Thursday, January 17, 2013

JGIC Product Review: The Name Game

A big "thanks!" to J.Crew Guy In Canada who is graciously reviewing Men's items from J.Crew with us. In this review, he tackles the naming of J.Crew products.
Everyone has most likely heard or sung the song; it's part of pop culture.  And our friends over at J.Crew really seem to enjoy putting their own spin on it.  From clothing to colours it's all fair game.  I really think J.Crew is onto something.  Giving a recognizable and memorable name to an item to makes it more popular, at least around here on the blog circuit.  From the Ludlow to the Bowery to the 484, all names that have worked and are easy to call to mind.

But sometimes the names seem slightly off or just a little odd.  Plaited sweater, hmm what's that all about?  Wouldn't cotton casual sweater or everyday sweater work better for a guy.  Do you think the average guy knows what plaited is?  Maybe plaited works and the naming team is educating us.  The the Halyard striped hoodie, granted J.Crew is preppy, but how many of you knew it referred to sailing and knots?  Wallace and Barnes is a mind field of interesting handles, the sawtooth parka, the Sinclair sweatshirt and the Kilworth shirt.

Don't get me wrong J.Crew does truly nail it with some of it's labels like sunwashed fleece or tie-dye indigo, two of my favorite names.  And the men's side isn't the only one having fun.  Hacking jacket, okay I won't comment on this name it's too easy.  Lady jacket and the Memo dress, can the email shirt be far off?  Colours are some of the best names, favorites that come to mind are vintage barn red, stormy sea blue and melted caramel.

If I listed all of the names this post would be far too long and it would give you nothing to comment on.  So which ones do you think are the best, most memorable or just plain bad?
"Thanks!" again to J.Crew Guy In Canada for his take on J.Crew! Some of the names that J.Crew gives their products are truly memorable like the Icon Trench. I am also a big fan of the way they name their shades of colors (like "Authentic Red" and "Vintage Berry").

My main concern with J.Crew's marketing team is with some of the descriptions for the items. Sometimes you are not sure what you are reading. (How many times have we heard the phrase "Copywriter from Space" on this blog from fellow JCAs???) ;)

What are your thoughts on this post? Do you have any pieces that you love or question the naming of? If so, please share with us your story. :)

5 comments:

  1. Their jacket names are fun, memorable and a brilliant idea for items that are re-produced every year. I know Schoolboys aren't friendly with my shape and to steer myself toward the Hacking and that Oxfords, Lexingtons and Bellas are practically the holy grail ofjackets round these parts. lol. With each of these names, the image of the jacket pops into my head. This is exactly what JC is going for. That connection to the names.

    I absolutely love their color names even if they occasionally baffle and boggle the mind. Flax Fennel Dusk? Nectar is a weird orange-y yellow. Modern Red is orange. Really!? I went through three different bright green Tippis; vintage kelly, succulent green and kelly green before I stuck with kelly green. Color names make it easier to remember which color works for you and which to steer clear of, that is when they actually keep the color constant. But that's another conversation altogether

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  2. Does this gentleman know that J.Crew didn't invent the hacking jacket or its name? It's equestrian. Google it, bb.

    And while you're at it, read this to learn more about the rhyme and reason behind their product names.

    http://marginamia.blogspot.com/2011/08/names-of-j-crew.html

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  3. I like their fun colors and names for styles, other clothing brands do it too and it does make the pieces seem more unique to JCrew instead of just "velvet jacket" or "cotton skirt". It is frustrating when they do seem to label a color with a title that really isn't that color, for example, the Retro Jade in this fall and winter line up is very much s turquoise. Jade is a much truer green color, their color Vivid Jade from the same lineup looked much more like a Jade color but why the confusing names for two very different colors?

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  4. Wow Max, it was never mentioned that J.Crew invented the hacking jacket. This post was poking fun at the brand, so don't take it too seriously :/

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  5. My gripe with the catalog descriptions is that a great many sweaters of varying lengths are all described as "hits at hip". It isn't very helpful or descriptive.

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