Want to dress like the characters on your favorite ABC Family show? Thanks to Wet Seal, that desire will be a reality with the Crush by ABC Family apparel and accessories collection launching late October.
The initial Crush by ABC Family collection follows the wardrobe choices characters Callie Foster, Bay Kennish and Lacey Porter from the shows "The Fosters," "Switched at Birth" and "Twisted." Other ABC Family characters could appear in the Crush collection later on. Currently, Crush by ABC Family is scheduled for at least six deliveries through August 2014 with items ranging from $9.99 to $34.90.
"We have done a lot of research on this. We had focus groups and receipt surveys. We have a panel that we use for Wet Seal that gives us information about our product, our marketing and what trends are happening every single month. One of the channels that inspires them [Wet Seal shoppers] and that they watch is ABC Family. It is relevant to who they are and what is interesting to them," said John D. Goodman, chief executive officer of The Wet Seal Inc. Goodman also has his own personal focus group at home, where he has 15-, 13- and 12-year-old daughters who are ABC Family viewers. "I do see what's happening out there," he noted.
ABC Family is a top rated cable television network targeted for women aged 12 to 34 years old. "Twisted," "The Fosters" and "Switched at Birth" are the network's three top-rated shows. Soo Koo, vice president of product development, softlines division, at Disney Consumer Products, specified that females aged 16 to 20 or a tad older or younger are in the demographic target for the Crush by ABC Family brand.
"This is definitely a junior consumer. It is a Millennial, lifestyle brand. That age group and the type of girls that shop at Wet Seal are perfect for this concept," said Koo, adding that the target consumers "like the story lines and start appreciating the characters on the shows. I think that's one of the main reasons they gravitate toward them. They relate to the characters' experiences in their real lives and see how those translate in the shows."
