Benetton (1982–2000)
Benetton is an Italian clothing retailer based in Ponzano, Veneto, Italy. The name comes from the Benetton family who founded the company in 1965. A lot of the advertising for Benetton has been very outstanding and shocking. The designer Oliviero Toscani has been designing advertisements for Benetton for over 18 years and has been responsible for designing some of the most outrageous ones to date. Since about the 1980’s Benetton has produced some of the most talked about and controversial advertisements which have been successful in making the brand known worldwide.
Many of the advertisements for Benetton covers very controversial topics such as; racism, social topics (i.e. war, HIV and immigration) which back in earlier years, weren’t as openly spoken about — which was why they were very head turning and unexpected for a lot of people. These were also helpful in informing people about these matters as well though which was an ultimate reason why they were so successful as it was almost as if they were taking more pride in spreading awareness about these social matters rather than promoting their brand which I think is very admirable. But this method of advertising I think is also very clever as this still brought a lot of attention and publicity to the brand but they were also able to convey an important message.
Each article Benetton produced was effective in drawing peoples attention as they were so shocking and unexpected, which made people want to find out more about the company. The advertisements have no correlation to the company being a clothing store which I find quite unusual but also quite intreguing and makes the company stand out to me.
Benetton have been producing bright and contrasting clothing for decades. I find it admirable that they have used a mixture of people from different genders, ages and ethnicities — which further reinforces that they stand for equality and peace.
The green ‘United Colors of Benetton’ logo is now known worldwide. The ‘united colors’ part of the logo is also very effective as it not only conveys the bright coloured clothing Benetton is well-known for, but it also represents how the social matters explored in their advertising helps to bring people together and to unite people instead of causing disruption and divide. The green used in the logo I think is also very effective as it stands out well from the image used in the advertisement but also has connotations of harmony and safety.
