In today's market it's fair to believe that branding is everything, and that theory's essentially now been proven by the footwear retail company Payless. Recently the company that's long been associated with affordable and discounted shoes, designed a shrewd advertising campaign that ultimately exposed a variety of 'tastemakers' and 'influencers' in the fashion industry.
Promoted as an off-shoot luxury brand named Palessi, the company deliberately designed a fake pop up store in Los Angeles and filled it with fashionistas, only to sell them footwear valued between $19.99 - $39.99 for astronomical prices that reached up of $645.
They're "just stunning, elegant, sophisticated," one shopper said about a pair of stiletto heels, as another man considered a pair of leather sneakers while declaring "I can tell it was made with high-quality material."
The purpose of the study was to re-establish Payless's longtime business model of quality and affordability, whereas all the participants were able to get full refunds to go with their bruised egos and slice of humble pie. As a courtesy, Payless told them to hold on to their new shoes.
Source: cbsnews.com
