H&M

H & M

• H & M is a Swedish company
• In 43 countries and as of 2013 they employed around 104,000 people.
• The first store that was opened in Sweden was in 1947
• By the end of 2011 all over the world there were 2,629 stores
• By 2012 they have partnered the company with Zara & Gap

The company founder Erling Persson travelled in 1946 in the United States and came up with a business idea to offer fashionable clothing at a great price.  They called it at first, Hennes that means it is Swedish for Her.  By 1968 the company introduced menswear and so they had to change the name to ‘For Her & For Him’.  In 1998 the company succeeded the initials H M to buy as an internet domain so it became H & M.

It is a completely different company to what it was then; it was all about other designers that got to bring their clothes into that company and sell them and the way they do their photo shoots are very good and I do like them; they are very simple and clean, not controversial, no story, it is just advertising clothes and that is it.  

The company founder Erling Persson

Image A – is a very clean simple shot of a model wearing a green jacket and that is it, there is nothing else.

Image B – I think is the worst advertising photo shoot picture I have ever seen; I think it is really lazy; it doesn’t show anything other than a load of colours blurring together in a mirrored fashion; anyone who knows about photo shop can tell this, if someone didn’t know about photo shop they would probably find it interesting.

H & M also introduce celebrities in their work but not to the extent were they have to use celebrities to sell their stuff; they use celebrities now and then to spice it up a bit.

Image C & D – are both images of Beyoncé and I think for woman Beyoncé is a really powerful and respectable role model for a lot of woman; if you see Beyoncé in a really nice bikini you would be encouraged to get it and get it for a reasonable cost.  They use celebrities in a far more healthy way compared to everyone else.  

Also with Beyoncé is very well known for having a curvy body and she supports woman shouldn’t be skinny and constantly toned all the time and that it is ok to be curvy so choosing celebrities in a positive way such as this gives you more respect for the Company.

Also for photo shop and fashion shoots they are very simple

Image E – the clothes are very simple and very stylish, very on trend; they have not a dull but quite a normal background; the photo could have been taken in anywhere, the background is not important, the face, the hair or if she is skinny, the main focus is about the clothes.

Image F – I think this is more of a step up to what H & M can do, it is very basic but effective, it is more of a fantasy kind of background.  Also in every shoot they do they have the title of the dress and the price underneath so people know the cost and that it is reasonable.  So when you see a very creative photo shoot and professionally edited you believe the garment to look lovely on the model and in the atmosphere created and it makes you want to buy it.

Image G – this is where the alien models come into it; H & M are very good at presenting themselves but they also have to shower the higher markets they sell.  Straight away you can see it’s all changed now, the models are skinny, it is black and white, you hardly see much about the garment, it is more about the face; you see a whole new, different atmosphere with this.  The shoot says a lot in that you look at the garment but can’t really see it that much; you focus on the faces in the picture.

Image H – is a step up again; Versace is a high expensive fashion label.  It shows a different range going from average affordable clothes, going upmarket to more expensive designer clothes to very high end expensive clothing such as Versace suits.  It has the mix of different varieties of fashion design.

OVERALL

I do like H & M; I think the history is very interesting in how it has been formed.  I also like to know there is a company I would work for who have a good respectable outlook and that they care for other companies as well.  H & M ticks all of those boxes, they are very good in what they believe in, they try to be ethical and seem to be a good company to work for and I believe it would make you feel proud to work for a company like that.

The reason why I do not want to work for them and have not chosen them is because they don’t push boundaries; I can’t even say that I would work for them and push the boundaries as they don’t seem to be a company that want to change things.

I want to be in a work environment where you can evolve yourself and the company.  My interest goes more towards Vivienne Westwood as I think there is a lot to improve in that company and even if this is just the print designer job role I don’t think you should go for the big names in fashion as I don’t think this is the way to look at things; pick one of the fashion designers that inspire you and look at what needs to be improved and I feel there is a lot to be improved in Vivienne Westwood not just in print but that she needs an update in what she is doing.   I think people in fashion will come together to solve that and I want to be one of the people to get stuck into it all.  However, I feel that H & M is not a company where I can practice those beliefs.