Ducati Model 271 - or Is It?
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On 14 Dec 2008 an Iraqi journalist threw two shoes at President George Bush. The consequences have been curious. The journalist, Muntazar al-Zaidi, is in jail. He may be pardoned or possibly end up with a 15 year prison sentence.
His brother is in the news too. According to press reports Durgham al-Zaidi criticised people for exploiting his brother's actions for commercial gain. "The Syrians claim the shoes were made in Syria and the Turks say they made them. Some say he bought them in Egypt. But as far as I know, he bought them in Baghdad and they were made in Iraq" he said. It is difficult to verify exactly where the shoes are from as the judge in the case says the shoes were destroyed during security checks. It is a pity that Durgham is not a marketer as one fervently hopes his brother will be released soon and would have had the opportunity to work on his marketing skills. Has he never heard of guerrilla marketing?
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Celebrity endorsement or product placement?
For the Istanbul based company Ducati Baydan Shoes founded in 1991 quick reaction has turned the event into one of the best PR moments of the decade. For the marketing expert the discussion is whether this was product placement or celebrity endorsement. The owner of Baydan talked of immediate orders of nearly half a million pairs and the need to hire another 100 people to handle the demand and incoming calls.
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There is no doubt that at a time when 70% discount has become the norm in many stores in the US and Europe guerrilla marketing of every type is needed. This is all about unconventional low cost marketing techniques. There is no better time than in a recession to be innovative in product, process and marketing. The al-Zaidi brothers should be planning their visit to Turkey to get into the new TV advertisement being planned and to help design the next iteration of the shoe, which after all is a ten year old design. No doubt they can make it better “fit for purpose”. (Editor’s note: Yes, but how, precisely, did the original pair get destroyed during “security checks?”)
Perhaps the best marketing tactic today is skilled, and sometimes unintentional, product placement such as Mr. al-Zaidi’s Model 271 Brogues, Sarah Palin's Kazuo Kawasaki glasses, and Steve Jobs wearing the legendary Keen Newport Sandal.
The second hand concept
It is perhaps not coincidental that it was a second hand shoe that has created all this commotion. The second hand market is important and continues to grow. For the African footwear industry this is a curse as old shoes from the US and the EU undercut the local production. Yet in the west they allow ordinary people access to products and outfits they could not otherwise afford.
Allied to this is the whole area of nostalgia which has been circling around for some time. Old adverts from the 70s are coming back to television and consumers are asking for the comfort and protection they feel when sitting in old leather winged chairs and Chesterfields. Look out for retro sofas. Buy a leather bound notebook these days and go home to “pre-age” it by sitting your coffee cup down to give it nice stain and rub your fingers over it to darken bits of the surface. Having a small luxury that ages with you will become increasingly important.
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Coach must be asking why they moved so far away from their traditional leather to all those logo’ed textile materials. Closer to the mark, but at a much cheaper price is the Fossil Perry East West Messenger Bag, “in aniline vegetable tanned brown leather, has that beaten aged look from day one - beautiful”. We need to go back to the nineties and start to think of Faith Popcorns mini trends of cocooning and small indulgences. More time at home, more comforts at home, and what we buy must have lasting and aging quality. For that there certainly is nothing like leather. |
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Bush shoe gear <http://shop.cafepress.com/bush-shoe?CMP=CJ-CLICK-10463747>
Bush shoe throwing game: can you hit the ex-President?
www.muntazar-al-zaidi.com
www.baydanshoes.com
www.leathergoods-online.com
www.retrosofas.co.uk
Mike Redwood
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