Log 9: Missrepresentation

In recent years there has been a surge of brands--usually women's clothing brands--that use body positivity as a campaign to sell their product. In advertising, body positivity means that a company promotes many different types of bodies--typically bodies of different shapes, sizes, and ethnicities. This is a direct response to the criticism of the media's portrayal of women as thin an white and nothing else. By challenging this stereotype, these companies hope to build their ethos and win over consumers who feel as if they can't shop at stores that don't reflect their body type. One of the most popular and successful recent campaigns is Aerie. Aerie is a subsidiary of American Eagle Outfitters who focus on bras, underwear, and swim. A few years back, Aerie formally decided to hire more diverse models and stop using any kind of photoshop on their models. And that's what they did--they feature many different body types and ethnicities in their modeling. They also don't photoshop their models, and they don't position them to look smaller or thinner, either. Many pictures show women with stomach rolls and cellulite. Aerie's popularity can be attributed to their social media presence. They started a hashtag campaign called #aeriereal, which implies that these models are more "real" than non-Aerie models, and that by buying Aerie, you can be "real" too. Consumers are more likely to buy products from body positive companies because of practicality and emotions. Consumers see products from body positive comapnies as practical because many are specifically designed for unconventional body types and therefore fit better and are more comfortable. Many women have had experiences of trying to shop at stores that cater specifically to one type of body and ended up wasting their money. The emotional aspect comes in because people who support Aerie feel as if they are supported Aerie's message--that everyone should be comfortable in and love their own body. Ultimately I support what Aerie is doing and am glad they're doing it. But, sometimes I wonder, is this just another way of profiting off of people's insecurities? The goal of any company is to make profit. Aerie simply saw an opportunity to capitalize on the fact that many people feel insecure when they shop at other companies. I'm glad that Aerie promotes different bodies types and exposes a lot of people to those body types via social media. But I also don't think that Aerie has single-handedly solved the deeply-rooted cultural norm of body-shaming.