It's more than just a shirt

DETROIT – You can tell a child is going to come from a great home if the father is wearing a Burberry shirt at the baby shower. It’s a cultural thing as well as a running joke on social media. 

In 2022 Detroit Native, Rapper Big Sean wore a Burberry Button up to his baby shower for the culture captioning the photo, “Can’t go wrong with the Burberry uniform at the shower.” via X . 

Allyson Felix, Olympic great and Kenneth Ferguson held their baby shower this past weekend. Felix is the most decorated female Olympian in track and field history with 11 medals.

Kenneth also had his fame on the track. He graduated from Detroit Mumford where he set statewide and nationwide records, leading the Mustangs to team state titles in 1999 and 2002. Being one of the best hurdlers in the nation at the time.

Ferguson also won individual titles in the 110m hurdles, 300m hurdles, and anchored the victorious 4x400m relay. His time of 13.65 in the 110m hurdles and 35.90 300m hurdles at the Lower Peninsula Division 1 state meet in 2002 are still MHSAA records.

After high school he went to pursue an academic and athletic career at the University of South Carolina and professionally.

Why is this a staple in the community? Who really knows. But seeing a celebrity relate and not forgetting where they come from always reminds us that we’re human and no matter how big you are, your culture is within you, it’s who you are and you can carry it everywhere with you. Someone even commented asking if they had the mandatory meatballs but that’s a talk for another day.

I know their target audience is highly dominated by both men women (mostly women) with a high disposable income. It is famous for its celebrity appeal. But I mean let’s be real here: the black community is carrying them on their backs. With the proper alignment and the right people on these projects they could turn this into a great marketing campaign.

For example in the beginning of time True Religion tried to misalign themselves with the way the black community represented their brand within the rap and hip hop culture. They wanted this beach girl/ boy theme but Chief Keef, Tity Boi AKA 2 Chainz, the hip hop and black community really carried them on their back.

In April 2020, the design company again filed for bankruptcy, closing 37 locations. There was a downfall but suddenly the brand regained popularity by focusing on their target by having people who looked like us as their campaign models such as Quavo, India Love, Jayda Cheaves, and Dreezy.

There are authentic ways that brands can acknowledge what we’ve contributed to their companies and our value to them as customers.

If the father of the child is not wearing a Burberry button up, throw the whole baby shower away.

Burberry, don't miss this opportunity. On behalf of the black community we’ll be waiting on our Sponsor.