Adidas ‘bares it all’ to promote its new bra line
Adidas has chosen to ‘bare it all’ in order to promote its bra line. In a controversial twitter post, Adidas posted a picture of 25 people’s breasts stressing that “breasts [comes ] in all shapes and sizes[and] deserve support and comfort. Which is why our new sports bra range contains 43 styles, so everyone can find the right fit for them.”
The post has gone viral and renewed debate on ‘body positivity’. Consequently, the internet seems to be divided with some lauding the company’s ‘bold’ decision while some criticizing the method the company has adopted to promote it.
Body negativity is an evil created by the fashionwear and sportswear industry like Adidas and Victoria’s Secret. However, with the rise in social consciousness, these companies have found new avenues to market their products with ‘woke’ and ‘bold’ statements. Some have argued that the ad is rather exploitative as the brand has ‘co-opted’ organic movements like ‘Free the nipple’ campaigns. Moreover, by showing just the breasts, some argue that a part of a woman’s body that is often objectified and sexualized continues to be so. In a way, they argue, the ad ‘dehumanizes’ women further by taking the agency away from a woman to her breasts. BrandGuff, however, is unsure whether true body positivity awareness comes from such ‘bold’ advertising, and thus refrains from making a value judgment on the act itself. However, we do assert that Adidas, as a company, went forward with this ‘brave’ marketing more as a marketing gimmick hoping to capitalize on the ‘woke’ wave, rather than out of remorse for decades of body negativity they have forced on us.
