As a public relations firm specialized in marketing to women, we notice when companies send messages to their female consumers…especially when these messages are, ahem, somewhat offensive. Women have come a long way in our fight for equality, but we’ve still got a ways to go. According to Piperlime, the e-commerce site in the Gap, Inc. family of brands, we aren’t allowed to wear sweatpants in public without risking certain negative implications.

We wonder if this message, printed on the sleeves of coffee cups, is the best one to send. Athleta, Gap's athletic and sportswear brand (also with an e-commerce site) is trying to sell sweatpants, some for as much as $98. How is discouraging women from wearing them going to help sell more pairs? We understand the message is 'don't wear them in public,' but does this message empower women in any way?

There must better ways of marketing dresses and other clothes to women than by scaring them out of their sweats. Here's a link to read more of the original article from Huffington Post.

FletcherPR is a national communications firm that specializes in reaching women through the power of media. Headquartered in Knoxville, TN with staff in Nashville & Los Angeles, we are a full-service agency providing strategic public relations, social media and marketing communications services to our clients throughout the U.S.