Where teens are a key demographic

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Being a demographic without independent purchasing power, teenagers are sometimes disregarded when it comes to planning where to focus brand and marketing strategies. Self-sufficient adults in the 25-55 range are the most sought-after, while infants and children are the next-best audience because their parents tend to want “the best” for them– or at the very least give in very easily to their spontaneous purchasing whims. Teenagers, whose only income is the money gifted by their parents, were traditionally considered risky audience to sell to. There is no nationwide statistic on how much the average teenager can afford, nor can retail companies coerce their parents to purchasing on the teens’ behalf the way baby products seem to have the power to do.



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In the last decade, product manufacturers and marketing companies alike have both seen the change in the role of the American teen. Although still dependent, to a certain extent, on their parents’ income, teenagers have taken on a new identity. They are the impassioned youth, voice of tomorrow, and one of the biggest influencers in modern media. Music artists, movie actors, and societal personalities crave teenage approval– so much so that there are even “Teen Awards” to celebrate people and brands that have won the hearts of America’s future.



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In appreciating the value of the teenage opinion, major fashion magazines have released issues geared towards 13- to 19-year olds. Teen Vogue, for example, features the same high-fashion couture but makes use of teenage themes, accessories, and real-life scenarios to paint the relevance of the style. If the biggest names in fashion publication is listening to teens, surely there is power in what they have to say.


Companies like Levi Strauss & Co. have had to understand and cater to the teen demand. Read more about responding to the market from the former CIO, David Bergen, on this website.

Why the rich keep working

The American dream is a relative concept. Overall, it advocates that life, regardless of what state it is in, can be improved by traditional hard work. It suggests a minimum wage earner can own a house and maybe even a car, or that middle-class parents can live in a gated community and send their children to a private school by putting in enough hours at their respective work places. Upward mobility is every worker’s ambition, but what happens when they get to the top?

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Living in the rat race, most nine-to-five workers dream of a fortune: an “I quit” sum of money for which they would leave their jobs and never return to any work again. For some, this is a million dollars; for more reasonable or modest livers, “the number” does not even come close to half. It may seem like an impossible figure, but a diligent few have already managed to earn their dream cash prize before retirement age. What is surprising to observe is that, once they reach “that point” in their lives, they do the opposite of what they may have promised themselves as young workers: they continue to work.

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For former CEO Steve Jobs, continuing to work at Apple clearly became about more than money and stocks. Until his illness got the better of him, Jobs continued to dedicate himself to his company because he wanted to see his ideas manifested. A visionary like Jobs could not simply be a spectator; he needed to see his ideas come to life to feel fulfilled before he died. Other top-level company executives like, Alan Meckler, CEO of WebMediaBrands with a net worth is over $400 million; Paul Allen, the lesser known co-founder of Microsoft; David Bergen, former CIO for Levis Strauss, could leave their jobs any minute and have enough money for several lifetimes, but choose to stay for posterity. Perhaps the rich continue to work because, once they get to “that point” in their life, they move past thinking of their work as a “job” and instead come think of it as life.

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Effective leaders produce work that speaks for itself. David Bergen of Levi Strauss provides tips and suggestions on how to maximize any size of team on this Twitter account.

Beating the rain with a sophisticated information system

Unexpected events are a constant challenge to managers. While good leaders can mitigate the effects of any sudden changes on business operations, the ability to do so is often maimed by complexity, particularly in the case of globalized supply chains. But with the development of information systems for business, the challenge has become more conquerable for managers around the globe.

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Today’s globalized supply chains operate amidst various factors that can affect them both positively and negatively. Many of these factors are foreseeable, but some occur without warning. Sudden events, such as earthquakes and other calamities, political upheavals, and epidemics, among others, often have adverse effects on the supply chain.

Primarily, these factors can disrupt logistics and interrupt the smooth flow of products and services from manufacturers to customers. Distance—a common hindrance in any globalized operations—can reduce the manager’s capacity to mitigate the damage done. Products lost to unexpected events translate to wasted resources and unattainable profits.

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Companies nowadays utilize information systems to reduce the losses incurred due to unexpected occurrences. Using them, managers have better access to information on the state of business operations, this regardless of distance. They are also able to make more accurate predictions based on logic and probability.

Moreover, managers can devise solutions using information systems. In the case of disrupted logistics, they can find alternative routes and methods to transport goods within the deadline without exerting too much effort. This can also serve to even out inconsistencies and inefficiencies across the entire supply chain.

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Information systems have multiple uses in today’s organizations. Indeed, they have become indispensable components of any company’s preparation for sudden changes, and one of the best investments in avoiding loss.

During his stint as CIO of Levi Strauss, David Bergen used his expertise in information systems to effect changes that enhanced the company’s supply chain. Learn more by visiting this Facebook page.

Gained a few pounds? Here's how to return (almost) anything

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While many of your friends have known you well enough to give appropriate presents, some become overexcited at bulk sales or simply expect you will love their radical gift idea. Whatever the reason, most holiday celebrators can expect to receive a gift or two they simply wouldn’t keep. Returning the present to the giver is considered rude, while returning it to the store for cash is impossible. Assuming the giver did not include a gift receipt, here are two other ways you can get something you like out of the present you don’t:


Swap it for an item of the same price


You may not have liked the piece you were given, but chances are you’ll find something that suits you in the store’s other collections. Have the cashier determine the cost of your present and find an item you like that costs the same or a little bit more. If there’s an item you’ve been eyeing, now is the time to give it to yourself on behalf of a friend.

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Ask for store credit


If you receive a gift from a store you would simply never shop at, have the value of your item exchanged for store credit. Most major retail outlets allow this and replace the item with a plastic store card. So many shoppers have been in this predicament that third-party gift card websites actually exist to swap or sell store credit. You might want to save the card for a time you’ll need to buy something new– like when you lose all your holiday weight from jogging all summer.


Gift giving can be a tricky process, but it doesn’t have to bog you down. If you’re thinking about returning or replacing an unwanted gift, ConsumerWorld.org has published a list of major store policies to help you get started.

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While working at Levi Strauss, David Bergen made sure customers could shop and return their purchases with ease. Read more about his innovative ideas on this blog.

Dad jeans: David Bergen and denims for working men

David Bergen is the former Senior Vice President and Global CIO of Levi Strauss & Co. He obtained his Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems degree from the University of Nevada and is currently the Managing Director of the global professional services firm Alvarez & Marsal.

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Fashion seems to cater favorably to women. Magazines offer hundreds of suggestions for a lady’s seasonal wardrobe. Runways feature more than twice as many designs for the female form as they do men. Retail outlets have created a woman-specific jean cut known commonly as "mom jeans." Men, on the other hand, receive no special mention.


David Bergen was responsible for redesigning Levi Strauss & Co.’s supply chain and deploying new distribution channels that efficiently supported customers like Target and Walmart.

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Men’s fashion seems to conform to a tradition. They are expected to wear pants and shirts, varying only in fit – tight or baggy – and in color trend. Recently, however, clothes makers have began to shift the retail spotlight to the untapped market of men. In the last few years, masculine equivalents of products that were deemed solely for female use have found their way into the shelves, including men’s vanity and hygiene products. Where department stores sold mom jeans, they now sell the dad equivalent.

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Famed actor Ryan Gosling is often quoted in his role as Jacob Palmer, the dating guru in the hit romantic comedy, Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011). In the film, Palmer recites the mantra, "Be better than The Gap." Jeans can and have been made to cater to and flatter the male form. They can be worn with office tops to a regular work day, or on the corporate “casual Friday.” Despite traditional usage, jeans are no longer solely for casual wear.

To read more about David Bergen, visit this website.

David Bergen: Global brands, earth crammed in a pair of jeans

The perils of being a global jeans brand are first world pains. First of all, being a global brand is precisely the non-problem information officers of global brands, like David Bergen, would love to handle. More so in fashion retail, where success in the flagship country is indubitably success in the knockoffs sector. This could only signify brand recognition anywhere in the world, including peasant-capitalist hybrid economy Mongolia, and the 3-for-200-baht-jeans of Bangkok side streets.

David Bergen Levi Strauss. Image credit: Housebeautiful.com

The biggest worry in expanding is banalization. The jeans industry is as susceptible as fast food chains to cloyed markets, and the former doesn’t even benefit from addictive food seasoning. But if product dispersal reaches as far as developing countries, advertising budgets are necessarily lower, and sales are rattled off simply by word of mouth.

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If Levi’s arrived in the shores of, say, the Philippines, it wouldn’t need evangelizing missions like the islands’ Spanish conquistadores did in the 16th century. David Bergen and his ilk only ever need to cut ribbons on branch opening day with the help of a local VIP or two. Globalization dictates that a brand name touches base before the product ever does, and with the advent of social media, Kim Kardashian tweeting a photo of herself wearing the product is a better and faster proposition.

David Bergen Levi Strauss. Image credit: Deviceone.eu

Back to banalization: there isn’t much by way of curtailing imitations and market saturation. Fortunately, jeans are starting to resemble a Veblen good, again, thanks to Kim Kardashian and peerless trends. An original pair of Levi’s, despite and because of the price, fetches more demand from the target market than a Chinese factory imitation.

David Bergen is former information chief of Levi Strauss. Read more about the jeans industry on this Facebook page.

David Bergen: The scars of sandblasting

Information officers for top brands like David Bergen, formerly of Levi Strauss, would know how bad corporate practices generate toxic publicity. In a related vein, the denim industry is realizing the drawbacks of hazardous methods as value-adding measures to jeans.

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Sandblasting does not ring a standard-issue idea of exploitative labor practices, but it reportedly does its dark work. The process is quite singular and disproportionate to its frivolous purpose: making jeans look more bespoke as they age. Global brands like Levi Strauss, H&M, New Look, and Marks & Spencer have condemned the practice, even banning it from their production. These stakeholders have since decried other jeans’ producers’ failure to follow suit.

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Sandblasting exposes workers to silica dust derived from sand, causing severe respiratory ailments. Jeans prepped with this method have been thereafter known as “killer jeans.”

David Bergen was part of Levi Strauss & Co. at a time it had established its lead in the industry. In 2010, the pioneering jeans company issued a strong, unequivocal message on sandblasting: No.

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Initially, as sandblasting was gaining an insidious global reputation as a health hazard to jeans workers, the plan was merely to intensify safety practices and health programs. However, Levi Strauss Chief Supply Chain Officer David Love pronounced the practice wholly untenable, and the company most averse to the smallest risks that sandblasting may inflict upon its employees.

Go to this David Bergen Facebook page for an insider’s look at the business of making jeans.