A.B.Citified is a contemporary sportswear brand that is aimed at young males whose ages range from early 20s to mid 30s. These individuals have a very limited number of fashion brands that cater specifically to them, thus making A.B.Citified all the more appealing. They will not have to worry about going into a boutique that they may feel uncomfortable in as the space will be designed with them in mind and filled with only clothing for them. By creating a highly masculine environment the brand will start to be known as a men’s brand and will grow quickly among the fashion conscious male in the city. “The connections between the consumer and product are made by providing a structure, method, and function for using a product." (Brand Story; Hancock, Joseph; 24) In this sense A.B.Citfied will be providing a structure, method, and function for the brand as it relates to the young, urbanite, male. “These connections generate associations of identity and status in the consumer culture.” (Brand Story; Hancock, Joseph; 24)
The A.B.Citified brand must be easily recognizable by these individuals in order to begin to gain acceptance in the mass consumer culture. In order to this A.B.Citified will create beautifully crafted clothing that will be made of high quality products and have a small, nonchalant, distinguishing factor (such as the red, white and blue stripes of Thom Browne clothing). “If the goal is building a business for the long term, the first and most important component is to have a good product.” (Brand Story; Hancock, Joseph; 17) By creating high quality clothing we will not only gain the support of these 20-30 something males but also of their sons for whom they will buy the brand when they have reached the same age creating a continuous cycle of both new and repeat clientele.
Advertising for this type of clientele however will prove somewhat difficult, as it is our target market that is the hardest to reach. Many studies have been dedicated to deciding how best to reach and make this demographic spend their disposable incomes. “The work of these researchers in the area of fashion branding can be combined to conclude that meaning, associations, emotions, and storytelling are the key ingredients for building fashion branding success.” (Brand Story; Hancock, Joseph; 31) Therefore the advertising images and all marketing materials must depict the lifestyle of the ‘citified’ man and who he is and how he is regarded by all of his peers. In order to do this we will continually look back to the brand’s founding statement and ensure that all images are upholding the ideals provided in those sentences.
