Fast fashion brands have an identity problem

It’s hard to tell most fashion brands apart.

I’m not talking about luxury fashion or affordable brands with a distinct aesthetic, like Uniqlo or COS. I mean middle-of-the-road fast fashion, where the product is—let’s be blunt—pretty homogenous.

If you took a dozen of these brands, stripped away their names and laid out their ads side by side, could you really tell which is which? It’s not because their products lack diversity; that's par for the course in any industry, whether you’re selling cars, smartphones or baked beans. Yet it’s still easy for consumers to spot the difference between Audi and Ford, Samsung and Apple or Heinz and Hunts.

So, why are fashion brands all so similar?

The clue is in the name: fashion. The industry is so obsessed with novelty, trends and refreshed aesthetics that many brands have failed to build identities that go beyond the new.

The difficulty in cultivating a consistent brand identity when your whole raison d’être is newness is a common dilemma—but it’s also a missed opportunity. When every brand follows the same formula, those that spend time creating a language and world conveying timeless style will win.

Find your story

Fast fashion brands need to understand what sets them apart—that special something that'll hook people and make them think, "I need this in my life."

This could be based on a personality. Look at Skims, Kim Kardashian’s shapewear brand. Its campaign is set in outer space and features Kardashian as Skims’ chief engineer who, with her "klones," rigorously tests every product. Purchasing from Skims becomes more than buying underwear; it's about buying into the idea of Kardashian herself personally ensuring every piece has the stretch, comfort and smoothness to give customers the perfect fit.

Brands could also look to social trends which, less ephemeral than clothing trends, have the power to make people care. Harris Reed, head designer at Nina Ricci, is the embodiment of this approach. He’s known for a fluid aesthetic that blurs the lines between what men, women and non-binary people wear—so much so that he’s driven the gender expression conversation into the mainstream, and is now curating an exhibit at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.

Or build a brand around innovation or location. Outerwear brand Rains does both: It elevates its Danish heritage to strengthen its functional design credibility, but also highlights its patents for innovative fabrics known for their durability.  

Sharpening your brand’s story will feed into consumers’ decision to buy your plain white tee over another brand’s.

Be consistent, but with room to play

Once you know what your brand stands for, create assets that will help people associate you with that. These must transcend mere clothing displays to encapsulate a vibe that connects with your target audience on a deeper level. This is where true brand resonance is born.

Every element—logos, colors, language—plays a crucial role. Creative should be distinctive and consistent. It's all about striking a balance between uniformity and adaptability. It might be an accent here, or a ticker tape there, but it’s always in service of what the brand needs it to do.

Take a page from Depop's playbook, which has harnessed the power of the color red in various guises, maintaining a cohesive visual identity while allowing for creative expression.

Gucci also does this well. Its iconic double-G logo and green-red-green stripe motif are instantly recognizable but reimagined each season to work with the current collection. From Alessandro Michele's eclectic and maximalist designs to collaborations with artists and celebrities like Dapper Dan and Harry Styles, Gucci maintains its heritage while staying at the forefront of fashion.

Make braver ads

Fashion brands that are brave enough to go beyond traditional ad formats to create a tonality, mood and vibe that runs throughout all their communications capture people’s attention. They’re more interesting, because they’re not boxed in by having to announce this price point, that sale or those new jean styles. 

It's difficult for fashion brands to take product out of the foreground in their ads. Product needs to be there, but there is an opportunity to complement it with a more adventurous approach to narrative.

Take director Spike Jonze’s ad for Kenzo World perfume. It perfectly conveyed a quirk and attitude that is uniquely Kenzo—and that people want to be a part of.

It's an approach that Calvin Klein has recently returned to. Recent ads have not been used as posters for underwear, but to sell its unique balance of “heroics and sleaze,” which it became famous for in the ‘90s. And it’s working—that Jeremy Allen White ad is still one of the most talked-about of 2024.

It takes time and skill to develop the right strategy, craft the best assets and deploy them in the correct way. It takes even more time for them to become recognizable and effective.

But in the fast fashion world, there is a significant opportunity for brands that make that investment to stand out. It’s a marriage of design and communication that goes beyond a formulaic quest for the new to create an enduringly beautiful, stylish and commercially potent identity.

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Annabel Engels is managing director at Mother Design.