FCUK Campaign Analysis

Source: Web Article

URL: http://www.creativereview.co.uk/back-issues/creative-review/2010/april-2010/crit-french-connection
Title: The Rebirth of French Connection
Author: Patrick Burgoyne
Year: 2010
References: 
Creativereview.co.uk.
Creative Review - The rebirth of French Connection

In-text: (Creativereview.co.uk, 2014)

Bibliography: Creativereview.co.uk. 2014. Creative Review - The rebirth of French Connection. [online] Available at: http://www.creativereview.co.uk/back-issues/creative-review/2010/april-2010/crit-french-connection [Accessed: 7 Jan 2014].

Quote:

"While French Connection’s FCUK campaign of the late 90s cemented Trevor Beattie’s reputation and shifted a lot of gear, wise old heads wondered what the long-term impact on the brand might be. The shock tactics and naughty wordplay burned bright, but once the joke wore thin, so did customers’ appetite for the retailer. Of course other factors come into play in the success or otherwise of a high street chain but French Connection has endured a period of some decline since."

The FCUK campaign used by French Connection was adopted in 1997, although the acronym was used on administrative memos and documents prior to this. It involved incorporating the term FCUK throughout advertising campaigns and eventually printed on tshirts. The campaign was intended to be tongue-in-cheek and anti-establishment, based on what clothing stores wouldn't usually do in their advertising. Captions included;

"cool as fcuk"

"fcuk fashion"

The campaign was controversial and sparked a press frenzy with each new advert. Trevor Beattie, creator of the campaign, played down the controversy saying;

"FCUK is an advertising idea which became a brand. The T-shirts have got us into more trouble than the advertising in terms of press coverage. Yet I never saw the advertising as offensive. When you think of what else is happening in the world it puts it all into perspective - it really isn't that important. But the facts speak for themselves: we used it in advertising; the ASA put us in the sin bin; we came out; we sinned again; we went back in"

Reference

Carter, M.

What the FCUK ads are about

In-text: (Carter, 2004)

Bibliography: Carter, M. 2004. What the FCUK ads are about. [online] Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/media/2004/sep/13/mondaymediasection1 [Accessed: 7 Jan 2014].

Despite the controversy and offensive nature of the campaign, the adverts and tshirts got people talking about French Connection. They broke the rules of conventional fashion advertising and redefined how graphic design was used in fashion. The aftermath of the campaign served French Connection with an undesireable association with "lad" behaviour and an unsophisticated tone across the entire brand. The FCUK campaign was intended, as Beattie defended, as a one off idea yet became a brand in itself. 

Following on from the campaign, French Connection had to work hard to distance themselves from the reputation they had inadvertently created. Future advertising had a chic and minimal aesthetic and incorporation of humorous copy.