Patriotic Pride Is in Style at the Olympics and Beyond
In a host city home to many of the world’s best hotels, restaurants, fashion houses and museums, the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics was destined to have a certain je ne sais quoi. What wasn’t expected was for the games to have so much rizz.
From celebrity-filled red-carpet events and iconic rappers rooting Team USA on from the stands to athletes taking to TikTok with a behind-the-scenes look at life in the Olympic Village, the Games have an overwhelmingly youthful and vibrant vibe.
More from Sourcing Journal
Fashion has a large role in Olympic hype this summer, including haul videos. On TikTok, U.S. swimmer Anna Peplowski has garnered more than 775,000 likes on her haul video showcasing the variety of Ralph Lauren, Skims, Nike and Oakley gear Team USA received. U.S. canoeist Evy Leibfarth’s fashion montage racked up 1.1 million likes. Many others filmed GRWM videos ahead of the open ceremony on the Seine.
“Olympic haul and GRWM videos perform well when they give fans a unique glimpse into life as an athlete in the Olympic village,” said Ed East, global CEO and co-founder of the global influencer marketing agency, Billion Dollar Boy. “It can help to break down boundaries between elite sportsmen and women and the average consumer, busting myths and creating a sense of exclusivity through sneak peek or behind-closed-doors previews.”
The Olympics bode well for business. According to Euromonitor International experts, the Olympics is expected to “go swimmingly” for the fashion, luxury, health and drinks industry boosting sales across the board.
“The very fact that the 2024 Olympics will be taking place in one of the world’s luxury and fashion capitals has gone a long way to inspire teams and fashion brands to come together and be more thoughtful about the outfits the athletes will wear,” said Fflur Roberts, head of luxury goods at Euromonitor International.
While collaborations and partnerships between fashion brands and Olympic teams are not new, social media keeps them in the spotlight.
“When the Olympics were just on TV, they were a unifying source of entertainment, everyone tuning in together to watch major events and commercials at the same time. Now, with social media and streaming content, we’re consuming the Games in different ways and at different times, and brands need to get more creative in how they show up and get in front of the right audiences—especially when there’s so much noise around the Olympics,” East said.
Billion Dollar Boy has supported Nike in producing an “Olympics Playbook” to be distributed to the brand’s Olympic athletes to educate and inspire them to create content at the Games. East said the playbook is an “interactive mobile document” allowing athletes to easily navigate and further explore various elements such as platform tips and best practices.
More attention is being paid to what athletes are wearing outside of the competition this Olympics and how they reflect current trends.
“Nothing says Americana more than denim—and for both Team USA’s opening and closing ceremony looks, denim is a key driver,” Kendall Becker, Trendalytics fashion director, said about the Ralph Lauren designs. “Overall, this feels very aligned with consumers’ current infatuation with denim—in the market, we’re seeing denim pieces range from swimwear to matching sets and are expected exciting updates to revitalize interest once fall officially kicks off.”
“Brands need to think laterally and find unique entry points to the Olympics narrative,” East said. “With so many companies with a presence in Paris, more brands are getting involved with parts of the Games that aren’t as front and center. Some are giving products to Olympics support staff, hosting pop-ups or holding giveaways. Others are leaning into cultural conversations that are happening on social media.”
Traditionally, East said official Olympic sponsors gain the most visibility by making uniforms for countries’ teams or sponsoring the Games as a whole. “However, there are several unofficial sponsors that have managed to gain eyeballs on their brand through creative means, in a way that costs less but resonates with and reaches key audiences,” he said.
In the past, members of Team USA’s medical team had to provide their gear, but this year, Figs, a direct-to-consumer scrubs brand, decided to break with tradition and made a splash by outfitting the team’s health care professionals at the 2024 and 2028 Games. “The collection is now also available online to open up accessibility, including scrubs in Team USA colors, as well as accessories such as a stethoscope and compression socks,” East said.
Meanwhile, beauty brands stepped up their game. K18 has a campaign with six-time Olympic gold medalist gymnast Simone Biles and Glossier has a partnership with the USA women’s basketball team. East added that Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty provided Olympic volunteers makeup kits and tutorials.
“While the Games are a great marketing opportunity for the key global players in luxury and fashion to show their support and capabilities, such partnerships are even better news for smaller niche fashion brands who have now been given the chance to participate in the Olympics and support their local teams,” Roberts added.
Euromonitor reported that sportswear is set to benefit from the worldwide television audience and sponsorships with a forecast global growth of 4 percent in 2024 versus 2 percent for overall apparel and footwear.
Marguerite Le Rolland, head of apparel and footwear at Euromonitor International, said women’s sportswear is especially poised to see gains because, for the first time in Olympic history, the Games will achieve full gender parity with women athletes having as many places as male athletes.
“Many sportswear players are actively targeting women, traditionally less well served than men. Attendance, viewership and fan engagement are on the rise and sponsoring women athletes and teams is seen as the easy way in for brands as we are seeing with women’s football,” she said.
Fan gear
Spectators and fans are showing their support by wearing U.S. merch as well.
First Lady Jill Biden wore a full Ralph Lauren look to watch the men’s gymnastics team. Kendall Jenner stepped out in a Ralph Lauren jacket and hat, and internet personality Emma Chamberlain sported a patriotic tenniscore outfit by the American designer while in Paris.
Ralph Lauren has witnessed an engagement increase on TikTok of 91 percent over the past month, Becker reported. Similarly, she said the number of posts mentioning Ralph Lauren on TikTok has increased by 255 percent. Becker added that Chamberlain has been a “significant driver of engagement for the brand during the Olympics” as her posts during the Paris Olympics so far has accounted for nearly 20 percent of all engagement with the brand over the past month.
Back home, brands and retailers are capturing the competitive mood with Team USA apparel and accessories. Pacsun dropped an expansive collection of Olympic gear in June. Meghan Dressel, the wife of eight-time Olympic gold medalist swimmer Caeleb Dressel, cheered on his victory alongside Snoop Dogg wearing the brand’s Team USA Rings tube top.
Gap’s line of Team USA polo shirts, rugby shirts, anoraks, tees and hoodies tap into demand for vintage-inspired fashion and Old Navy—famous for American flag T-shirts—got into the spirit with a range of IOC Heritage Olympic tops for men, women and children.
Olympics sponsor Skims is seeing success with its Team USA collection, with 10 percent of items reaching a majority SKU sell out since landing over the past month, EDITED reported.
“Retailers in the mass market are capitalizing on the hype surrounding the Olympics, with the volume of new in USA-themed apparel and accessories skyrocketing 196 percent year-over-year the past three months,” said Krista Corrigan, a retail analyst at EDITED.
Demand from consumers has also ramped up over the summer. Despite sale events and early Fourth of July shopping in June, Corrigan said sell outs grew 12 percent in July month-over-month as the Olympics carried momentum into July. Throwback designs, she added, are especially performing well.
Becker said nostalgia is front and center across the Olympics. “This is true in both consumer collections and the kits that are provided to the athletes from brands like J. Lindberg and Nike. We’ve seen nylon windbreakers and loose-fitting track pants, sweaters, rugby tops, and crewnecks with vintage-like graphics from Abercrombie & Fitch, J.Crew, Lacoste, and Kith,” she said.
Staying power
The Olympics end on Aug. 11 but U.S. consumers are destined to see more American flags in fashion this year.
The motif fits into an array of millennial and Gen Z aesthetics including coastal, tennis and preppy as well as western trends. The flag has been a fixture in Beyoncé’s designer “Americancore” wardrobe since launching “Cowboy Carter” in March and in her “YA YA” promotional video for the Games.
Becker said from May to July this year, searches for “USA T Shirt” increased by 460 percent and continue to grow. She noted that how the spike far exceeds the typical summer peak, when searches for this product typically rise and fall by only 80-100 percent. Searches for “American Flag T-Shirt” have spiked, as well. “Google searches for this product have increased by roughly 130 percent compared to this past spring,” she said.
“It’s more apparent than ever that preppy and Americana trends, already popular among consumers, are bolstering sales for patriotic-themed merchandise in the U.S.,” Corrigan said. “Shoppers are snatching-up knitwear with American Flag graphics from brands like Free People and Hollister. Graphic and slogan tees are also moving well across the board, accounting for one-third of sell outs over the past three months.”
Expressions of patriotism may also weigh on the minds of consumers as they prepare to hit the voting booths in November. Designers traditionally roll out voting-themed merch and initiatives to promote voter turnout in the lead up to U.S. presidential elections.
“After a stint of (both mental and physical) escapism, attention is crucially turned back to the state of the USA with the election in just a few months. As a society, we’re digging back into our roots to rally together for a better future for us all and support is both shown through making your way to the polls as it is sporting patriotic gear,” Becker said.
Solve the daily Crossword
