Ford pushes for global merchandising, may include NFTs

Ford wants to sell more than just cars; they want to create a wider range of products by expanding into non-automotive merchandise. Specifically, they're going for the lifestyle segment.

The automaker recently announced that Alexandra Ford English has been appointed the newly-created position of global brand merchandising director at Ford. In her new role, English will use the brand's automotive history, iconic vehicles, and motorsports success to create “an expanded collection of lifestyle merchandise”.

English is a fifth-generation Ford family member, being the daughter of Executive Chairman Bill Ford. She started her professional career in the fashion industry with Tory Burch and Gap, before working for Ford in 2017.

Having a hard time imagining what that lifestyle merchandise could be? Imagine a Ford fashion line that produces branded merchandise, such as shirts, hoodies, joggers, and shoes that cater to the "hypebeast" community. Outside of apparel, the automaker could offer accessories such as bracelets, glasses, bags, and other merchandise that carry the Ford name or the vehicles sold by the manufacturer. The automaker could even go as far as selling digital products, such as NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens), as part of their new venture.

“Anywhere you go around the world, you find passionate Ford fans, and we want to offer them an inspiring collection of merchandise and accessories, and potentially even digital products like NFTs. I’m so excited for this opportunity to create new ways for people to connect with our brand and grow the business,” said English.

Ford did not detail what their lifestyle merchandise will be apart from saying “merchandise and accessories”. If you check the current Ford merchandise shop, the automaker already sells a few t-shirts, outerwear, hats together with accessories like face masks, patches, keychains to name a few. However, they could collaborate with big-name fashion brands such as Off-White, BAPE, and Supreme to quickly gain traction. In 2019, Ford already partnered with Versace to create hoodies and shoes.

Once Ford releases more lifestyle merchandise, would you cop them?

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