Without a doubt, retail in the US has taken a huge hit in the global financial crisis. As an example Westfield in the US has already decreased it's net worth by 10%. Perhaps though what's more interesting is the reaction that some of the big players have had in an attempt to combat further revenue loss. In 1993 we heard the phrase 'back to basics' being used in UK politics by John Major. A moral campaign designed to retrieve the governments perceived ability to safeguard public finance. Now in the US there is an obvious trend to head just that way.
After years of diversification and experimentation with company models, retailers are once again going back to the core truths of their brand. Take the classic American clothing brand 'Old Navy' for example. Old Navy (owned by the GAP group) has a long heritage in the states and is now the largest apparel brand in North America not to mention the fastest retailer to reach $1 Billion in sales. With so much competition in the market Old Navy found themselves branching out to be everything to everyone – fashion for the masses. In doing so however they were losing the identity people had come to know and trust and therefore losing traffic into stores. In fact they lost as much as 100 million footprints, which equates to 8 times the number of visitors to Disney World each year! So Old Navy had to reinvent itself and become top of mind with its customers again.
How did they do that?
By drilling down back to their DNA and developing a comprehensive picture of their target market and their needs, Old Navy realised that what people wanted was the trusted traditional brand they once knew. Great quality classics at reasonable prices. That personality archetype was summed up in 4 DNA strands. They wanted to be a brand that was:
• Value – they knew they couldn’t always be the cheapest brand on the market, especially with the likes of Wal-Mart selling clothing lines. They did want to offer their customers the best quality at the best price however.
• Family Brand
• Fashionable – Ideally they wanted customers to think ‘here’s an incredible offer at an unbeatable price’ and tell their friends what they’d purchased
• Fun – As the core essence to the brand, they wanted to reinvent the irreverence that the brand originally stood for. It’s the one unique attribute that sets Old Navy apart from its competitors.
So a new mission statement was created
Save fashion from its current place in the lowly grocery trolley so that consumers can say once again ‘I got it from Old Navy’
After years of evolution within their range and logo, Old Navy went back to the very first logo design that customers recognised and kept their model much simpler.
Their new advertising campaign reflects this quirky irreverence, true American brand identity but does so with an engaging and powerful retail idea. They created a whole group of characters with mannequins who parody celebrity gossip magazine. As celebrities are such a driver for fashion trends now what better way to drive the retail message than through the fictitious dramas that surround their lives. It is a compelling and humorous direction that delivers on their core brand values whilst keeping a strong retail feel and price focus. The touch points to this campaign were TV, in-store catalogue taking the feel of a gossip mag (each shot was part of a saga and all were shots of the mannequin characters not traditional models), in store the group of mannequins welcome you at the entrance and, online a coupon treasure hunt website was created with traffic being directed from the TVC.
Within 1 hour of the ad going on air, 2000 coupons were found online and research has shown that people once again identify with the brand, remembering the ads and feeling that they were clearly focused on the price.
And it’s not just retailers who are going ‘Back to Basics’. Customers are aswell. With less discretionary income consumer choices are leaning towards key quality items in neutral colours that will have longevity. There is less desire for quirky prints and outrageous colours. Good quality basics in classic styles and colours. And that is where traditional American brands like Old Navy are making a comeback.
