XOXO turns (mostly male) heads
So, reading The Cut today, I learned that the XOXO store on 38th and Fifth in NYC has become something like the girl at school with low self-esteem who figures that wearing skimpy clothes and exposing herself will make people like her.
Unfortunately, XOXO forgot that while this DOES make the boys like you (for all the “wrong” reasons), it only makes the girls (XOXO’s target demographic) more apt to dislike you, be jealous of you, or talk about you behind your back. Check the video and article here. Oh, and LOL at the CNN correspondent actually getting in the window to interview the models.
While I’m not totally offended by the idea, I do think its a bad business move for XOXO, especially since I don’t always believe that any type of controversy/press = good press. For one, live women undressing in a window automatically evokes the idea of prostitutes, and as a JUNIORS (read: under 18) brand of clothing, something about that doesn’t mesh. Also, I think the crowd of oogling men making lewd comments/gestures will make girls uncomfortable rather than excited to check out the clothing in the window. Unless XOXO is actually trying to target underage exhibitionists.
The report has some funny moments though, and more than just a marketing strategy, the display unintentionally becomes a kind of performance art piece as well. The fact that one dude can’t even comprehend why an attractive model would want to tune him out (assuming that it MUST be because of a one-sided window trick) exposes a lot about how men perceive/objectify women and feel entitled to some kind of a response to their harassment. According to XOXO’s creative director, Carol Powley, the men “can’t conceptualize that the women are ignoring them.” The stunt reminds me vaguely of Couple in the Cage, and while its much less extreme, it definitely brings up some interesting social observations.
Anyways, I’ll be surprised if the display lasts its scheduled 10 days, since it’s wayyy more racy than Eva Mendes’ controversial CK ad in SoHo and its right across the street from holiday-themed displays that are frequented by families. I’m sure conservative old ladies dressed in black (like the dissenter in the video) and Christian groups will find away to get the display replaced with something way more boring and family-friendly.
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Tags: eva mendes, models, nyc, performance art, window display, xoxo
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