(UPDATE 7/27: Turns out that industry bible, Communications Arts, is also talking about D/C’s new Birkenstock campaign today. Just sayin’.)
Nothing to do with illegal immigration or majestic cacti. This Arizona happens to be Birkenstock’s famous two-strap sandal, and, last month, due to bold new print work from those fab fetishists at D/C, it completely (if temporarily) sold out. For perhaps the first time in its 236-year history, the venerable German footwear maker had to scramble to replenish inventory on its signature product. First indications that the campaign would be a winner came last Spring when it also helped to drive one of the biggest ever sell-ins for the brand’s women’s fashion shoes.
For women, this new campaign celebrates the fashion side of Birkenstock. For men, it’s about the outdoor lifestyle. But all the new ads use striking photo/illustration collages to encapsulate each sandal’s unique personality (sure, shoes have personalities – ask Burke Andrews) and then to tell a deeper Birkenstock story – about respect for nature and the healthy life. The illustrator was Amy Guip. The women’s ads are running in Marie Claire, ReadyMade, Budget Travel and other fashion and active-living magazines. The men’s ads can be found in, among other pubs, Men’s Journal.
See all six after the jump and click for full-size images on Flickr. Continue reading
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We all know Birkenstocks are good for you. But sometimes we need to be reminded that they also look good on you – and sometimes a little bird can do just that.
For Spring, ’09, the venerable German sandal macher, pulled out all the fashion stops, with new colors and looks meant to once and for all put to rest the notion that anti-fashion has to be funky. Then they invited D/C to communicate this shift to a marketplace that has some deeply ingrained ideas about the brand.
Whereupon D/C tossed the ball to, among others, a monkey, who seems to have nailed it. Go, monkey.
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Posted in Birkenstock | 25 August 2008 | by D/C
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This just in: Birkenstock greenlights TV spots as part of rapturously received “political” campaign. But hurry. (And we did.)
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The major party candidates blab about bringing America together, but now there is a footwear company that literally walks it like those guys talk it.
What began as a fun mini-campaign touting Birkenstock’s presence at the WSA trade show was so well-received it has been expanded into a national consumer print and online campaign. Judging by the flood of email feedback, the campaign is instantly gaining traction, especially as presidential marketing slips into negative mode.
While a political theme – even if it’s non-partisan and tongue-in-cheek – may seem unexpected, Birkenstock has long been assigned political connotations (e.g., the reporter’s shorthand for committed progressives, “Birkenstock-wearing liberals”). At the same time, research shows the brand is overwhelmingly associated with good feelings, which tend to start in a consumer’s previously aching feet but rapidly travel to his or her overall mood.
So perhaps it was not so far-fetched for Birkenstock’s campaign managers at Duncan/Channon to bring politics and positivity back together on behalf of this perennial candidate for your comfortable, casual choice of sandals. But, of course, we invite all Americans to vote with their feet.
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At Birkenstock, they believe that everything should last a long time. Starting with their customers. In this, their first national print campaign, D/C invites consumers to not only see their sandals as surprisingly stylish, but also as little fitness centers for their feet.
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D/C targeted a limited out-of-home ad campaign around the headquarters of large retailers on whom the sales force would be calling. The result was both an increased perception among buyers that “crunchy” old Birkenstock was a serious player in the industry and increased sales.
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When D/C began working with Birkenstock – makers of the venerable sandal beloved by newspaper reporters looking for shorthand to describe liberal-hippie types – the only outward facing communication they did was an overly styled, somewhat flashy and definitely “off-brand” catalog. Slick and glossy, it just seemed to have no real connection with the soul of this ancient company. So the new catalog was crafted from the same real materials used to build the shoes. It recaptured the proper tone and spirit. It served to reinvigorate the loyal Birkenstock wearer and existing retailers. And it helped the sales force better define the brand and its place to their customers as distribution expanded into more mass channels.
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