Rishi, Week 9: Power in the Most Unusual Places
Rishi, Week 9: Power in the Most Unusual Places
It is just before dawn, and Mark Court wakes up early to catch his morning tea. There is a long day ahead of him but he is looking forward to it. His days excite him—much more than the common man—but they haven’t changed in over 18 years. He dreads weekends, they pull away from his focus to his passion. Court works for Rolls Royce, a luxury car manufacturer based in England, owned by the multinational conglomerate BMW.
He has an unusual job: painting a pinstripe down the end of a Rolls-Royce vehicle. He is the only person in the whole world that is qualified and tasked to complete that unique challenge. The “iconic” pinstripe is “equal parts timeless and contemporary,” as defined by the Rolls-Royce website, attracting the richest and most powerful clientele.
Despite Court’s seemingly excessive and meaningless job, it represents the immense power that he and the Rolls-Royce brand hold. One mishap, one slight tilt of the paintbrush can damage a car well worth over a million dollars. As the sole Rolls-Royce pinstripe painter with the skill needed for the craft, only he can do it to par. Court is often flown to places like Dubai, New York City, Paris, etc. to add the final touch to the cars that are produced for his customers. He commands all the power. Rolls-Royce’s investment in the smallest touches represents the bespoke craftsmanship that its clients look for and expect, and this drives many more to seek Court’s distinctive touch. Without Court’s pinstripe, is it really a Rolls-Royce?
Rolls-Royce’s play to uphold their brand identity and customer focus, leading to the creation of Court’s position in the company, has made him a tool of power. Power is concentrated in the most unusual places; even a painter of a pinstripe can feel like the most powerful man in the world.
Picture from Unsplash by Jason An
Inspiration from this article
This is really funny because I recently found out that the stripes on Mini-Cooper cars are just stickers that can be easily removed. In contrast, Court and Rolls-Royce definitely have more power with their very particular way of handcrafting the cars they manufacture. I wonder what will happen when Court passes away. Will people value Rolls-Royce cars less without the signature stripe from Mark Court himself?
ReplyDeleteThis was definitely a really interesting blog to read because I never would have imagined that one man could hold so much in power when his only job was to paint on stripes, a task that machines have long perfected. It really shows that power is not a definitive thing and that often, the things and people who have power are those that we choose to give power too. I would have thought that it would be much more efficient to simply paint on the pinstripe in factories, but these brands vice versa also give these pinstripes on cars, a relatively ordinary thing, exceptional power by having only person in the world that can paint them correctly.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your blog because you stuck with a storytelling style which was engaging. Your blog reminds me of the business concept of supply and demand because it shows that when a brand maintains low supply it creates demand in the product. This can be connected to Mark Court because he is marketed as the “sole Rolls-Royce pinstripe painter” which makes his work exclusive to people who buy the car. When companies put a face behind the product it also gives them the power to use that person as a spokesperson. I think the idea of keeping a low supply can keep companies powerful but should be regulated for common goods in case it is harming the public prices.
ReplyDeleteHi Rishi! I have never been much of a car person, but your blog was certainly interesting to read about. Since Mark Court is not a famous artist, how exactly did the British luxury car manufacturer decide on having Mark Court complete the seriously pressuring job? I also wonder what would happen when Mark Court passes away? Though he does hold a great amount of power, what would happen if he were to be replaced?
ReplyDeleteHey Rishi! This was honestly really interesting to read even though I’m not someone who’s very much into looking into the details of cars. That being said, it's interesting how so many normal human beings ended up gaining so much power by designing cars. There are so many people who have designed designer cars like the Rolls-Royce, Lamborghini etc. Even though they still thrive to this day, what would happen in the future if the creator passes away? Will the car gain more value? Will people still buy the car or will it disappear from the car industry someday?
ReplyDeleteHi Rishi! Your blog was so interesting to read! We recently learned about Ford's assembly line in US History, and how that revolutionized the car industry as well as many other industries. Essentially, one worker is responsible for one part of the car. But the fashion and luxury industry doesn't sell to the mass public, so their situation differentiates. Instead, they probably have one person do one thing because it equals luxury and sets their brand apart, like Court's pinstripe for the Rolls-Royce brand. But you pose an interesting question: Would people buy the car if Rolls-Royce didn't have that iconic pinstripe? At this point in time, luxury brands are heavily based on one logo or one distinguishing feature, which, when displayed, represents a status symbol. Apple, Louis Vuitton, and of course, Rolls Royce, to name a few, are brands that are typically bought to show status. Thus, the designers, machines, and artisans that create those logos must hold so much personal power. But I still wonder, if there WAS a slight tilt in the pinstripe, would we even notice?
ReplyDeleteHi Rishi! I never thought about how such simple actions like the slight tilt of a paintbrush can hold so much power over the brand. I wonder what standards they used to select who they wanted to be their pinstripe painter. This is indeed an interesting branding technique since it makes the car seem more authentic with a specific designated painter.
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ReplyDeleteHi Rishi,
I think the topic of your blog post is hilarious. One guy who paints stripes on cars essentially became the Royle Royce brand. Without him, the company would probably lose millions. I do not understand how before selling a car, the company had to wait for Mark Court to paint stripes on it by hand. Even if they developed a factory to mass produce their cars, their production would only be as fast as Mark Court could paint! Overall, I think it is phenomenal how power can be concentrated anywhere and to anyone who finds themselves in a lucky or interesting enough situation.
Hi Rishi, I didn’t know there was only one RR pinstripe painter. That’s cool to think about, but also probably stressful for him. It sounds like he is very good at his job because they haven’t felt the need to train others. The question comes to mind “How old is he?” “Who would take his place and do this important job if he were to get very old, or worse, pass away?” We depend on many, many people to make the world work. So many jobs that people do may seem meaningless and unhelpful, but each and every person working together fuels our planet in this interconnected way, which entitles every person to a bit of power.
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