ENRIQUE CARDENAL

Brand Director Jockey Asia talks to Centreline and DNA

1. First, we extend a very warm welcome to you on your visit to Pakistan, though on a fairly short trip. Can you share with us your journey from Jockey’s Country Manager in Spain to Jockey’s Brand Director of Asia?

Jockey International is all set to look for more avenues of cooperation with our Pakistani partners with a view to enhance our presence and make available a wide range of high quality Jockey products to Pakistani consumers.  The purpose of my visit is to assess the Pakistani market and I will undertake follow up trips also in order to visit more cities.

Our Pakistani partners Famous Brands (Pvt.) Limited are doing a good job and I am confident our partnership would strengthen and grow in the coming days.

It’s been seven and a half very interesting years of my association with Jockey. Earlier, I was working for a company dealing with footwear and apparel in Amsterdam but I had to move back to Spain, my home country, for personal reasons. I joined Jockey and found that although Jockey was offering high quality products in the market yet the brand despite its rich heritage was not so famous in Spain. Personally I liked Jockey because of its history and its international presence.  We worked hard and brought a remarkable change in Jockey’s presence in the market. Four years later my boss asked me to look after the Jockey operations in Netherlands also keeping in view my previous working experience in that country. Two years later the President Jockey International Division asked for my consent for the position of the Brand Director in Hong Kong? This was a very attractive offer and position and I willingly accepted to move to Hong Kong.

Since 1935 when Jockey invented the first ever men’s Y-Front briefs, the global brand has enjoyed a rich history of innovation. Not only was Jockey the first to design a brief for men it was also the first to use a branded waistband on its products. This branding signified genuine Jockey quality and set the stage for Jockey fans around the globe to wear their favorite underwear with pride.

Tag line “SHOW YOU’RE JOCKEY” is seen as a modern interpretation of the successful Jockey campaign from the 1990s. The legendary campaign appeared at landmark sites like Times Square, and showed groups of people such as soap opera stars, doctors, snowboarders, firefighters and athletes. Using both men and women having playful fun, dropping their outerwear or showing just their waistband, we are communicating a personality for the brand that is positive, upbeat and pure Jockey.  “It will unite millions of Jockey fans across the globe, from London to Bangkok, with the simple message that they are all proud to show they are Jockey.”

How do you see the potential for your products in Pakistan and what are your plans to further establish your foothold here?

Jockey has enjoyed a long association with Pakistan and is proud to provide the Brand signature style, comfort and variety to consumers in the Pakistan market through Famous Brands (Pvt) Limited, the licensee of Jockey International Inc. since 1995 which locally manufactures, distributes and sells the products nationwide. I see a lot of potential to expand the Jockey business in Pakistan which we intend to vigourously plan and pursue during my visit and in future.

Please tell us how have undergarment trends changed? And what do you do to not only sustain your leading position in this competitive world but further promote your brand?

Frankly I did not know that the undergarments are a whole world. It was indeed a unique experience to talk about undergarments especially in those countries where it is considered a taboo. Jockey is an amazing brand. We have so many factors that have made this brand world’s No 1.  One of the most important factors that has led Jockey brand to be the market leader worldwide is the customer loyalty to the brand.

Jockey is committed to quality, comfort, fashion, innovation and value. As Jockey grows in size and sophistication, the simple commitment to serve consumers’ needs continues to be the company’s hallmark. Our mission for Jockey brand is to establish and maintain a strong, consistent and unique global brand positioning. Jockey is the only true, authentic and original international underwear brand. We first establish our rich heritage but always bring forward to our modern, relevant positioning for today’s consumer.

Jockey Pakistan has been awarded Brands of the Year Award for four consecutive years from 2010 to 2013 in men’s undergarment category.  Award was announced by Brands Foundation in recognition to Jockey’s long commitment in providing world’s most reliable undergarments embedded with longstanding rich history throughout Pakistan.

Let me share with you what the President Jockey International Division Tim Wheeler said, “Our advertising campaigns have as rich a history as our company and both have won global acclaim for their bold approach to pushing the boundaries. From our first live underwear reveal, the Cellophane Wedding to our new SHOW YOU’RE JOCKEY campaign we continue to attract consumers to the brand from far and wide. We have rich product offering with inspiration from our roots in the USA as well our diverse international presence, and there is no better time for us to showcase this as the campaign rolls out. We are looking to capture the hearts and should of our consumers by engaging them in our brand and in our products. Show You’re Jockey is about being confident and comfortable with yourself and the brand you wear reflects that not only is your underwear Jockey, so are you.”

What would you recommend to both men and women regarding the suitable undergarments for them?

I may narrate a small story that happened a few years ago when I visited one of the departmental stores. At that time they had about 37 brands but what surprised me when the head of the store told me that he bought his undergarments from a super store. I told him you have to take into account the fact that undergarment may be a small piece of apparel but it takes care of the most delicate parts of your body. He was rather surprised to hear my comments and said that he had never thought about an undergarment in this manner. I further elaborated that it is even more important to wear good quality undergarments, an advice that I can emphatically advocate and recommend after my service with Jockey that both men and women must be very conscious of the quality of their undergarments. People must choose their undergarment very carefully depending on the nature of their activity or even profession, for all a wide product range is available whether for traveling, for a sporting activity or even a desk or computer job.

I believe you are fond of photography. Can you share some details?

Yes, photography is my passion which I pursue, thanks to the digital era which has made the entire process of photography much easier and convenient. Previously I had to rely on a dark room at my home, which was so expensive; however now photography as a hobby or a profession has become far easier. I am now planning to do an exhibition next year. I gave some of my pictures to my friends in Spain, who have motivated me to have my work exhibited. I have asked my hosts here too to take me to some rural villages so that I could quench my thirst of photography. I am not looking for a touristic place rather my area of interest is very special images that show various aspects of human beings.