No one is more excited about the arrival of Calvin Klein on our shores than us. Next week the official launch of the first Calvin Klein stand-alone store takes place at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town. In the wake of all the publicity surrounding the store launch, we decided to look back at the major influence that has made Calvin Klein the household brand we have come to know. Not only did Calvin Klein transform the way we would look at simple denim jeans and underwear but he also changed the way advertising would be used to sell fashion.
The impact of his marketing led Time magazine to declare Klein one of the twenty-five most influencial Americans of the mid-90s. The early Calvin Klein ad campaigns of the early 70s had been unspectacular, but the ground-breaking series of commercials, directed by Vogue stalwart Richard Avendon, featuring the fifteen-year old actress Brooke Shields changed the way fashion would be advertised from that point onwards.
Shields had just starred as a teen prostitute in the 1978 movie 'Pretty Baby' and her public persona had been associated with that role. In the ads Shields posed provocatively and declared: "You know what comes between me and my Calvins? Nothing." The suggestion of underage sexuality in these ads provoked a flood of complaints and the three major television networks refused to air them. Klein was unperturbed. The controversy only fueled sales and, at the height of the campaign, two million pairs of jeans were selling per month.
And it certainly didn't end there. Back in the early 80s Calvin Klein made another bold move, stepping into an industry that, up to that point, had been dominated by cheap garments focussed solely on comfort and hygiene. This move would shape the men's underwear industry into what it is today - sexualised, brand-led and concentrating on premium quality. Again it was an ad campaign (featuring pole vaulter Tom Hintaus' physique and the lens of Bruce Weber) that did the trick, converting men's underwear into a fashion garment to show off. It was a big gamble but the soaring sales showed that it definitely paid off. Calvin Klein underwear quickly became the biggest selling underwear in the world - and remains so.
The ads kept coming. From the highly sexualised Marky Mark and Kate Moss campaign in the 90s to a campaign that caused such outrage, it was targeted by the US Family Association and even Bill Clinton.
The 1995 ad campaign that caused all the drama was shot by Steve Meisel in the style of 70s pornographic audition pics, seemingly photographed in a dingy, wood-paneled basement (further adding to the effect). It featured models that looked as if they were definitely the wrong side of 18. An investigation by the Justice Department was eventually dropped only when it was proved that all the models were indeed adults. But this time the backlash was too severe - just as numerous magazines had already done, Calvin Klein pulled the ads from circulation.
So while we wait for the next groundbreaking Calvin Klein ad campaign, we can now purchase Calvin Klein in SA. The new V&A store will carry men's and women's Calvin Klein sportswear, Calvin Klein Jeans and underwear product as well as licensed Calvin Klein accessories, watches, sunglasses, jewelry and fragrances.
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