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Olympic Gold Rush

Posted on 07. Dec, 2009 by Kerry Banks in Fresh Trax, teaser

2010 WINTER OLYMPICS UPDATE

Although it is clearly not too difficult to design an Olympic clothing line that will make scads of money, impressing the critics is a different matter entirely, as Hudson’s Bay is finding out

by Kerry Banks

Back in 2005, HBC defeated Roots and Lululemon to win the bidding war for the athletic wear sponsorship for the next four Olympic games (2006 Torino Winter Games, 2008 Beijing Olympics, 2010 Vancouver Winter Games, and 2012 London Olympics). For this privilege, HBC forked over a hefty $100 million.

Macleans magazine dubbed the HBC's winter Olympic line as "banal, but wearable."

However, the Canadian Olympic clothing that HBC produced for Beijing in 2008 met with scathing reviews:  “garish,” “loud,” “psychedelia run amok,” were just some of the reactions. In its company blog, Lululemon dubbed HBC’s sartorial stylings the “vomit pajama line.”

Chastened by that reception, HBC opted for a more conservative approach with its 2010 Winter Olympic consumer line, which is based on four distinctly Canadian items: the parka, toque, knitted sweater and buffalo plaid. Even so, the company still managed to spark controversy. After surveying surveyed the line of red, white, black and grey clothing, Vancouver Liberal MP Hedy Fry thought she spotted a partisan conspiracy, comparing the HBC’s official Olympic log, (a black ‘C’ with a red maple leaf in the centre) to the logo for the Conservative Party (a slanted blue ‘C’ with a red maple leaf in the middle). Others felt it was a direct rip-off of the Royal Canadian Air Force’s logo—a red maple leaf inside a black ‘C.’

It turns out, the HBC was sensitive enough to the similarity between its new logo and the military logo that it called in its lawyers for a meeting to determine that they were, in fact, different enough. As Hudson Bay’s fashion director Suzanne Timmins told Canadian Press, “When you’re dealing with the maple leaf, red, white, black, you’re going to come across a lot of different logos that are very close to other people’s logos.”

"Cowichan First Nation officials accused HBC of stealing their iconic sweater design after rejecting their proposal to produce Cowichan sweaters for HBC's line of 2010 Olympic clothing."

But there was more flak to come. Cowichan First Nation officials accused the retail giant of stealing their iconic sweater design after rejecting their proposal to produce Cowichan sweaters for HBC’s line of 2010 Olympic clothing. (HBC’s $350 Olympic sweater – featuring a maple leaf and elk — has become one of the clothing line’s most popular items since it was unveiled in October.) Hudson’s Bay initially dismissed the comparison, insisting its hand-knit sweater was not a Cowichan, and that the Vancouver Island band couldn’t meet the company’s production requirements to be an official supplier in any event. But after being threatened with legal action and public protests, HBC changed its tune. The company is now close to finalizing a deal with the band that will likely see Cowichan sweaters sold in Hudson’s Bay Company’s Olympic superstore in downtown Vancouver and in an aboriginal pavilion during the Games.

Meanwhile, the media’s reaction to the HBC’s Winter Olympic line appears to be lukewarm. Macleans magazine dubbed it “banal, but wearable.” The Globe and Mail declared: “These are items that have been designed to sell. Even if some Canadians are left cold by the nostalgic knitwear, foreigners will likely regard the pieces as quaint and worth buying as stylish souvenirs. Where the apparel comes up short is originality.” Chris Rudge, boss of the Canadian Olympic Committee, was more enthusiastic. He said the clothing “screams Canada” and is “bold, inspiring, modern, contemporary and cool.” Even so, “bold and “contemporary” do not seem to be the appropriate adjectives for designs that HBC fashion director Suzanne Timmins admits were inspired by the 1970s Crazy Canucks alpine ski team and the classic Canadian comedy show SCTV, featuring Bob and Doug McKenzie. She also noted that designers decided not to go with seal-skin trim, as requested by Canadian MPs to support Canada’s seal hunting industry.

The total value of licensed Olympic merchandise sales worldwide is expected to top the $500-million mark by the time the Games end, resulting in about $54 million in revenues for VANOC.

Of course, despite what the fashion mavens think, the total value of licensed Olympic merchandise sales worldwide is expected to top the $500-million mark by the time the Games end, resulting in about $54 million in revenues for VANOC. And no one need shed any tears for American-owned HBC, with its 21,000 square-foot Olympic superstore on the main floor of its downtown location jam-packed with more than 1,000 pieces of officially licensed Games merchandise. The store also features a Coke cafe decked out in Coca-Cola colours, a pin wall that can hold 21,000 pins; a display of special-edition watches from the 2010 Winter Games and past Games presented by Swatch; a concierge service offered by Purolator to ship purchases to a customer’s hotel or anywhere in the world; and replica Olympic Torches presented by Bombardier. With the Winter Games still several months away, Hudson’s Bay has already struck gold.

To view all of HBC’s Winter Olympic designs: http://store.hbc.com

So, how do you feel about the HBC’s new line of Olympic clothing? Are these items that you would buy?

Photos: Kerry Banks

Tags: 2010 Winter Olympics, B.C., HBC, Winter Olympics clothing line