Failed Products
Levi’s Type 1 Jeans
A clothier, such as Levi Strauss, that has been around for 150 years is bound to have their share of hits and misses because fashion is terribly fickle and largely unpredictable. But this doesn’t mean you should ignore your target audience.
In late 2002, Levi Strauss began a massive marketing push to launch what was being touted as one of the company’s most significant launches in history, Type 1 Jeans. The line unnecessarily went to great lengths to accentuate all those signature design details already long-associated with Levi’s, such as the red tab logo, buttons, rivets, and the two-horse back patch. To accompany the launch, Levi Strauss spent $2 million on an artsy, misguided Super Bowl commercial that confused viewers. Going against common practice, they placed Type 1 in retailers with inconsistent prices, ranging from $30 at a retailer like JC Penney’s to over $100 at Barney’s, with no discernable difference in quality. Levi Strauss pulled the entire line after less than two years and Type 1 proved to be the proud clothier’s most spectacular flop.
How marketing can cause a product to fail? [Tata Nano Case Study] by DR VIKRAM VENKATESWARAN on MAY 30, 2012 | * -------------------------------------------------
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I have discussed in the past many good examples of marketing helped a product to succeed. Apple is the first brand that comes to mind when we talk about marketing. The communication and design of the products has led to its wide spread success and Apple becoming one of the most valuable companies in the world.
But what about marketing failures? For every Apple there are many products that fail due to bad marketing strategies. In this piece I would like to discuss one of them- The
A clothier, such as Levi Strauss, that has been around for 150 years is bound to have their share of hits and misses because fashion is terribly fickle and largely unpredictable. But this doesn’t mean you should ignore your target audience.
In late 2002, Levi Strauss began a massive marketing push to launch what was being touted as one of the company’s most significant launches in history, Type 1 Jeans. The line unnecessarily went to great lengths to accentuate all those signature design details already long-associated with Levi’s, such as the red tab logo, buttons, rivets, and the two-horse back patch. To accompany the launch, Levi Strauss spent $2 million on an artsy, misguided Super Bowl commercial that confused viewers. Going against common practice, they placed Type 1 in retailers with inconsistent prices, ranging from $30 at a retailer like JC Penney’s to over $100 at Barney’s, with no discernable difference in quality. Levi Strauss pulled the entire line after less than two years and Type 1 proved to be the proud clothier’s most spectacular flop.
How marketing can cause a product to fail? [Tata Nano Case Study] by DR VIKRAM VENKATESWARAN on MAY 30, 2012 | * -------------------------------------------------
* -------------------------------------------------
* -------------------------------------------------
* -------------------------------------------------
6
inShare * -------------------------------------------------
I have discussed in the past many good examples of marketing helped a product to succeed. Apple is the first brand that comes to mind when we talk about marketing. The communication and design of the products has led to its wide spread success and Apple becoming one of the most valuable companies in the world.
But what about marketing failures? For every Apple there are many products that fail due to bad marketing strategies. In this piece I would like to discuss one of them- The