Dockers wants young men to “wear the pants.” That’s the central message of the brand’s new campaign from Draft FCB’s San Francisco office.
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According to Stuart Elliott of The New York Times, masculine messaging is in.
The tone — half serious, half kidding, both sending up and saluting truisms about masculinity — is one that has been heard in several campaigns lately that are aimed at younger men.
For example, ads describe Mitchum deodorant as the brand “for men who like their antiperspirant the way they like their coffee — strong and under $5.” Ads for Camel Snus, a smokeless tobacco product, assert, “Be heard not herded.”
The “Dockers brand of masculinity is less about ‘Don’t eat quiche’ and more about being chivalrous and mature,” said Desmond LaVelle, senior vice president and creative director at Draft FCB San Francisco.
In other words, tough times call for real pants.