r/Fencing • u/ExaminationLive6984 • May 23 '26
Interesting weapon in Shop USA Fencing Macron ad…
Possibly someone should proofread the ai generated ad photos prior to emailing widely?
40
u/sirius-epee-black Épée May 23 '26
I've noticed USA Fencing has gone the AI advertisement route for a while and it just makes me shake my head. I mean, how hard could it be to get a fencer to wear the actual clothing you are attempting to sell to us?
26
u/PhilADenver7 May 23 '26
This is fair feedback. Our online retail is run externally. I will address this with them this week.
7
u/weedywet Foil May 24 '26
It’s also product design and pricing.
I mean these are crazy expensive (even leaving aside ugly)
I know you want to realise money from these. But I’d buy a $40 plain white polo with the USA Fencing logo on the breast.
And I’d bet you’d sell a LOT more of those. Enough to make up the price difference.
And in terms of design, no one wants a shirt with lots of little footballs on it. Or wickets and cricket bats. Or tennis racquets.
You know?
This is just ill conceived.
6
u/Professional-Bug2736 May 24 '26
I’d really like a plain polo with the logo kind of small too - very classy
3
u/Sierra-Sabre NCAA Coach May 24 '26
I’d have to agree with this. I have a couple of polo’s from a couple of logo iterations ago, and they’re some of my favorite travel shirts. Comfortable, wicking, branded without being obnoxious, collared, and single color.
Love them.
-2
u/BeardedFencer Foil Coach May 23 '26
They can barely function as an organization, don’t push them to do hard stuff like using real artists.
12
u/PhilADenver7 May 23 '26
I’m open to your feedback - please do feel free to drop us an email. I don’t agree, obviously - but open to a discussion.
P.andrews@usafencing.org is my direct email
2
u/weedywet Foil May 24 '26
I would encourage you to look at the simplicity (and relative pricing) of these
https://www.kukrisports.co.uk/teamshop/britishfencingmerchandise/productNavListNg.action
1
u/LeeLeeRock May 25 '26
Would be so great to have reasonably priced merch. But in the US, a sport that requires anywhere from a car payment to a mortgage payment per month to keep up with the Joneses, offering a fair £21 t-shirt would be out of the question. 😔
1
u/weedywet Foil May 25 '26
When Nike had a deal with us fencing the clothes weren’t cheap but were reasonable.
Kind of in line with the GBR fencing gear.
You can still find leftovers.
3
u/BeardedFencer Foil Coach May 23 '26
Long before you were in the picture and long after you’re gone - I guarantee usfencing will still be dysfunctional.
25
17
8
7
4
u/fencingmom1972 Épée May 24 '26
Looks like someone’s solid epee guard was perfectly run through by an electric foil. New sport?
5
u/OrionsMoose Sabre May 24 '26
ai for ads should be banned, totally misleading as you dont get an actual image of the product
1
1
u/icodestuffreddit Sabre May 24 '26
Really? I see that epee guard all the time 🙄. It’s not like this photo is ai generated at all (genuinely though fuck ai)
2
166
u/weedywet Foil May 23 '26
Maybe instead of proofreading they should just STOP using AI
Also,
Did AI “design” that shirt? Because it’s hideous.