This article is from WeChat official account:Jingwei Venture Capital (ID: matrixpartnerschina), author: Matrix Partners Home Jun, the original title: “Carhartt: this exclusive brand is how people work leading tooling tide? |[Jingwei low-key recommendation]”, title picture from: Vision China
The fashion industry is experiencing an upsurge dominated by the style of tooling. From fashionistas to celebrities to foreign politicians, no one seems to be able to escape the “true fragrance” law of work style. The trend of tooling went from the T stage to the offstage. For ordinary office workers, tooling-style clothes are the resident guests in the closet.
If you trace the origin of tooling style, one brand that has to be mentioned is Carhartt. This American apparel brand originated at the end of the 19th century. At first it was just producing clothing worn by workers for work. However, it has continuously evolved in a century of transformation and has become one of the pronouns of tooling fashion brands in the 21st century, leading the tooling trend. Rihanna, Kanye, Beckham, Obama, etc., all like this brand.
From providing work clothes for railroad workers and blue-collar workers to leading urban street fashion, this seems to be an unlikely change, but Carhartt did it—this classic American workwear brand with a history of more than 130 years has become a leap The existence of differences in social economy, geography, politics, and population has made it possible to maintain the classics and continue to be popular.
So, how does Carhartt endure? We try to find some reasons from its development process and brand management, and hope to bring you some inspiration. Below, Enjoy:
1. How popular is Carhartt?
How hot is Carhartt? Everyone from celebrities to politicians love it.
to smallTake the round hat as an example. “NYmag” magazine once said: “You will definitely see Carhartt’s hat every 5 blocks you walk through.” One of the very out-of-the-loop photos is Rihanna this one ↓
Image source: Gotcha Images / Splash News
Hip-hop singers also love Carhartt ↓
Ye Kan is wearing Carhartt, source: collater.al
“Star II” supermodel Kaia Gerber(Kaia Gerber) Also wearing Carhartt’s jacket ↓
Image source: Jackson Lee/GC Images
Not only that, Carhartt also frequently appeared in film and television. In “Interstellar”, “Raging Youth”, “Informer”, “The Horse Whisperer” and so on, Carhartt has a sense of existence.
The two protagonists in “Interstellar” wear Carhartt, stills from the source of pictures
French film “Young and Angry”, source: Courtesy of Canal+
“The Whistleblower” tough guy Dwayne Johnson
The cowboy image in “The Horse Whisperer”
Carhartt is also very popular among politicians. Perhaps it is because Carhartt has become synonymous with American workers to a certain extent. For a long time, politicians have preferred to wear Carhartt to reflect their closeness to the people, and they like to dress Carhartt particularly prominently in rallies and campaigns.
In 2015, Obama wore a Carhartt jacket while traveling in Alaska to show his love for this brand.
Image source: MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images
The first female governor in Alaska’s history, Sarah Palin (Sarah Palin) once agreed to an exclusive interview with a reporter. It is said The reason is simply because both of them love Carhartt.
Sarah Palin is wearing a Carhartt jacket and talking with people, source: JOHNNY WAGNERGETTY IMAGES
Rick Perry’s (Rick Perry) 2012 advertising “Strong” also wore this iconic jacket .
Whether deliberately or not, at the end of last year, Congressman Tim Burchett (Tim Burchett) was serving the impeached Trump When defending, he was wearing Carhartt’s jacket.
Image source: Saul Young/News Sentinel
From around 2010, the style of tooling has risen and attracted more and more people with its unique charm. In recent years, as tooling continues to appear on the world’s fashion runways, the market’s attention to this type of clothing has been thoroughly stimulated.
American tooling, which used to be only practical work clothes, has become a fashion trend and spread to the world.
As the “big brother” brand in tooling, Carhartt is a magical existence spanning a century. This Detroit-based outerwear brand is known for its jackets and rugged workwear, and in the new era, they have led a fashion trend-regardless of age, gender, region, class, or political stance, people are flocking to buy Carhartt Costumes.
Picture source: John Branch IV/Unsplash
Even the founder of the trendy website Highsnobiety said in an interview with The Washington Post, “Carhartt is the only brand that can be seen from farmers to children walking on Broadway. .”
Carhartt’s classic items are mostly simple in style and soft in color-mustard, khaki and navy are classic colors. In addition to its well-known full-cut, windproof, scratch-resistant, and heavy-duty overalls, cotton canvas winter jackets, small round hats and iconic overalls are also Carhartt’s best-selling items. People love this brand so much that even in the second-hand market, its selling price is close to the original price.
Second, a brand that grows with the United States
How did the brand Carhartt work? This should start more than a hundred years ago.
In 1889, Hamilton Carhartt (Hamilton Carhartt) founded Carhartt in Michigan, USA, to make work clothes for laborers. Initially, its entire production line had only two sewing machines and five workers. Because of its small scale and immature technology, the workshop cannot receive large orders and can barely make ends meet.
Image source: whiteliesmagazine
In order to keep the workshop running, Carhart decided to start with the people around him, communicate frequently with local railway workers, and try to figure out their real needs. Under the concept of “Honest value for an honest dollar”, Carhartt and local railway workers designed a working bib(bib), due to its durability and high quality and low price, it is very popular with workers once it is launched.
bib Schematic diagram, source: contractorsclothing
In the following two decades, Carhartt’s business has expanded to eight other cities, including cities in Liverpool and Canada.
After the outbreak of World War II, Carhartt responded to the government’s call to produce uniforms for the US military, and the brand became famous. Although Carhartt was greatly affected during the Great Depression, Carhartt redesigned durable clothing suitable for the new generation of Americans and established a good brand recognition among the workers. The company not only survived the crisis, but also made great contributions to the production activities of the post-war American economic reconstruction.
The Alaska region has almost witnessed Carhartt’s golden development period. Although Carhartt was born in Michigan, thanks to the construction of the Trans-Alaska pipeline and the economic prosperity brought by investment, the working class in Alaska grew rapidly in the late 20th century. So Carhartt seized this growth momentum and became the most popular workwear in the state.
Picture source: saladdaysmag
If it is only limited to the worker group, perhaps Carhartt will not be able to develop to such a large scale today. By coincidence, Carhartt discovered a new business opportunity-In the 1980s, their jacketsThe increasing popularity among drug dealers has also ignited the spark of inspiration for expanding its customer base.
This brand also quickly became popular among the crowd of rappers and skateboarders.
Swiss denim designer Edwin Feah(Edwin Feah) has discovered the business opportunities and predicted that it will become the next trend . In 1989, he reached a licensing agreement with Carhartt-according to the aesthetics of streamlined skateboarders, customized this classic, strong clothing, and promoted it to Europe. Affected by street culture, Carhartt immediately became popular among skateboarders.
Advertising 1998 Taken from The Carhartt WIP Archives, courtesy of Carhartt WIP
Picture source: Instagram
This attempt also eventually formed a branch of Carhartt, which is Carhartt Work in Progress(Carhartt WIP). This branch line tailored for street culture has become the darling of fashion magazine editors.
Although it is just a replica of the same jacket worn by American oil workers and farmers, in Europe, WIP has become a common choice for athletes, hip-hop singers, and rebellious young people.
Picture source: hypebeast
Carhartt’s total sales in 1990 have reached 92 million US dollars. As of 1992, Carhartt had sold more than 2 million jackets every year. In 2011, Carhartt branch line WIP entered the US market and opened its first store in the Soho district of New York. For ten years, the brand’s fashion charm has swept the United States.
In contrast, the manufacturing situation in the United States during the same period is not optimistic. Since 2000, the United States has lost more than 5 million manufacturing jobs, a decrease of more than 25% from 1980. But Carhartt’s sales are stronger than ever. At a time when many physical retail stores closed and focused on e-commerce, Carhartt was able to buck the market and expand the scale of physical stores.
At the same time, Carhartt is not inferior in online sales, with sales rising year after year. In 2019, its official website sales have exceeded 110 million US dollars.
Data source: ecommerceDB
3. Why can the century-old Carhartt last forever?
From providing work clothes for railroad workers and blue-collar workers to leading urban street fashion, this seems to be an unlikely change, but Carhartt did it—this classic American style with a history of more than 130 years The tooling brand has become an existence that transcends differences in social economy, geography, politics, and demographics, and has maintained the classic while continuing to be popular.
What makes Carhartt, which has a history of more than 130 years, endures even today, and even leads a new trend?
Picture source:NOWRE
1. Quality is king, build heritage brand recognition
The tooling style set off by Carhartt has aroused the attention of foreign media to this century-old brand, and many reports have been made in recent years. In an interview, some blue-collar workers in the United States described their impression of Carhartt as follows:
“I bought this at work, but I have a big pocket, so I like it very much.”
“I wear a jacket when I’m cold. It’s like a must-have for me.”
If you want to find the core characteristics of Carhartt’s 100-year history of development, it is excellent quality and outstanding functionality, which run through the development of the brand. Under the influence of the slogan “From the mill to millions”, the production of each product of Carhartt guarantees the use of the best fabrics and the most exquisite craftsmanship.
Image source: Carhartt WIP official website
In order to meet the recognized needs of different types of work, Carhartt also worked hard on trousers, allowing workers to choose the shape and number of pockets by themselves, fully respecting their right to choose.
And based on this quality premise, Carhartt still maintains a accessible price. So alwaysSince then, this steady and classic brand has never lost its appeal to the blue-collar class and has become the “authority” in the tooling industry.
Picture source: NEW YORK POST
At the same time, Carhartt’s clothing provides a way to escape the frenzied cyclical fashion, attracts people in the city.
Picture source: kaltblut-magazine
With excellent quality and high cost performance, Carhartt has established a heritage of brand recognition from generation to generation.
Retail points in New YorkAnalyst Krista Corrigan said: “For decades, few brands have been able to withstand changing consumer’tastes’ and even the instability of the economic environment. Carhartt has not only maintained contact with the market, but is also constantly changing. Adapt to and develop in a new environment.”
2. The main and branch lines coexist harmoniously to meet the needs of different groups of people
Carhartt is one of the few brands that have branch brands and the main branches can coexist harmoniously. As a brand, its main branches are integrated and can be regarded as a whole; while facing different classes of customer groups, they can each meet the needs of different customers.
This may have something to do with Carhartt’s family business. Although this is a multinational company with over 90% of overseas production capacity, the founder’s grandson Mark still serves as the chairman and chief executive officer, and his mother Gretchen Varad(Gretchen C. Valade) is the honorary chairman.
In the past, Carhartt only advertised in magazines such as “Popular Machinery” and “American Cowboy”, and slogans such as “man like the one who wears them”, mainly for working-class consumers.
Image source: Carhartt WIP official website
Carhartt WIP combines tooling styles with more urban environmental elements and is committed to street areas such as BMX, changing everyone’s stereotypes of Carhartt and becoming a new trend for young people. WIP also has similar products from the main line Carhartt, but the design is more slim, and with different materials and decorations, it also welcomes the pursuit of fashionable assetsClass consumer needs.
The branch line WIP successfully opened the European market, which can be said to help the main line Carhartt enter a new era. This allows Carhartt to see the potential of other markets. While maintaining the core consumer as a blue-collar group, Carhartt shifted its target to consumers outside the blue-collar group.
The business strategy of separating the main line of the brand from the branch lines will allow the general public to wear the affordable Carhartt, and secondly, it will allow trend-conscious fans to pay higher prices. Purchasing Carhartt WIP’s products-differentiated marketing allows Carhartt to occupy a place in different market segments.
Therefore, since the launch of its first women’s clothing line in 1998, Carhartt has also been adding women-oriented products-an average of about 30 new styles have been launched in four quarters. Carhartt also opened a life blog specifically for women. In the fall of 2007, it officially launched the Women’s Wear Line-Carhartt for Women.
Picture source: Pinterest.com
In product design, Carhartt is no longer limited to the production of three classic colors. Carhartt nowIt also sells children’s products and even produces medical scrubs.
The results of diversification attempts are amazing. According to Carhartt’s Chief Brand Officer, Tony Ambroza (Tony Ambroza), the company’s sales increased by 20% in 2018, with 29 Passenger traffic in retail stores has increased by nearly 30%, and online traffic has also increased by nearly 30%. Google’s search volume and impressions increased by 92%. The number of people talking about Carhartt on social media platforms has skyrocketed by more than 200%.
“Carhartt is part of the United States. It is a piece of clothing that anyone can wear, and it can also make people understand its essence.”–Perhaps this is the charm of this brand.
Picture source: GETTY IMAGES
3. Marketing will be fun, and cross-industry joint names keep coming out of circles
In terms of marketing, Carhartt also has a good time.
Although Carhartt sells products through a variety of retail channels, in order to protect its brand, discount stores are not allowed to sell its products at will. Carhartt’s mainline retail stores in the United States are unique. They will use a sledgehammer to smash the wall to celebrate the opening of the new store instead of simply holding a traditional ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Most of Carhartt’s advertising work is done internally by the company, unlike some other brand marketing that depends on advertising companies. Without relying on advertising agencies, Carhartt’s entire brand has a sense of reality. In the current CEO Mark Wallard (Mark Valade), this sense of authenticity has always been throughout the brand.
For the trendy WIP, Carhartt has made various cross-border joint names: For example, our familiar Vans has cooperated with Carhartt in many joint names. The picture below shows the Old Skool series jointly launched with Vans in 2012, featuring camouflage elements.
Image source: HYPEBEAST
In 2013, Carhartt cooperated with Adam Kimmel to launch a joint model. While respecting the classic appearance of the Carhartt brand, it injected a little luxury and more direct comfort.
Picture source: LIFE+TIMES
Carhartt also designed a joint model with French fashion brand A.P.C.↓
Picture source: A.P.C. official website
Collaborative jacket launched with Japanese designer Junya Watanabe(Junya Watanabe) ↓
Picture source: endclothing.com
In the autumn and winter of 2018, four shoes were launched jointly with NIKE ↓
Picture source: Sneaker News
Carhartt also cooperated with Dutch streetwear boutique Patta to launch a joint jacket, walking in the forefront of world trends ↓
Image source: Carhartt official website
In this regard, Krista Corrigan, an analyst at retail technology company edit, said (Krista Corrigan) The limited edition collaboration of fashion giants created exclusivity for Carhartt. In a market where exclusivity is paramount, the public likes to see their favorite brands come together to create something novel together.
Of course, Carhartt, who is super good at co-branding, is more than that. In 2014, Carhartt collaborated with the New Holland Brewery in Michigan to launch a craft beer: Carhartt Woodsman. This is a barrel-aged beer with great strength, used to thank all those who have worked hard.
Picture source: workingperson.me
4. Political neutrality allows people to reach a rare agreement
In addition to approachable prices, excellent functionality, and creative marketing, the politically neutral fashion concept is also an important factor in the endurance of this company with a history of more than 130 years.
Unlike many brands today,Carhartt is not involved in politics or social movements. They just use durable products to illustrate brand characteristics. An interesting phenomenon is that many of them are actually wearing the same Carhartt clothes when people are raising the bar on social media-at least on this point, people have reached a tacit agreement.
While other American companies tried to define “All America” in a divided political atmosphere, Carhartt did not deliberately prove anything. It is precisely because of this that it has won the hearts of consumers across different races, genders, ages, and occupations.
For those who are engaged in (or once engaged in) blue-collar jobs, Carhartt is a really useful part of their wardrobe; for those starting For people who wear Carhartt for fashion, it is a symbol of hard work. They wear Carhartt hats before they commute to the office in the morning. Some people even wear a PRADA bag to match the tooling to show a “roll up sleeves and start working” mentality.
Some people like its simple, simple and expressive products, while others are attracted by its timeless appearance. After all, the cost of keeping up with trends is tiring. For certain classes of people, they no longer need some trendy luxury goods to show their special status.
Nathan Palmer, a sociology professor at the University of South Georgia, (Nathan Palmer) has a lot of knowledge about the relationship between fashion, culture, and symbolism the study. Regarding the popular workwear style, in his opinion, it is like that people wear sportswear mostly to show that they value exercise, not really want to exercise. The rise of workwear also has a similar psychological mechanism.
No matter what the motivation, Carhartt welcomes every consumer because of the firm principle of this brandYes: Carhartt is for everyone, this should not be subject to any other interference. For more than a hundred years, even though the times have changed, Hamilton Carhart’s original intention of “focusing on making better products for those who do not have better products” has not changed.
Picture source: Esquire
The highest state of the brand is to represent the lifestyle of consumers and change the lifestyle of consumers.
For more than one hundred years, Carhartt has never needed to say much, but only makes products with passion, respects the creation and behavior of all customers, and believes in the power of hard work. Sincere, always more moving than any advertisement.
References:
1. What It Means to Be a Working-Class Clothing Brand in America Today, BY Tonya Riley, esquire
2. Why Can’t I Walk 5 Blocks Without Seeing a Carhartt Beanie, BY Lauren Levy, nymag.com
3. Hip-hop, skater culture makes Carhartt cool, BY Breana Noble, The Detroit Newsp>
4. Blue-collar Carhartt brand shaking up fashion industry, BY Jeanette Settembre, FOXBusiness
5. How Carhartt Engineered Ageless Cool, and Won Fans From Skateboarders to Barack Obama, BY Christine Lagorio-chafkin, INC.
6. From cowboys to celebrities, the everlasting appeal of Carhartt jackets, BY Kirsten Fleming, NEW YORK POST
7. How Carhartt Got Fashionable: A Guide to Affordably Stylish Workwear, BY Jacob Gallagher, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
8. Carhartt Is the Uniform of Both the Right and the Left, BY Catherine LeClair, RACKED
9. Carhartt official website
This article is from WeChat official account: Matrix Partners (ID: matrixpartnerschina) , Author: Matrix Partners Home Jun