Uniqlo – UK Visual Merchandising
From Tokyo to London
Uniqlo is an iconic Japanese fashion brand that is bigger than Ralph Lauren in terms of sales. It attempted and failed to launch in the UK in 2000, but tried again in 2007 - Uniqlo approached ODD to help them launch, manage and maintain the growth of Uniqlo in the UK.
First challenge? Launch 2 stores on London’s busiest shopping street on the same day. Instead of a conventional store launch we created an in-store experience using advertising to encourage people to play. A tease and reveal campaign created intrigue and drew people to the stores. On press night performances from Daisy Lowe, Florence & the Machine, Kid Harpoon & People are Germs attracted the right mix of East London taste makers, fashion press and aficionados and a competition to see Dizzee Rascal perform in-store the following public launch day attracted further interest online. Launch day sales exceeded any other store launch figures in just 3 hours. PR media value of £1,468,941, 60% higher than media spend.
Then there was UT, a yearly initiative that invites creative talent across the globe to design t-shirts that form a collection of over 700 designs. We created a guerilla store dedicated to UT in the Truman Brewery. Alexa Cheung DJ’d on the opening night and our UT campaign became a promotional success for Uniqlo who consistently sold out of all stock in the temporary store.
Our visual merchandising at the flagship store in Bond Street enticed passers-by and browsers to become Uniqlo shoppers - increasing footfall by over 30%. We launched the Selfridges concession with bus sides, digital escalator panels, a tip-in look book in the Evening Standard and a range of other advertising collateral to support the brand expansion.
The launch campaign won an Eventia UK Award in for Best Product Launch (Gold).
