Aerie's Sales Spiked When They Stopped Retouching Their Models

Aerie stopped photoshopping ads and sales increased 20%

Aerie stopped photoshopping ads for two years, and their customers loved it! The company was rewarded for their more inclusive branding with an increase in sales and tons of free publicity on social media.

Aerie made a conscious effort to stop retouching images while also representing a more diverse selection of women in their ads. They didn’t go as far to use “real” women (non-models), but we’ll go ahead and count this as some major progress for a lingerie brand. Customers seem to think so too. The company saw a spike of 20% in sales while American Eagle, their parent company, only saw a 7% increase in sales last year, Mashable reported.

[shareable_quote]”It was important for us as a brand to give our girls REAL images to invoke self confidence.”[/shareable_quote]

With some more horrible examples of photoshopping going too far, it’s great to see a brand forego what many consider an unnecessary process. Aerie’s actions – and the corresponding increase in sales – prove that it’s entirely possible to sell intimate garments to ladies without pseudo-perfection. “In the industry today, it was important for us as a brand to give our girls REAL images to invoke self confidence,” Aerie’s global brand president Jennifer Foyle said.

In addition to increased sales, Foyle knows the decision was a huge success because of all the positive buzz the brand is getting on social media. #AerieREAL launched in 2014 as a way to announce the company’s new body-positive focus. Foyle explained that it’s “been a huge success with our customers and we have seen strong engagement on our social channels.” With more than 33,000 posts on Instagram alone, the campaign seems to be inspiring women to speak out about loving their bodies regardless of shape, size, or color. Here are a few shots shared by customers.

We especially love this from an Aerie mama.

Knowing now that real beauty works better than photoshopped fantasies, Aerie seems dedicated to showcasing authentic ideals. Foyle added, “We will continue to challenge conventional standards thorough celebrating inclusivity, unique beauty and uplift women in a positive approachable way.”