Red Kap, a hard-working, no-nonsense apparel brand, has been going to work with 16 million Americans every day for more than four generations. Our work was to translate the brand’s fundamental values into a relevant platform for growth. The result? Branding done right.

Situation

Part of the VF family of brands, Red Kap is the work clothes, uniforms and gear that millions of people wear on the job every day. While competitive brands like Carhartt and Dickies were building marketshare and gaining recognition outside the workplace, Red Kap was falling behind.

Research revealed that wearers think of Carhartt as a premium brand, exuding rugged, macho confidence. Dickies, on the other hand, is seen as an everyday brand, suffering from over-exposure. In this context, Red Kap was a blank slate: honest, hard-working, but mostly unknown. Defining a clear brand position would optimize marketing strategy and help Red Kap get its mojo back.

Solution

Studying both resellers and end customers, we painted a psychographic picture of the Red Kap wearer audience. And what we found was an opportunity to connect the brand with its end customers through the shared values of honesty, integrity and quiet pride.

Day in and day out, Red Kap wearers are proud to make a living through real, hard work. They take pride in a job done right. And they see their uniforms, even if it’s coveralls or a work shirt, as a projection of their professionalism. That’s integrity at work. That’s branding done right.

Red Kap is a classic b2b2c positioning exercise. Positioning the brand around features or benefits was believable, but our findings told us that the greatest potential — for both brand promise and marketing communications — lie in connecting with end customers through shared integrity. For both the brand and its wearers, functionalism trumps status.