Daffy’s Inc., an off-price retailer based in the New York metropolitan region, has launched its first branding campaign with new agency of record Johannes Leonardo that includes a new online presence, a contest to win the lease for an apartment and advertising across multiple channels.
The effort is designed to appeal to fashion- and value-conscious shoppers while establishing Daffy’s as a leading destination for luxury bargains.
Daffy’s “has great merchandise,” said Matt Ahumada, account manager for Daffy’s at Johannes Leonardo. The overall look and feel of the effort seeks to “elevate the brand” while “cleaning up the overall image,” he added.
“Digital is the first place we decided to start,” Ahumada said. A new teaser Daffy’s Web site launched this week with the full site scheduled to go up on July 23. In the past, “people used the site for information, to find out where the stores are located. We see a huge opportunity to tap into digital media, increase the site’s robustness and keep people coming back,” Ahumada continued.
One of the new features set to launch next week is called Truck Tracker, which will enable users to find out when trucks are unloading brand new merchandise at individual stores. Another element set to launch soon will give a closer look at the merchandise, said Ahumada. The site also promotes Daffy’s loyalty club, Daffy’s Club, and a contest that is an integral part of Johannes Leonardo’s campaign. The site isn’t e-commerce enabled.
The contest runs from July 23 through August 14. Consumers enter by to win a lease for The Daffy’s Apartment by submitting a 30-second video via in-store video capture areas. The apartment has a suggested rental price of $7,000 per month, but the contest winner will pay only $700 per month.
The contest “is a great way to show the value Daffy’s offers in its pricing by translating this into one of the biggest pain points for New Yorkers – rent,” said Ahumada. Plus, the campaign is a way to break through the clutter in a retail environment where “everyone is screaming discount,” he added.
During the contest period, Daffy’s will open a temporary pop-up store on the ground level of The Daffy’s Apartment building at One 7th Avenue South in the West Village.
The campaign will be supported with banner ads on the Web site for Time Out New York and elsewhere. There will also be print ads in New York magazine and Time Out New York, a radio element and wild postings around New York City. Some non-traditional elements include postings on Craigslist.org for the apartment and flyers on billboards around the New York University and Columbia University campuses with a number that can be torn off and called to hear more about the contest. Finally, street teams in populated areas near Daffy’s stores will direct passersby to the stores to participate in the contest.
Johannes Leonardo, a WPP agency, teamed up with Alliance, another WPP shop, on the campaign, with Johannes Leonardo handling the creative and Alliance driving the experiential program.
