Still from SKIMS campaign video.
When Kim Kardashian released the initial campaign for her line of nude shapewear under the name “Kimono” – which she tried to trademark – people were outraged. As the mayor of Kyoto pointed out in an open letter to the reality-star-turned-designer, she was stealing the name of a traditional Japanese garment to repurpose it for something completely unrelated because it sounded like her name. Even though she changed the name of the line to another play on Kim, SKIMS,” the marketing is somehow less sensitive. In an Instagram Story yesterday, Kardashian had ex-convict Alice Johnson compare her “freedom” from prison to the “freedom” to be able to wear whatever she wants thanks to Kim Kardashian and SKIMS respectively.
While Kardashian spearheaded the legal campaign to free Johnson from a life sentence for a first-time non-violent drug conviction—even visiting the White House to obtain a presidential pardon—there is something deeply awkward about the segue between the injustice of America’s prison system to streamlining undergarments. Yes, you can use the word “freedom” to describe both experiences, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that you should.
“Being able to open up the door whenever I want to and just walk outside and breathing in fresh air, to breathe in freedom, that is precious to me,” Johnson says in the SKIMS video, describing life outside prison. “This shapewear makes me feel that I can walk into the store, I can pick up something that I normally wouldn’t even think about wearing and I can put it on and it is going to look great on me. This shapewear makes me feel free,” she adds directly after.
Aside from the uncomfortable comparison, there is the question of using someone that you freed from prison as a spokesmodel to move products. Johnson should be free to pursue a modelling career if she so wishes, but it feels exploitative to have someone who will probably feel forever indebted to you to sell Yeezy-inspired spanx.
There is definitely pressure on companies to be “woke” and even more pressure on companies who have messed up in the past to make up for it by standing for something that people can get behind, but sometimes you can just sell a product without championing a social justice cause. And let’s face it, shapewear—even if you call it “solutionwear”— is not the most progressive product. At its best, it can help provide undergarment support that works with the lines of the visible outfit; at its worst, it can promote unrealistic body standards or lead to embarrassing dating moments a la Bridget Jones. The inclusivity of SKIM’s original campaign imagery was great; reminding everyone of the time Kim Kardashion freed a woman, who claims that shapewear has a similarly liberating quality, not so much.
Watch the video below: