Follow the Leader?
Oakley's the eyewear company that the other eyewear companies model themselves after. They are the cutting edge, with their Mad Science design team going through thousands of sketches to get an unprecedented look, thousands of molds to get seamless joints, and spending insane amounts of money to build different-better-new. These guys purchased an entire factory in Arizona just to kiln the freaky elements found in their M frames at solar temperatures.
That may not mean a fig to the guy who wants to just buy a pair of shades off the rack (or worse, a pirated knockoff), but for those who appreciate innovation and original design, Oakley is sunglass-square one.
Tomorrow's Look, Today
Thumbing through the 20th anniversary issue of Triathlete magazine, I remembered pictures of some of the famous faces of Triathlon from the 80's. They were all wearing Oakleys at the time, and I remember, back then, thinking how radical a look those glasses presented. Tame by today's standards, those Oakleys look like today's Ray Bans. It's no coincidence that nearly all of today's still-flamboyant triathletes wear Oakleys.
And it's no coincidence that when Hollywood wants a mod, futuristic look (saw the Matrix?), or a hip, now look (saw Mission Impossible II?), the costumers turn to Oakley for the spectacles.
No Questions Asked
I'm the kind of consumer who looks for products with Unconditional Lifetime Guarantees, but I rarely, if ever, take advantage of them. If something breaks, I usually disregard the warranty and just buy another one. Don't ask me why.
The one time I can remember returning a product was very recently: I'd absentmindedly rubbed my fingerprinted lenses on my one-week-old pair of Oakley Zeroes against the stomach of my shirt to clean them, and they snapped. They're a lightweight frame, but I wasn't putting that much pressure on them.
So I sent them back in a little box with a little note. Ten days later, I received a little box with a little note and a new pair of Zeroes. No questions asked. Oakley's batting .1000 with me on their returns policy.
Brand Loyalty - in Reverse
I love Oakley. I love Oakley, the company, not because they make the best sunglasses, but because of Lance.
We all know what a mind-boggling comeback Lance Armstrong made to win three consecutive Tour de France titles after a grim battle with testicular cancer. What we all don't know is that during his ordeal with cancer, when all those sponsors who hounded him after his Olympic success weren't renewing his contracts, when he was dropped by the French cycling team Cofidis, when no ranked European race teams would return his phone calls, only one sponsor stood by him. During the darkest hours of his struggle, Oakley quietly picked up Armstrong's health insurance, putting him on their payroll to do so.
Loyalty should mean something to a company, I think. With this one grand gesture, Oakley forever wins my loyalty to the company, in turn.
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