2019 Winners & Shortlists

LIFE AFTER FASHION

BrandSPLASH
Product/ServiceSPLASH FASHION
EntrantTHE CLASSIC PARTNERSHIP Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
CategoryBusiness Citizenship / Corporate Responsibility
Idea Creation THE CLASSIC PARTNERSHIP Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Media Placement THE CLASSIC PARTNERSHIP Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Media Placement 2 TEAM SQUARE ADVERTISING Ajman, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
PR THE CLASSIC PARTNERSHIP Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Production THE CLASSIC PARTNERSHIP Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

Why is this work relevant for PR Lynx?

Instead of relying on conventional media channels, we turned a network of 500 laundries from across the country into an all-new media avenue. This generated a lot of buzz, and caught the attention of many of UAE's major publications, and of several influential individuals, turning the month-long initiative into a social media movement. Reaching out to 43,500,00 people and resulting in an earned PR value of $286,500 makes it relevant for this category.

Background

The United Arab Emirates’ fast-paced lifestyle has made fast fashion highly disposable to a substantial portion of the population. People discard clothes, some after less than 10 wears. In fact, 85% of garments that are retailed end up in the landfills and a measly 12% end up being donated. The concept of donating used clothes, though prevalent, is not frequent enough. Splash, as part of its corporate social responsibility, saw the need to increase the donation of old clothes. We knew that people were not hesitant to donate their old clothes. It just wasn’t on the list of priorities in their daily life. To add to that, the hassle of finding drop-off centres for old clothes was holding them back. We wanted to reach out to them, making the donation process simple and convenient.

Describe the creative idea.

We reinvented the clothes hanger, making it our campaign’s silent ambassador. We recycled over 100,000 discarded wire hangers, customizing them with faces of people in need of donated clothes. Our partnership with the direct media agency gave us access to over 500 neighbourhood laundries spread across the country to distribute these unique hangers. The less-than-a-dollar hanger reached into people’s homes at a time when their own clothes were on top of their minds, urging them to give their old clothes, a new life. The efficient network also made donating, as simple as giving clothes for laundry. Old clothes were picked-up by the laundry delivery staff and dropped off at the nearest Splash store, making it a proficient donation channel that can keep running all year round.

Describe the strategy.

The Majority of UAE'S population comprises of working professionals. They spend long hours at work and in commuting to and from work. The cost-effective neighbourhood laundries are a convenient option for washing and pressing the households’ clothes. There is a bustling network of over 500 laundries across the country. They pick-up and deliver clothes directly to people’s homes at least twice a week. The network is as efficient as clockwork. So, we hijacked this network and turned it into our media vehicle and an all-new donation channel.

Describe the execution.

100,000 discarded wire hangers were reused and customized with faces of people as a representation of the vast population in desperate need for clothes. These hangers were then distributed over a four-week-period by the neighbourhood laundries across the U.A.E. We turned something that people interact with every week into a strong media vehicle for our message. The cost-effective hangers reached people’s homes, urging them to donate clothes, which were then picked up by the laundry staff and delivered to the nearest Splash store for further distribution

List the results.

The Life After Fashion Initiative was initially started as a month-long campaign, but thanks to its reach and effectiveness, it has now become a year-round charity initiative for Splash. In the first phase, we distributed 100,000 hangers and within a month the following results were achieved. • 2.1 Tons of donated clothes were collected and distributed • The cost of each hanger was just 30 secs The brand also achieved - • 86% gain in brand loyalty • 74% gain in brand love • 52% gain in social meaning • Earned PR value - $286,500 • Total reach - 43,500,000

Credits

Name Company Role
Alok Gadkar The Classic Partnerhsip Executive Creative Director
Satyen Adhikari The Classic Partnerhsip Senior Creative Director
Prakash Elumalai The Classic Partnerhsip Copywriter
Satyen Adhikari The Classic Partnerhsip Art Director
Amr Ghoniem The Classic Partnerhsip Art Director
Vishal Vinekar The Classic Partnerhsip Senior Art Director
Satyen Adhikari The Classic Partnerhsip Copywriter
Leslie Paul The Classic Partnership Copywriter
Vitthal Deshmukh The Classic Partnership Head of Production
Shankar Chidambaram The Classic Partnerhsip Senior Production Manager
Zohra Ameen The Classic Partnerhsip Production Executive
Alex Souabni Swerve Content Manager
Akram Shams Swerve Content Producer
Sree Teja Swerve Associate Producer
Gideon Fajardo Swerve Director Of Photography
Harikrishnan Narayanan Swerve Editor/Animator
Nasir Rauf Nasir Rauf Photography Photographer
Alok Gadkar The Classic Partnerhsip General Manager