Branded!

I have lost track of the number of emails I receive that end with, “Sent from my iPhone” or something similar. I see countless people each day wearing clothing with the name or logo of a company, team, or college in large letters. Why do people feel the need to brand themselves? Why would people turn themselves into free advertisements?

Is this about showing off? Is this really saying, “Hey, look. I have this cool toy,” or “I can afford this expensive piece of clothing” or “I don’t give a damn about the price of gas!” Perhaps it is bragging about being included in something exclusive. Some middle schools have banned the wearing of bar and bat mitzvah clothing because it is really about demonstrating who is “in” and who is “out.” Someday, I am going to set up a little stand in front of our middle school and sell shirts that say, “I went to Alan Shepard’s bar mitzvah – and you didn’t!”

Some of this branding might be about social status. Let’s face it, the cool kids in school were often those who could afford the good stuff, be it clothing, electronics, cars, vacations or other status symbols. Superficial popular trends frequently center around celebrities and personality. So by imitating the “rich and famous” (or perhaps the popular and wealthy), a little of their social capital rubs off on their little clones. When we buy these popular products, we are getting far more than a purse or a car.

This could also be about identity. I sometimes wonder if there are people who are so empty that it they need to be filled up with consumer products. Who am I? I am the sum of things I own. Identity (or status) is siphoned off from these brands. So I am a little bit Cadillac, Bulls, Harvard, and Hollister. Aren’t I special?

But to be branded is to be owned. Who owns whom here? You paid a premium for that purse or SUV or phone that advertises a brand. Are you now an agent of that brand? You are certainly a human billboard. Perhaps you could have paid less for a comparable item but you chose to spend more for the label. Mr. Barnum would love you! I’ll bet the brands love you too!

Of course there is the intangible, “feeling” quality of the product. The product just makes me feel better and that is why it is worth more money. I know that logically, the shirt without the logo is more practical, but I like the shirt with the logo more. What does that sound like? It sounds like marketing and advertising work! It sounds like a cop-out rationalization for wasting money. You might as well say, “I know I am being manipulated, but I am okay with that.” Why?

Identities built on conspicuous materialism are not real. You are NOT what you own. The clothes do not make the person. The desire to define oneself, to individuate and discover one’s unique qualities is a human trait. To purchase these characteristics off the shelf is cheating. Identity must be created individually and authentically. It is better to have an organic identity and be real than to have a pre-processed brand and be plastic.