Bold Moves | Strategy in Perspective How the Hillary Clinton Campaign Built a Winning Merchandising Strategy The GOP has never been terribly popular with the designer community, so perhaps it’s no wonder that democratic candidate Hillary Clinton had little trouble getting some top fashion designers to contribute to her campaign merchandising strategy. The site at shop.hillaryclinton.com offers a host of stylish products designed to elevate traditional campaign junk and make it actually fashionable, fulfilling its ultimate purpose of pushing Clinton’s message and directly a younger (read Millenial) voter demographic. Let’s face it, lawn signs and bumper stickers are so plebian. {{ Like the candidate herself, the shop pushes all the buttons – literally. }} Billed as “Limited edition pieces to help you complete your fall look – and help you make history,” the Hillary Clinton shop boasts pieces from such marquee designers as Diane von Furstenberg, Marc Jacobs, Tory Burch, Jason Wu, Joseph Altuzarra, and Public School’s Dao-Yi Chow and Maxwell Osborne. The Clinton campaign called on its famous friends to design a series of limited edition t-shirts. At top, Joseph Altuzzara’s take on the campaign’s branding; below, Diane von Furstenberg makes her proclamation. Like the candidate herself, the shop pushes all the buttons – literally. There are buttons reading “Asian Americans for Hillary”, “Pacific Islanders for Hillary”, and our personal favorite, the “Never, Ever Trump Set”: three pins depicting her rival as impudent little boy: one in which he has a tantrum, another where he loses his money, and where he is stealing a bag of money. The campaign’s team, as if to answer the same skeptics who attacked Trump for manufacturing his products in China, added in its FAQ that, “We take great pride in that 100% of our products are made in the United States, without exception.” The online store includes some novel takes on campaign buttons, including this whimsical set of cartoon art designed to portray Trump as a child. Looking for something to accent the home? How about a crewel-embroidered pillow that reads “A Woman’s Place is in the White House,” which the site suggests is “the perfect touch for any home, whether it’s 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue or simply Pennsylvania.” Maybe what you really need is a notebook with gilded stamping reading, “Madam President.” What woman wouldn’t want to be addressed as such? Then there’s the now classic “Woman Card,” the perfect way for anyone who check’s the female box to casually flash their support with the flick of a wallet– or for the man seeking to cheekily play his own woman card. A selection of home goods are also on offer, including a needlepoint pillow and a blank leather notebook emblazoned with “Madam President.” One will be hard-pressed to find such unique merchandise on GOP candidate Donald Trump’s shop, which features a plethora of dull, standard-issue Republican swag with campaign mottos and the candidate’s logo. Remarkably, the Trump team did think to include “infants” as an apparel category. After all, we all know that babies make great billboards and that candidates love to kiss babies. Now if only his campaign had thought of making a “Mexicans for Trump” Onesie. Related posts:Why Retailers Aren't Prepared for the Chinese Tourist -- And How They Can BeLife After Oprah | Daytime Talk and the Cult of PersonalityThe Menswear Chronicles: How Authentic is Authentic?Voyage en Bleu: A Shopper's Journey in Provence Leave a Reply Click here to cancel reply. You must be logged in to post a comment.