WHERE DID YOU GET THAT DRESS?

As a young child Gwen Crowley would often borrow her older sister’s clothes and dress up as a princess or an actress. Gwen, 38, still likes to put on other people’s clothes, only now the blouses and dresses she wears belong to famous film stars. She also buys clothes from celebrities such as Cher in order to sell them in her second-hand clothes shop, Star Wares, in Los Angeles.

1. Read a magazine article about a woman who buys clothes from famous people and then sells them in her shop. Eight sentences have been removed from the article.

Cher tends to get rid of a lot of things each year and we just go over with a truck and pick them up. I’ve met her a few times, although I’ve never been wearing any of her clothes at the time. 1. ________________________________________________.

I love Cher’s style. I have her shoes, her jewellery and even some of her furniture. They’re a real bargain because I pay less for them than she did originally. Many of my customers don’t wear the clothes they buy and just keep them as memorabilia.

2. ___________________________________________________________________.

I also had a denim shirt which I bought from Mel Gibson. I wore it all the time, even when I was decorating the house. 3. ____________________________________.

I really liked that shirt and it was great fun telling people which famous person owned it before.

My first ever purchase was a white T-shirt of Cher’s that had peace signs all over it and which I wore until it fell to pieces. But my favourite item of clothing at the moment is a black shirt of hers by Ghost. I’m a little bigger than her, so her clothes are often quite tight on me. 4. ________________________________________________.

It’s a plain, flowing shirt that feels really nice to wear – except when it’s raining.

5. _______________________________________________________________.

The shirt shrank and the sleeves, which were long, suddenly went up past my elbow. I was really upset. I had to go into the bathroom and put it under the dryer. Luckily it survived. Now I wear it just about everywhere – around the house, out shopping, at work.

Sometimes I see Cher in magazines and think, I’d like that top or dress, and a few months later it comes into the shop. If she’s worn the item on a CD cover or something, I don’t usually buy it because then it becomes a collector’s item and can be very expensive. 6. ______________________________________________________.

Although my husband doesn’t share my passion, he was delighted when I bought him Cary Grant’s silver cigarette case for his 40^th birthday. 7. ___________________.

It’s a real talking point at parties because my husband is called Lou and everybody asks: “Why does it say Cary?” When he tells them, they’re amazed.

It’s wonderful to have a part of someone that you admire, that you can actually hold, look at, enjoy and wear. At the moment I’ve got my eye on a very special costume from my all time favourite TV programme. 8. _________________________.

It’s not the sort of thing you can wear to the shops, but it would certainly attract attention at a fancy dress party!

2. Choose from the sentences A – I the one which fits each gap (1 – 8). There is one extra sentence you do not need to use.

A. If it was something I really liked, though, I would buy it, no matter how much it cost.

B. I got paint on it and all sorts of other stains, but it broke my heart when I finally had to throw it away.

C. It’s in a cloth bag and has the actor’s name inscribed on the front.

D. However, I like to enjoy my clothes and I always wear Cher’s things until they’re worn out.

E. It’s Dr McCoy’s original tunic from the Star Trek series.

F. I once wore it to a TV interview and got caught in a storm.

G. They don’t go with any of my other clothes but they still look good on me!

H. This one, though, is a lot looser and fits me perfectly.

I. I’m not sure how she’d react if she saw me in one of her old sweaters or skirts.

Level B 2

BRANDING

1. Read the extracts from a text about branding.

A

Having a good brand identity is critical. It can not only position a company above its competitors, but it also communicates to your customers the reason why they should choose you instead of your competitors. But developing a strong brand image takes time, money and effort, and it involves much more than redesigning a logo or developing a new tagline. Your new brand identity should evolve from your previous identity. Be careful not to start from scratch and come up with something completely new, as you may end up losing loyal customers who have forged emotion ties with your product.

B

It’s important to understand that changing the visual aspects of your company, your logo, your packaging and so forth, you are not actually changing your brand identity. Your brand identity is the promise a company makes to its customers – its features, quality, values and service support. Just modernising visual image does not entail a change in brand values. Many companies, sadly, are led to believe by branding agencies that visual changes will alter customer’s perception of their products. But such changes only inform consumers that a company is concerned about how it looks. At best, they will assume the company is modern; at worst they will accuse the company of unnecessary extravagance.

C

Successful branding may not be actually connected with the product at all, but may represent a greater sense of purpose or a more satisfying experience. They may affirm that drinking a cup of coffee can really make a difference, or that exercising may bring about a sense of challenge and personal achievement. Many successful brands study emerging societal ideals and trends, so that they can take advantage of how customers wish they could be. Then they push forward the message that by using their product, their dreams can be fulfilled, and the customer can gain the lifestyle he or she is looking for, be it a sense of glamour, freedom, popularity or self-satisfaction.

D

Lack of consistency is probably the most common pitfall when it comes to designing an image for your brand. You need to provide a consistent message in your proposals and presentations so that your company develops credibility and gets noticed and remembered. To ensure that your branding ins consistent, gather all the information that leaves your company, be it faxes, emails, advertisements, invoices or packages. Examine them for discrepancies in your company’s image. Doing so will also give you the chance to evaluate the image you are trying portray.

2. Choose which section (A, B, C or D) each statement (1 – 7) refers to.

Date: 2015-04-20; view: 2415