Fast fashion advertisements stop short of challenging stereotypes related to girls
Fifteen contemporary fast fashion advertisements were analysed. Advertisements addressing the Finnish market found on the public Facebook pages of the Nordic fast fashion companies Hennes & Mauritz (H&M), Lindex, KappAhl and GinaTricot from January 2019 to June 2020 were analysed.
The results revealed that many of the advertised images were outright stereotypical and portrayed girls as heterosexual, caring and innocent. On the other hand, some images promoted gender stereotypes in subtle ways. The words ‘subtle ways’ are used because these advertised images would seem non-gender stereotypical. However, a closer reading revealed that these seemingly non-gender stereotypical images simultaneously associated girls with certain stereotypes. Therefore, they did not fully challenge stereotypes related to girls.
The results did not meet expectations
The researchers expected non-gender stereotypical portrayals of girls in these advertisements. Firstly, these companies have a Nordic origin, and it has been observed that Nordic companies often promote the welfare state’s values through their advertisements. Therefore, they expected the Nordic welfare states’ values of state feminism to reflect in these companies’ advertisements.
Secondly, these companies’ advertisements were scrutinised because these fast fashion companies have committed to promoting workforce gender equality in their sustainability reports. Companies with such internal policy commitments can be expected to portray girls in non-gender stereotypical ways. However, the results did not meet the researchers’ expectations.
These results are concerning because stereotypical portrayals could limit societal expectations of girls. The researchers would also like to emphasise that companies aiming to promote workforce gender equality should be more careful about the messages their advertisements convey on gender roles. Moreover, these findings raise the question: Why do these Nordic companies shy away from promoting values of state feminism through their advertisements?
The study was part of projects ‘DigiConsumers’ and ‘#Agents- young people’s agency on social media’, funded by the Strategic Research Council and the Academy of Finland.
Original publication
Sonali Srivastava, Terhi-Anna Wilska & Johanna Sjöberg (2022) Girls’ portrayals in fast fashion advertisements. Consumption Market & Culture, DOI:
Further information
Sonali Srivastava, Doctoral Researcher, sonali.s.srivastava@jyu.fi, 044-2061697
Terhi-Anna Wilska, Principal Investigator, terhi-anna.wilska@jyu.fi, 040-8054201