Read what our youth panelists wrote about their favourite brands:

When we asked our youth panelists to name their favourite brands, we were sure they’d all come back with ‘iPod.’ Instead we were presented with a laundry list of clothing labels. Apparently this is perfectly normal. In Youthography’s most recent survey of its Ping network of Canadian teens, 15 out of the 20 top brands chosen were stuff they wear. ‘Clothing brands, for teens, possess some of the greatest badge value compared to any other brand they own,’ says Mike Farrell, partner and chief strategic officer at Youthography. ‘It’s what they wear and carry, all of which is observed by their network of friends and the world they live in at large.’

In an effort to understand why they like what they like – and what they wear – we asked four teens (three of whom you’ll recognize from our panel) to spend some time pulling apart their favourite brands. We think what they have to say sheds light on youth brands far beyond jeans and hoodies.

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Brand profiles: Feroz – American Eagle

Brand profiles: Kanol – Joshua Perets

Brand profiles: Mohammed – Converse

Brand profiles: Jordan – West49

Youth chat – Note to brand: b urself