OccupyBrandStreet

By Matthew Collins

Polimoda Master Student 2011 Luxury Management

While it seems we’ve seen the peak of the Occupy “Whatever” across the world, the feelings and anger that are directed towards the embattled 1% are still evident across the global proletariat.

As the protests ran their course, we saw enlightened members of the elite expressing their solidarity with the masses. Kanye West and others paid visits to the various “occupy” sites. Mr. West made his own headlines visiting Wall St. with billionaire Russell Simmons while wearing fantastically expensive jewelry. Another rapper and entrepreneur Jay-Z expressed his support by selling “Occupy” t-shirts on his Roca-Wear website. When the blatant hypocrisy was called out, Roca pulled the shirts from the website. While the greater themes of the movement seem to be rooted in fiscal inequalities that have developed over the past decades of economic growth, I believe there is a fracture between business brands and the public that they serve. The world economy is built around our consumerist culture which allows itself to be exploited to certain degree in exchange for shiny new gadgets, tasteful garments, and an ever increasing amount of stuff. It’s when the proletariat feels that it’s being taken for a ride that we see this sort of anger and hostility boil up. The drummers beating the bongos on Wall St. have all partaken of the cultural contract; they just feel jipped by the big man across the table. The biggest targets of the drummer’s ire seem to be the banks and financial institutions that created the recession and have received government aid. It’s these brands who despite their already massive unpopularity, continue to look for new ways to extract profit from their customers. Now I’m not one to impugn the profit motive, but given our current circumstances, I wouldn’t be doing anything that would put my brand on the outs with the public at large. The Occupy movement may be fortified with leftist students and varying degrees of other anarchists, but the unease that they have tapped runs right through Main Street. Distrust of institutions is at an all time high around the world. Political parties seem to compete at who is more loathed in the public sphere. The private sector need only look at the tents in downtown New York to know that they are being watched for any false steps or questionable behavior. “Rightly so,” some people say. Whether a brand is a bank, restaurant, or clothing shop, the reason they are in business is twofold; to serve a need and to make a profit. The society at large decides whether the contract between the public and a brand is a fair one. In this time of heightened scrutiny, all brands have to be able to prove that they are holding up their end of the bargain. Brands need to be wary that the demands of shareholders and the demands of customers are often very different. A wise Man once said “No one can serve two masters.” Ever this should be in the minds of management as they make decisions that effect the perception of the public. The reason millions of people buy a new iPhone isn’t that they enjoy making Apple stock increase, it’s because they get a decent piece of technology in return. As we move forward, the winners might not seem so evident at first. The push and pull between customers and brands will continue. The sensitivity of the consumer to exploitation will remain heightened and there is a distinct opportunity for brands that know how to behave to capitalize on their own goodness. Google may claim the ultimate high ground with its “Don’t be evil” statement, but every brand had better give themselves a proper checkup to make sure they aren’t fueling any mobs with leaked memos rife with contempt of the public. What seems to be the key to ensuring a brand’s success during these times is a no brainer among the 99% and a concept the 1% seems unable to grasp; that the needs, feelings, desires of the customer should come first. This is the core of the consumer business model and something that seems an anathema to most brands today. Winter is setting into the Northern Hemisphere and the tent cities will begin to see their numbers dwindle. Brands large and small that may have been on edge during the height of the protests will see this as a time to return to business as normal or use this time to take stock of their business practices.

Smart brands will prune the policies and operations that build barriers between them and their clients, building trust and market share as “good” businesses.  Others will simply wait it out and see where the market takes us, neither leading or following, beholden to Wall Street’s expectations. These brands are the ones that better watch out. The next time the mob comes around, instead of bongos and chants, it could be pitchforks and nooses.

Picture: Robert Stolarik for New York Times.