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Brandon Maxwell: Promoting His People

Published on October 4, 2019, at 10:00 a.m.
by Ali Cushing.

In order for any workplace to run effectively, employers must understand the importance of giving credit to employees where it is due. Employee recognition is the timely acknowledgment of an individual’s or team’s efforts that supports the organization’s goals and values beyond normal expectations. Recognizing and applauding employees’ hard work is essential to maintaining positive relationships in any business.

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

Fashion designer Brandon Maxwell showcased employee recognition in his 2019 Fall and Winter Campaign, “The People of Brandon Maxwell.” This campaign exclusively spotlights the women who work for him. Directed by Brandon Maxwell and Jessy Price, it features a main campaign film and interviews with each of these women. Maxwell stated, “Those featured in this campaign have devoted their careers and lended their talents to creating and making dreams come true.”

The past year has been an emotional rollercoaster for the fashion designer, from successes to tragedies within his own life. Associate designer at Brandon Maxwell Liza Rogers, who is featured in the campaign, said, “Between the highs and lows … it made him realize — and appreciate — how much he is depending on his team. He felt like it was a great way to honor the people of Brandon Maxwell who get him through his day-to-day life.”

This campaign allows the entire Brandon Maxwell team to experience something they do each day but from an opposite perspective. It was an effective way to show the world each of their individual talents while also uniting them as one.

Courtesy of Brandon Maxwell

On the day that Maxwell shot the campaign, each employee was prepped, glammed and interviewed. Liza explained, “It was such a fun, bonding experience for the whole office.”

Peirson Rogers, design and development associate at Brandon Maxwell, commented, “It was one of the most fun days of work ever, for sure. All the different departments came together, and we are usually not all in the same place at the same time. To all be together having our hair and makeup get done, and watching everyone tell their unique interview stories, was something I’ll never forget.”

Not only did this campaign successfully recognize the “behind the scenes voices” in the workplace, but it also was a positive PR move for Brandon Maxwell himself. Featuring the women who essentially run the show allowed Maxwell to be seen as a true “team player” to his audience. There tends to be a certain stigma surrounding the fashion industry, due to movies such as “The Devil Wears Prada” that portray the leaders in the fashion world in an intimidating light. According to Time magazine, “Even though The Devil Wears Prada is set at a fashion magazine, and hits hard at the foibles of fashion people, it isn’t really a fashion movie — if anything, it’s a movie that hates fashion.”

“It’s inspiring to work in an environment [where] we are surrounded by girls getting stuff done and working towards a greater success,” said Peirson.

Liza described the day-to-day environment in Maxwell’s office as “high-paced yet amiable.”

Courtesy of Brandon Maxwell

“We actually have a very small team, much smaller than people typically think that we have. And because of that everyone is doing a lot, a lot, a lot of jobs, and we are working together for a long number of hours every single day and every single week, so we are all getting the opportunity to do a lot while also growing really close while we get to do it. Literally no two days in the office are alike,” said Liza.

In addition to promoting positivity in terms of working in the fashion industry, this campaign is also aimed at reaching real people, by showing real people in the brand’s clothing. Peirson, who previously worked in the sales sector of the office before switching to her current position, explained how each campaign is essentially centered around sales, but this one came together a bit differently.

“The end goal is to hopefully sell the clothes, and usually they are always on models and they’re super glamorous but it’s hard for the regular, day-to-day person to relate. Here the customers can see the clothes on regular women. It’s not supermodels who are always just flawless. It’s us — the girls in our office — who don’t exactly wake up looking like Beyoncè every day,” explained Peirson.

Employers in any business can take some notes from this Brandon Maxwell campaign, regarding employee recognition in the workplace. People who work as hard as these women do, week after week, deserve recognition. The Brandon Maxwell PR department deserves a pat on the back, too.

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