By
Gender Fluidity – Is it just a trend in stores?
River Island celebrated their 30-year anniversary with a positive campaign around the idea of rebelling against labels. Accurately titled ‘Labels are for clothes’; the campaign raised the voices of diverse individuals which celebrated their identities as humans and not their gender. Alongside the campaign, River Island teamed up with Anti-Bullying charity ‘Ditch the Label’ and for every purchase of their Ditch the Label range, £3 would be donated to the charity.
A big campaign with a big message but are River Island just following the social trends they see online through millennials? Or is it all for the greater good? The facts are that millennials have a willingness to defy labels and the gender spectrum is no different, in 2017 a survey by GLAAD found that more than one in ten (12% of millennials) identify as gender non-conforming which translates as not identifying with their assigned sex at birth. By embracing that stereotypes have become quite insulting and by appealing to their audience i.e. the millennials and gen z’s, River Island have created exactly the right campaign.
Featuring tongue in cheek humour on each care label within the campaign urging people to rebel against labelling and leaving the labels for the clothes. Although the images display a free and less restrictive way of shopping, the store itself doesn’t seem to be following this ideology of a freer and less restrictive shopping environment. Inside River Island, the mannequins displayed are still separated by their gender and similarly within store with their separate floors for gender. People that identify as gender-fluid/non-binary are said to not have a constant gender so why would a brand campaign that is trying to promote this not represent the same within its stores?
The questions that could be asked are – would it make millennial shoppers feel more comfortable within a cohesive store environment? Would the sales increase as more people are able to buy without feeling influenced by gender? Maybe mirroring campaigns within the retail environment is something to consider for the future of their retail stores.
Words and research by Chelsea Kemp