Rather than relying solely on its heritage, Dr Martens is working with disruptive brands and reaching new audiences to stay relevant, writes chief product officer Adam Meek
Can you appeal to everyone? There’s a great quote by Hollywood casting director Bonnie Gillespie: “When you try to be everything to everyone, you accomplish being nothing to anyone.”
If you are only looking to please, your identity becomes whatever you think your audience wants to see. There is no character or soul – or anything real – in that.
In truth, universal appeal is not about pandering to the crowd – becoming bland and ‘likeable’ – at all. It does not mean pleasing everyone; it means giving something to everyone that they can relate to, that they can feel a part of. It is the opposite of dictating values; it is embracing character.
At Dr Martens, we think universal appeal is letting people show their individuality while lasting the test of time – bringing together young and old; embracing different lifestyles, orientations and identities; and translating this across different cultures. It is about showing people they belong. That is the real life and ‘sole’ of our brand.
In our terms, we call it rebellious self-expression. It is definitely not about being bland or likeable when a product from 1960 can keep an edge in the 2020s. But in the Dr Martens family, we see teens and older generations equally proud to be wearing their character on their sleeve – or feet – but in a way they can wear it to the office, to a gig, to see their family and to the pub.
“We are constantly looking for ways to make iconic products relevant in new ways”
We are proud of our heritage, but we are equally excited about the future. Pete Townshend might be a big part of Dr Martens’ history, but you do not have to know who he is – or The Who – to know about our iconic brand, of which he played such a big part in driving popularity. You do not have to know his discography backwards to appreciate the undertones of black boots with yellow laces.
You cannot embrace universal appeal if you are only ever looking backwards, so balance is key. It is about respecting the history and cherishing that which was made perfect the very first time but always looking forwards, embracing the modern and looking at what we can contribute to the future of footwear.
Remaining relevant
We are constantly looking for ways to make iconic products relevant in new ways, like our Jadon platform boots that give a fierce evolution of our original eight-eye boots, taking all the original details and stacking them on quadruple soles, or the platform sandals that reimagine what sandals should be.
The key to universal appeal is listening, watching and taking inspiration. We are always finding new collaborations with brands both iconic and disruptive, talking to new audiences and working with up-and-coming music artists in our ‘Tough As You’ campaign – taking heritage a step further and supporting creative talent on their journey to inspire others in turn.
We move with the times but we will never let them dictate our style or change what is iconic. We will keep adapting and innovating, transcending generations and creating tomorrow’s heritage. We are so pleased that our family of Dr Martens wearers are with us in this. We are thrilled they love the iconic 1460 boot as we do and we are excited to show them the ways we are planning to further break the mould.
We refer to our styles as silhouettes and that is what they are until a customer steps into them – still waiting to make their own stories. They Are universal in letting those stories go wherever the wearer wants, no matter if that is in classic 1460s or thigh-high lace-ups.
Yoko Ono once said: “You can change the world by being yourself.”
That is what we will keep on doing and we know it is exactly what our wearers will do.
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