Tuesday, June 24, 2008

How Does That Fit?

About a month ago I started working part-time at Banana Republic. There were a lot of reasons for doing so, but one of the reasons was that, working in a church full-time like I do, I just felt out-of-touch with the world, and I wasn't getting a lot of face time with non-believers. . . at least, not much time with folks who would admit they're non-believers!

It's always interesting to me to see the worldviews of individuals, groups, organizations, and businesses. Here's a sampling of things I've been told since I started working that will give you some clue as to, at least part of Banana's operating mindset:
  • People shop at Banana Republic because they want others to see them walking around with the "Banana Republic" bag.
  • Your job is to get people to buy as much as possible.
  • A great way to get people to buy more is to let them know about things that others are buying. People want to have what others have.
  • It's easy for a guy to make sells in the Women's Dept. Just tell her she looks good in it, and she'll buy it.
  • People who shop at Banana want everyone to think their clothes came from high-end stores in New York, even if they can't afford those clothes.
  • Play into people's egos.

Amazing, huh?! I mean, these are actual statements I've heard since I started working there, and my guess is these types of ideals aren't exclusive to Banana Republic. Here's the thing: it's easy for me to condemn this mindset. It's easy for me to think this is disgusting, and immoral, and it is. . . until I realize that many of these statements are true about me as a shopper.

The refreshing thing is that Banana makes no apologies for this worldview. They're bold about these things, and I find myself being envious of them. I wish I were that honest about the things in my life that are disgusting and immoral. I wish I didn't spend so much time trying to spiritualize my sin, and just let it hang out there for others to see. It's not that Banana Republic is right. It's just that I'm pretty sure my hypocrisy is wrong.


No comments: