Anti-tie campaign

How much power do marketers (in particular advertisers) actually have? An interesting experiment I'd happily fund (if I was a billionaire) would be to challenge a group of marketers (e.g. students or a professional firm) to get rid of the tie. In some ways its not a tough sell: ties cost money; they take time to put on; and they're uncomfortable. They are a complete waste of economic resource. However, our cultural attachment to them persists. Could a group of marketers with the right resources kill the tie? I'd like to know.