LEVI’S® LAUNCHES ITS LARGEST GLOBAL MARKETING EFFORT EVER

Levi Strauss & Co is rolling out its largest global marketing effort ever with the ‘Live Unbuttoned’ campaign which will internationally re-launch their flagship product - the Levi’s® 501® – in August this year.

 

Levi’s® advertising campaigns - like Michel Gondry’s ‘Mermaids’ and Jonathan Glazer’s ‘Odyssey’ - have set the standard in terms of innovation and seamless execution, clinching many top international advertising awards over the years. Levi Strauss & Co believe the multi-million dollar ‘Live Unbuttoned’ campaign will raise the bar even further.

 

Created by internationally acclaimed agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH), the campaign consists of a range of TV commercials, print ads and a highly interactive website. There is also an extensive online component including social networking and viral/guerilla tactics developed by OgilvyOne Worldwide.

 

The TV commercials have been shot by world-renowned director Fredrik Bond, Boards Magazine’s ‘Top One to Watch’ Emil Möller and Jeff Labbe, who was named Best Director in the Boards Competition in 2006. The print ads will be shot by 2005’s International Photographer of the Year Jim Ficus.

 

Debbie Gebhardt, Marketing Director for Levi Strauss South Africa says that the launch TV commercial called ‘Unbreakable’ by Fredrik Bond was deemed more relevant for the South African market compared to the other three TV adverts.

 

“The phrase ‘Live Unbuttoned’ can be interpreted in a number of ways and each TV commercial takes a slightly different approach.

 

 “‘Unbreakable’ focuses on embracing the ‘Live Unbuttoned’ attitude. It’s all about living out loud and being your authentic self, in spite of the pressures of society,” she says.

 

“We feel that this commercial best describes the South African Levi’s® 501® jeans wearer and that it will amplify the core value of the Levi’s® 501® brand as an authentic, original product.

 

“We also feel that it dovetails most effectively with our efforts in raising awareness around HIV/AIDS in our local Levi’s® Red for Life campaign compared to the other adverts which take a slightly more mischievous line,” explains Gebhardt.

 

Describing the ‘Live Unbuttoned’ campaign, Gebhardt says that the act of unbuttoning has always featured prominently in Levi’s® 501® advertising and that the ‘Live Unbuttoned’ campaign takes the interpretation of ‘unbuttoning’ to more metaphorical territory.

 

In the TV ad ‘Unbreakable’, wearing a pair of Levi’s® 501® jeans is equated with being undaunted and unyielding. In fast-moving sling shot camera work, the characters are ‘hit’ by an invisible force representing oppression and the pressures of convention, but they remain undefeated every time.

 

“The overall effect delivers a dramatic interpretation of ‘Living Unbuttoned’ – living free from social constraints and fear,” says Gebhardt.

 

Levi Strauss SA have also announced that advertising and marketing material from the ‘Live Unbuttoned’ campaign that is used in South Africa will carry a responsible message – ‘Unbutton Responsibly’ - as well as the Levi’s® Red for Life red ribbon logo.

 

“Levi’s® 501® is one of the strongest consumer brands in the world. We are so excited at the opportunity to align this super-brand with our efforts in the local Levi’s® Red for Life campaign to raise awareness around HIV/AIDS particularly amongst the youth,” says Gebhardt.