Timberland and the Power of the Black Dollar
Timberland and Hip-Hop have been synonymous since the early ’90s. Multiple rap artists have mentioned the brand in their lyrics, and do we even have to mention Timbaland? But The Timberland Company is now losing its foothold in the Hip-Hop community and it’s costing them big money.
Timberland began with Nathan Swartz in 1955. Swartz had bought The Abington Shoe Company in Boston and began focusing on creating the first waterproof leather boots. He named his new creation “Timberland” and introduced the boots to the public. They became so incredibly popular that the company name was officially changed to The Timberland Company in 1973.
The early ’90s saw Timberland’s rise among the East Coast urban youth. Timbos were the official footwear there and over time the rest of the country caught on. Timberland stock rose to its highest in 20 years in 1993 and the company began expanding, launching backpacks and watches and other items. They became active in community service by creating urban youth groups in Boston. Rappers started giving shot outs to Timberland and eventually it became the height of urban fashion to rock Tims. The Timberland Company had found its niche in the Hip-Hop market and they celebrated this with the slogan of one of their ad campaigns: Give Racism the Boot.
Consumers tend to be fickle though. By 2006, Timberland was beginning to fall out of favor as urban customers moved on to other brands. Timberland’s Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer both resigned as profits fell. 2007 found Timberland desperately trying to hold on to its Hip-Hop image. They launched the Limited Edition Boroughs boots that year, and debuted the RZA-designed Staten Island boot. Daryl McDaniels was invited as a special guest to the Boroughs Boots launch party. It was obvious that Timberland was trying hard to hold on to its largest consumer base.
In the September 2008 edition of Fast Company, Timberland CEO Jeff Swartz admits that his company has been hit hard by the decline of sales in the urban market. After being asked how he feels about the loss of the Hip-Hop consumer he states, “I have a tremendous sense of regret… $150 million of revenue lost in a company our size is consequential from a shareholder perspective.”
The company that was once carried by the Hip-Hop community is now focusing on building its brand in overseas markets. They may try in the future to once again capture the attention of urban Americans, but for now they are admitting defeat and moving on to other areas. Timberland should be a lesson to all brands that rely on sales in the urban community - the Black Dollar is more powerful than it seems.
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