Alexander Wang has been spreading summer cheer in Hong Kong with a black ice cream truck stationed outside its Harbour City store for the past two weekends. The branded van has been handing out free ice cream to customers and passers-by.
The ‘Eat Me’ campaign, developed in collaboration with HK boutique, Joyce, was launched to celebrate the two year anniversary of Alexander Wang Harbour City. Those who commemorated their ‘Eat Me’ moment on Instagram using the hashtags #joycehk and #alexanderwanghk had the chance to win an Alexander Wang gift.
Sure enough, the initiative drew quite a crowd – people of all ages were captured queuing up for the chance to enjoy ice cream out of the branded ice cream cones. The result was Instagram buzz from young and old alike, with winners of the competition receiving prizes such as a yoga matt and a domino set.
British contemporary brand, Whistles, has launched a short video directed by Garance Doré to celebrate its further expansion into the US and France.
Called #bellesandwhistles, the spot features a cast of “modern, sharp and stylish” women living in the US, UK and France. Among them are Yasmin Sewell, a London-based fashion consultant; Elle Strauss, fashion director of Shopbop and Brit living in New York; Vashtie Kola, an American artist and DJ; Jeanann Williams, an American stylist; French actress Rebecca Dayan; and French DJ and creative consultant Cecile Togni.
They are each seen clapping, dancing and whistling along to the tune, as overlaid copy reads: “The Whistles woman is independent, quietly brilliant, relaxed, discerning, elegant, intelligent, sharp, stylish.”
Jane Shepherdson, chief executive of Whistles, referred to the campaign as a digital first for the brand. “We see a great synergy between the aesthetic of both Whistles and Garance, which has been brought to life in the #bellesandwhistles film. To have such inspiring women working on and in the film is representative of the brand’s DNA, it’s like working with friends who understand you.”
The video launched on the Garance Doré website today, May 19, while shorter versions are also being posted to Instagram with the #bellesandwhistles hashtag. Consumer are simultaneously being invited to submit their own ‘whistling’ clips on the platform for a chance to win a shopping spree in the store.
Whistles is opening its first brick-and-mortar presence in the US, with a concession at Bloomingdale’s in New York. It is also supplementing its already established concession at Le Printemps, with Le BHV Marais this month and will roll out a French language website this summer.
John Lewis is continuing the celebrations for its 150-year anniversary with a crowdsourced GIF campaign.
Created to accompany its new TV ad dedicated to British history, the initiative invites fans to submit their own animated images or videos of up to 15-seconds in length, showing how they’re “always moving – dancing, running, learning new things”.
That concept ties to its tagline for the whole campaign: “For 150 years you’ve never stood still. Neither have we.”
Entries can be submitted via Tumblr, Google+, Instagram, Facebook or Twitter using the #JL150 hashtag up until May 30. A winner will be picked at random and awarded £1,500 of JL vouchers; a further £150 of vouchers will be given to their favourite entry each week.
The company has also launched its own #JL150 Tumblr page housing numerous versions of its own GIFs (examples below) – some of the pulled from the TV ad and others showcasing the commemorative products created for the anniversary in collaboration with some of Britain’s most loved brands and designers.
Check out the John Lewis Facebook page too for news on further celebrations in-store, as well as a content series dedicated to different decades.
Hermès wins on the video front once again this season, with the recent launch of a creative and quirky menswear campaign starring Ballet de l’Opéra National de Paris dancer Jérémie Bélingard.
Directed by Romain Laurent, the 60-second spot – called Man on the Move – sees Bélingard walking around an “urban playground”, as he does so automatically transforming from one outfit to the next.
Like a fashionable shafeshifter, when he bumps into a lamppost, his jacket and granddad-collar shirt are replaced with a white printed shirt and green trousers; when he hits the wall with the chime of a pinball machine, the green jacket to match those trousers arrives. It’s not long however before that suit gets left behind like a shell of his form as he walks forward once again…
And so the ad continues, cleverly placing numerous products from the line aside one another, including scarves, bags, and yes, even underwear.
Kickstarting officially in London on April 24, the retailer is introducing a campaign called #canthelpmyselfie, inviting shoppers to snap pictures of themselves to create a live display of its seasonal collection in store windows.
Fans are invited to book an appointment via the website for a variety of stores around the country (starting in Regent Street this week before touring to five other cities including Manchester and Newcastle through May) – once there they will select their favourite pieces from the line to wear, indulge in a mini makeover session and then jump into an interactive selfie booth to snap their photo for the whole high street to see.
Jon Carney, creative partner at digital agency Somewhat, which collaborated on the project, said: “Mobile and social channels are an essential part of how millennial consumers interact with brands, and especially how they can experience fashion brands. As consumers’ physical and digital worlds are increasingly converging and colliding, brands need to respond with campaigns that bridge both worlds seamlessly.”
The real-time “phy-gital” initiative, as its being referred to, simultaneously employs live engagement with passersby by inviting them to ‘vote’ for their favourite look by placing their hand in front of sensors in the windows. The best selfies selected will be in with a chance of winning a £1,000 shopping spree.
Spring cheer is in the air over at Oasis just in time for Easter, with a new campaign encouraging consumers to undertake simple acts of kindness in a bid to make people smile.
The UK-based retailer has introduced a virtual good deed generator at springasmile.com that inspires users with ideas for things they could do through a slot machine-like experience. At the click of a button (spin), keywords like ‘buy’, ‘give’ and ‘make’ are surfaced in the left hand window, alongside ‘someone flowers’ through to ‘coffee for the next person in line’ on the right.
Once achieved, the user is invited to nominate three friends to do the same via Facebook or Twitter before they receive a plaque stating what they’ve pledged. Oasis refers to this as the “perfect way to pay it forward and raise a smile amongst even the grumpiest of friends”.
The site also encourages users to revisit and upload a photo or video of their #springasmile in action into the “good deeds album”. All round, it’s a lovely and very sweet experience.
Side note – some of the early tweets around #springasmile come from employees at the company. If anyone thought this was a campaign just for external consumption you’d be wrong. The positive effect it’s seemingly had internally is impressive. One such comment: “Even though I had a crazy day and left 2 hours after eveyone else I had the best day! Can’t stop grinning :D… Thats when you know you’ve chosen the right career and you work for lovely people! #springasmile.”
Below too is what the head office therefore looked like this week (Image credit: @AmieMartin_). A winner through and through…
If we’re basing it on sheer volume of pranks, Google probably wins April Fools’ Day. But, perhaps seeing the “holiday” as a prime marketing opportunity, the fashion world got in on the fun as well — some of them incorporating elaborate videos and impressive new products into their jokes.
Here are a few brands and retailers that almost had us fooled…
Hunter introduced a new open-toe Wellington boot just in time for festival season. Referred to as the “latest in product innovation” from the brand, the design is a replica of the original rain boot first introduced in 1955 but with a new focus on breathability. “This revolutionary design enables air flow to circulate from the opening at the toe, traveling along the footbed to then exit at the top of the boot (and vice versa). The wearer is afforded a truly ventilated experience. This new technology is expected to represent an industry changing moment for rubber footwear,” read the fictitious write-up.
Bonobos
Bonobos made fun of the wearables market with the “launch” of a line of tech-enabled shirts, blazers and jeans meant to make “living your life as effortless as your style”. In the above video, a man demonstrates the capabilities of a washed poplin shirt. There’s “wi-fiber” that keeps you constantly in contact with a female voice seemingly inspired by Spike Jonze film, “Her”; smart fabric that knows when you’re lying based on your body temperature; and a feature that posts things to your Facebook wall, sometimes when you don’t want it to.
John Lewis
This would be clever if it weren’t creepy: UK department store John Lewis announced a new hi-tech electronic mirror that will provide shoppers with their precise measurements in seconds. The Scanning Computer and Mirror (SCAM) system – note the first clue – was to be trialled in the retailer’s Isles of Scilly store – clue two – before being rolled out around the country. It will use technology similar to that in airports, allowing fit “advisers” to get an eyeful of customers, reported the Daily Mail. As a result, sales associates were to be given “special intimacy training so as not to infringe the customer’s dignity” according to the brand.
American Eagle Outfitters
“We pulled your tail” shouts the headline on American Eagle Outfitters’ blog today. It introduced the idea of a doggy line called American Beagle Outfitters a week ago, but what was intended to be an April Fools’ joke to raise money for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), actually got such an overwhelming and positive response, the retailer is actually making it happen. A real canine collection is set to debut for Holiday 2014.
Lululemon
Lululemon promoted its new “Spray-On Yoga Pants” on its site today: It’s a $1200 can that pokes fun at the company’s see-through pants scandal of 2013. “Designed for lightweight flexibility and versatility, our newest innovation, Spray-On Yoga Pants, will take us to and through our practice without the fuss,” read the hilarious description.
Toms X Uber
Toms announced a partnership with Uber in a new initiative called shuberX. Basically, cardboard cars collect passengers and give them a pair of Toms shoes to wear as they run down the street. What’s great about this prank is that new Uber users who do actually enter promo code #shuberx when ordering a car will see $10 donated on their behalf to Footwork, TOMS’ partner in fighting podoconiosis. How very Toms of them.
Asos
On its men’s blog, Asos wrote a post chronicling the trend for beard bleaching. Those in the know are growing big bushy beards and then dyeing them radical new colors, like electric blue with purple highlights, it claimed. The e-tailer even attributed the trend to one “revolutionary Danish barber”: Alaxånder Alexandrå.
H&M’s sister brand & Other Stories has unveiled a short campaign clip it refers to as “not your ordinary fashion film”.
Starring French It-Girl and blogger Jeanne Damas, the humorous spot portrays “the tormented soul of the self-indulgent ‘Bohemian’ who can’t decide which pieces from & Other Stories’ collection to wear”.
Shot inside a Parisian apartment, it sees the model conversing with the camera about how she feels; laughing, crying, jumping on the couch, running around the room, and all the while showcasing a variety of different looks from the line.
It was directed by Wendy McColm, who reportedly aimed to present a darker subtext pointing to changes that need to be made to the way women are portrayed both in, and by, the fashion industry.
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