Dear Seed
I’m a huge Seed Heritage fan. Huge! You’ve been my go-to for a long time!
Most of my clothes are from Seed. I love them. I love going into the Seed store and the Myer Seed section and trying them on and buying them, and lately, I’ve been buying a size 14 or 16. It’s so great you have these sizes and they’re so flattering.
My top three dresses at the moment are all Seed, and the dresses I take traveling are Seed too. I even have one of them in three colours!
But I’ve seen your latest campaign pictures and the photos of your summer lunch that you have shared all over social and I have to say – I’m more than a little disappointed.
Your campaigns, social and website don’t show anyone of my size. They actually don’t show anyone of my size or seemingly over 30. I’m 40+ so I am a long way from being represented.
What you show are thin, beautiful, straight haired, glossy, mostly white women. And this makes me sad because I am not represented and neither are so many other women. Seed is representing a very narrow slice of society and I can’t help but wonder why.
I hadn’t really paid attention until you had your summer lunch a few weeks ago – the one you’re sharing on your social. Not being inclusive in marketing material is one thing, but holding a huge launch event and only inviting thin, young, 99% white women and their families along pushed me over the edge. Was there no space for anyone else?
Could it be that my age and size is so distasteful to you that you can’t include someone like me anywhere at all? Do you want me and women like me as your customers? Are you ashamed of us? Do we make you money by buying your clothes but you can’t bring yourself to acknowledge this publicly because we are too big and too old?
Did you just forget that larger women over 40 – and I’m not even sure there are women this old in your campaigns – did you forget that we support you and buy your garments and put money in your pockets?
I’ve thought about it and I’m guessing that these young, thin, shiny women are your target market and this is what you think the rest of us – why buy your clothes – aspire to be.
And by the way the women in your campaigns are absolutely gorgeous and I think they look amazing – this is not about not using or promoting them, it’s about being inclusive and including other ages, colours and sizes AS WELL.
Let’s talk about this.
Are only thin, beautiful women your target market?
It seems to me from my frequent visits to your stores that many of the women buying your clothes are women like me! And what stands out so much to me in your campaigns is that you are failing to represent us.
Either this is because you don’t think that older women larger than a size 10 actually buy your clothes (although the sizes you offer prove otherwise)], or that we are not the age or shape you would like to see wearing your clothes since you don’t include us in your material, or invite us to your events meaning we are not represented in your imagery.
Or, do you think that your older, larger audience aspire to be young and beautiful and this will make us want to buy your clothes?
Seed, those days are long gone. You can’t make us want to buy your designs by only showing them to us on tall skinny white women. These days women having confidence and self love and what we want to see is US reflected back by the brands we buy from. We want to see us in your clothes. We want to be acknowledged and represented. We want to see ALL sizes and ALL ages.
Since you don’t show people like me in your promotions, you don’t make me feel good about purchasing outfits from you anymore.
If you are not going to acknowledge that I exist in your clothes and that I am as valuable to you as the stereotype you are promoting then I can no longer support your business.
The days of women being told they only matter if they are young and thin are over.
So many brands acknowledge that and its super sad Seed, that you have chosen to move in the other direction.
Goodbye.