I've just seen Gymsharks attempt at trying to make gyms feel like less male dominated spaces for women.

@whatzaraloves6

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SoundTikTok sound · Piano famous song Chopin Deep deep clear beauty

Why it worked

The video likely resonated due to its critical take on a popular brand's marketing, tapping into discussions around "commodity feminism" and the authentic representation of women in sports, which are relevant and often debated topics.

Summary

The creator critiques Gymshark's "Gymbratz" campaign, arguing it misinterprets and commercializes feminism rather than genuinely empowering women in sport. The video highlights how the campaign reinforces harmful stereotypes instead of challenging them.

Structure

1Introduction to Gymshark's "Gymbratz" campaign and its stated goal.
2Critique of the campaign's execution, focusing on "commodity feminism".
3Analysis of historical advertising and its impact on perceptions of women in sport.
4Comparison of the campaign to past marketing strategies and its reinforcement of stereotypes.
5Conclusion on the campaign's failure to genuinely empower women and recommendation of further reading.

Product placement

Gymshark (brand): Appears as a watermark and is the subject of the video's critique. Removing it would change the video's topic. Gymshark women (brand): Appears as a watermark and is the subject of the video's critique. Removing it would change the video's topic. Bratz (brand): Appears as a collaboration with Gymshark, featured in marketing materials. Removing it would change the context of the collaboration. elf (brand): Appears as a logo on a makeup station. Removing it would not change the video's narrative. Bloom (brand): Appears as a product in the background. Removing it would not change the video's narrative.

Original caption

Thank u @carleigh for posting screenshots because the posts got taken down AS I FILMED THIS and I hadn’t screenshot yet. Let me know what you think because the attendees look like they had a great time ✨🫪🥹 #gymshark #commodityfeminism #bratzgymshark

More from @whatzaraloves6

On-screen text

Okay, Gym Shark. 60% of U.S. women feel like gyms are male-dominated. We wanted to change that. We've got sparkly and fluffy equipment. (They deleted the post as I filmed this so credit to this creator for screenshots) Look hot. Lift heavy. Baddiebuilding. Look hot. Lift. Middle of the gym. 47% of U.S. women said they feel pressure to downplay their femininity when lifting. We're putting it front and centre. So you don't have to downplay your femininity. This is such a failed attempt at female empowerment and a perfect example of commodity feminism summarized by this really good journal I read about sport 'femvertising'. Commodity feminism is where by corporations like Gymshark will appropriate feminist ideals like empowerment for commercial purposes, not for actual social change. What they've tried to do here is lean into empowerment to promote their Bratz range, but have actually gone about it in the wrong way and just reinforce really harmful feminine stereotypes. This completely downplays women's role in sport, which is already a very prevalent theme. The journal also speaks about how second wave feminism really recognised advertising as a source for reinforcing sexist images and ideals of women. To literally quote seeing them as decorative objects, which is exactly how this Gymshark campaign feels. But second wave feminism really birthed athletic feminism because this is where there was such tension between being athletic and being feminine. You couldn't really be seen as to be both. Commercial media really reinforced that idea. For context, this is the 1970s and 80s I'm talking about. But this Gymshark ad feels plucked from those mindsets, instead of challenging stereotypes, they've just reinforced and commercialised them, making it just this other capitalistic tool, and I think you can see that in a lot of their other marketing strategy. This is not how you go around empowering women in sport. I recommend you read that journal though, if you want to see examples of some good advertising that does not lead into this commodity feminism. I thought this was awful, yet interesting. From Gymshark.

Transcript

I've just seen Gymsharks attempt at trying to make gyms feel like less male dominated spaces for women. We've got sparkly and fluffy equipment. (They deleted the post as I filmed this so credit to this creator for screenshots) Look hot. Lift heavy. Baddiebuilding. Look hot. Lift. Middle of the gym. 47% of U.S. women said they feel pressure to downplay their femininity when lifting. We're putting it front and centre. So you don't have to downplay your femininity. This is such a failed attempt at female empowerment and a perfect example of commodity feminism summarized by this really good journal I read about sport 'femvertising'. Commodity feminism is where by corporations like Gymshark will appropriate feminist ideals like empowerment for commercial purposes, not for actual social change. What they've tried to do here is lean into empowerment to promote their Bratz range, but have actually gone about it in the wrong way and just reinforce really harmful feminine stereotypes. This completely downplays women's role in sport, which is already a very prevalent theme. The journal also speaks about how second wave feminism really recognised advertising as a source for reinforcing sexist images and ideals of women. To literally quote seeing them as decorative objects, which is exactly how this Gymshark campaign feels. But second wave feminism really birthed athletic feminism because this is where there was such tension between being athletic and being feminine. You couldn't really be seen as to be both. Commercial media really reinforced that idea. For context, this is the 1970s and 80s I'm talking about. But this Gymshark ad feels plucked from those mindsets, instead of challenging stereotypes, they've just reinforced and commercialised them, making it just this other capitalistic tool, and I think you can see that in a lot of their other marketing strategy. This is not how you go around empowering women in sport. I recommend you read that journal though, if you want to see examples of some good advertising that does not lead into this commodity feminism. I thought this was awful, yet interesting. From Gymshark.