aspects of controversial female beauty, thus proving the open mindedness of the brand. Additionally, this campaign whole-heartedly illustrates how their new collection specifically caters to all women no matter what body shape, size, ethnicity or sexuality they are; with all walks of female culture displayed within one commercial.

Essentially the broader meaning displays the challenging preconceptions about the role and appearance of women, proving the flexibility and adaptability of women in the workplace, in personal lives and in appearance; at 0:19 seconds in, lyrics state ‘she always knows her place’ while a fierce woman is depicted to be entering the room with self assurance and authority while a crowd of seated melons sit and watch in awe and admiration.

Additionally the broader meaning of the campaign criticizes conventional gender attitudes and expectations; feminine liberty and power takes over throughout the whole advert. In one occasion at 0:24 seconds in, a typically-called ‘plus-size’ female embraces her size with the lyrics ‘she’s a winner’ recited in the background as she proudly studies herself in the mirror with conviction and satisfaction displaying the beauty of self-love. On another occasion at 0:43 seconds in, H&M approach today’s societies acceptance on androgyny and cross-dressing, displaying an unorthodox man in female attire proudly resting on the subway seats in an nonchalant manner. Additionally at one minute and seven seconds in, a female is presented to be proudly exposing her underarm hair proving how females should surpass the boundaries society imposes upon them - the advocacy of female rights are spreading amongst the fashion industry too.

Fundamentally, the broader meaning of the advert exploits the changing and contemporary views on the position of women in the industry as well as in society and essentially encourages women to indulge in their passions and desires without being overly concerned with external opinions – embracing individuality without restraint.

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Conclusion Essentially the H&M advert is showing modern day women - who wouldn’t usually be featured in fashion campaigns - as confident and happy in their own skin whilst going about their everyday lives, whether it be in a boardroom meeting, a restaurant or at home. With this campaign, H&M are supporting diversity and challenging the media’s attitude towards femininity and beauty. Whilst the media, fashion industry experts and even individual people all have different opinions on what makes a woman beautiful, this advert shows that beauty isn’t one size fits all - two women can look incredibly different from one another and still look beautiful and feminine. Furthermore, the advert really brings to light that when a woman is confident and happy, she feels beautiful and she can feel like a lady no matter how unconventional her appearance may be.

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