When New York City officials decided to sell merchandise featuring insignias of municipal agencies, they had no doubt there would be a strong demand for items emblazoned with the logos of the Police and Fire Departments.
But the Department of Sanitation?
Several months after the line went on the market, the best-selling item is a distressed brown cap with a frayed bill and light-blue DSNY patch - a fact that startled Sanitation Commissioner John J. Doherty, who didn't initially think much of the design.
"I thought, 'Why are we using this beat-up hat?' When I go out, I put on a decent baseball hat," he said. "But everybody said, 'That's what they love out there.'"
The cap - available in city souvenir stores and carried nationally by Target since July - exemplifies how New York has sought to harness the power of its brand through a canny marriage of promotion and fashion.
Sales from the line, which can be bought at http://officialnycshop.com, are expected to top $20 million annually. Royalty fees will go to city departments.
Up next: a photo campaign featuring city workers modeling the apparel....Source: The Philadelphia Inquirer
But the Department of Sanitation?
Several months after the line went on the market, the best-selling item is a distressed brown cap with a frayed bill and light-blue DSNY patch - a fact that startled Sanitation Commissioner John J. Doherty, who didn't initially think much of the design.
"I thought, 'Why are we using this beat-up hat?' When I go out, I put on a decent baseball hat," he said. "But everybody said, 'That's what they love out there.'"
The cap - available in city souvenir stores and carried nationally by Target since July - exemplifies how New York has sought to harness the power of its brand through a canny marriage of promotion and fashion.
Sales from the line, which can be bought at http://officialnycshop.com, are expected to top $20 million annually. Royalty fees will go to city departments.
Up next: a photo campaign featuring city workers modeling the apparel....Source: The Philadelphia Inquirer
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