Aerie, you’ve done it again.
You may be familiar with the #AerieReal movement when the American Eagle Outfitters’ loungewear and intimates brand vowed to discontinue the use of Photoshop on their images. Since that promise back in 2014, Aerie has only multiplied their efforts to empower women of all shapes, sizes and colors to love themselves.
And speaking of loving themselves, you should peep Aerie’s latest ‘Share Your Spark’ campaign, which currently features a YouTube video of 40 real women dancing in their very real panties to the tune of Hailee Steinfeld’s “Love Myself” jam.
The #AerieReal campaign features designers, models, bloggers and even social fans as the videos help launch the brand’s Sunnie Collection in this ultra girl power moment. Some of the women involved even admit to having never been in a photo shoot before.
#AerieReal undies designer says, “Without a doubt, my first photo shoot. The most important thing is just to not let other people define who you are.”
Another #AerieReal girl, Shivani Persad, adds, “Even if you don’t see yourself in media, it doesn’t mean you don’t have a spark of your own.”
The shoot was lighthearted and fun as the YouTube video features a live DJ, endless hair and makeup artists and the women themselves dancing candidly in between their individual shoots. Also included in those photo shoots is newly minted #AerieReal role model, Iskra Lawrence, who is also an advocate for the National Eating Disorder Association.
Jennifer Foyle, Aerie’s global brand president, tells WWD that the Share Your Spark movement is allowing women to speak out about what uniquely makes them beautiful, adding, “It’s really a social platform to get girls to be inspired to celebrate the real you.”
The Sunnie Collection stands as one of the brand’s best-selling collection, so the campaign introduces two new styles to the already popular collection. Foyle says they’re “adding a new demi bra and bralettes, options that we’ve never done before.” Both designs, of course, are designed in the 360-degree stretch the collection is known for.
The campaign will also feature individual interviews with the women, who tell viewers the spark they found in themselves. #AerieReal model, Barbie Ferreira, shares that she never have much representation of people whom she could identify with in media’s ads. But, Ferreira confidently asserts, “I don’t apologize for anything, including my body, including anything that I’m proud of.”
The initial conception of #AerieReal is inspiring, but they campaign’s endurance and garnered following is motivating. It is comforting to see women bare their insecurities, the same flaws a lot of women are uncomfortable displaying. It is empowering to witness the honing of these deemed faults as rather sparks of idiosyncrasies, perhaps defining features and ultimately uniquely beautiful traits.
As Aerie continues to highlight these individual sparks that span every shape and size, they brighten the world. So, Share Your Spark. You’ll come to realize that beauty isn’t a solitary definition. So, don’t define yourself based upon one another’s version. For beauty is in every one of us – just waiting to spark.
