Starting With The (Wo)man in the Mirror…

Via your classmate Laura

Famous Canadian athleisure brand Lululemon delivers more than tank tops and yoga mats to their customers; they deliver a thriving brand community that people want to be a part of. By promoting values of mindfulness, health, and total wellness, this brand is communicating that it understands who their customers are and what appeals to them.

As a lifestyle brand that is synonymous with health and wellness, Lululemon has promoted a cult-like community of avid fitness fiends. Whether their customers are elite athletes training for the Olympics or busy moms looking for comfy gear for their everyday lives, Lululemon wants to connect with their customers and make them feel good about themselves. To do so, the brand has completed its first ever acquisition: fitness tech company, Mirror. The home fitness start-up sells mountable mirrors on which customers can stream live workout classes. This $500 million acquisition is a step in the right direction to keep connecting with their customers once they’ve left the store, further driving Lululemon as an experiential brand (Maheshwari 2020).

To become a true lifestyle brand, companies have to resonate with their consumers (Harvey, 2018). As the creators of the “athleisure” industry, it’s safe to say Lululemon has succeeded here. Lululemon has become a total experience for consumers, providing value beyond their quality products (Segran, 2018). This is seen through their consumer-based health and fitness events and experiential store in Chicago, offering in-store fitness classes, and a smoothie bar (Lululemon, 2020). This type of commitment to their customers will only be strengthened with their acquisition of Mirror. By giving customers a way to pursue health and fitness in the comfort of their homes, the Mirror drives home Lululemon’s mind and body wellness brand personality.

At-home fitness companies like Peloton are thriving in the midst of the pandemic as people strive to reach their fitness goals at home. Lululemon’s acquisition of Mirror could not have come at a better time as it will provide a new revenue stream and emphasize the goal of strengthening their brand community.

Mirror equipment acts as a digital screen, displaying workout classes and a mirror to allow users to see their reflection. The Mirror is meant to fit in any room, seamlessly turning any space into an at-home gym. Mirror is equipped with expert instructors that provide motivation and live feedback, personalization based on goals, injuries, and preferences, and customized playlists. The retail price is USD$1,495 or an option of USD$41.53/month for 36 months and an additional $39/month for access to the classes (Mirror 2020).

Mirror will also allow Lululemon to reach customers in new ways and bring the value of their in-store classes to the living rooms of their customers. Mirror currently offers classes in Pilates, barre, kickboxing, and strength training, but Lululemon plans to expand by leveraging their network of “brand ambassadors” to deliver Yoga classes as well (Maheshwari, 2020). This acquisition places Lululemon in a great position to continue empowering their customers.

As a brand centred on health and wellness, this acquisition can leave both Lululemon and its customers smiling at themselves in the mirror.

References

Harvey, S. (2018, February 11). Identity and ideology: What is a lifestyle brand? Medium. https://medium.com/swlh/identity-and-ideology-what-is-a-lifestyle-brand-30fb27971d0b.

Lululemon. (2020). Lincoln Park. lululemon Lincoln Park Store in Chicago, IL. https://shop.lululemon.com/stores/us/chicago/lincoln-park?clickref=1100l6H9AoTJ.

Maheshwari, S. (2020, June 29). Lululemon to Buy Mirror, a Fitness Start-Up, for $500 Million. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/29/business/lululemon-buys-mirror.html.

Mirror. (2020). How It Works. https://www.mirror.co/how-it-works.

Segran, E. (2018, September 25). Lululemon, the brand that invented athleisure, plans its second act. https://www.fastcompany.com/90237752/lululemon-the-brand-that-invented-athleisure-plans-its-second-act.

Finally: Showing Some Character Regarding Brand Characters

via your classmate Emily

Uncle Ben, Mrs. Butterworth embrace makeovers in light of racist past

It’s a crazy time to be alive, especially for brands. Shifts in social media of late have quickly gone from focusing on the impacts of COVID-19 to activism about anti-racism. This occurred following the tragic death of George Floyd, which caused outrage and a desire to change the systematic racism that exists in our society. Consumers more than ever are looking for brands to use their platforms to stand in solidary with Black people and the ongoing racism they face.

There are multiple examples of brands that have taken action by donating funds, posting a black square on their feed, or taking a week’s break from posting from on social media. Recently, three brands in particular have gone even further to rebrand their product lines. Uncle Ben’s, Aunt Jemima and Mrs. Butterworths are among those that have chosen to completely revamp their brand image as a result of this.

These brands have each acknowledged that their brand characters, which feature black individuals, perpetrate racism by featuring caricatures from the past. Parent companies Mars, ConAgra, and PepsiCo have each pledged to change their visual brand identity to be more in line with their company values, and work together to make progress towards racial equality.

This change is particularly interesting as it shows that these brands have been listening closely to what is going on in the world and are responding. Additionally, it represents an act towards greater social good. In making this pledge, they have gotten a lot of media attention and will as a result probably see a spike in sales when packaging is changed due to consumers supporting the change. This change may also target a new segment of customers that would have originally boycotted the brand due to a contrast in values.

Despite this step towards change, it is a huge undertaking for the brand. Each company will need to work towards ensuring that they rebrand in a way that customers still recognize it while also ensuring that they are able to better aligning with customer values. It will be interesting to see the financial effect of this re-branding and whether or not it is disastrous or positive implications for each respective brand.

Finally, just because we are seeing change now, doesn’t mean that there’s still a way to go for brands to help achieve racial equity in their branding and better align with customers changing perspectives.

Maintaining Brand Meaning Over Time? Priceless

Via your classmate Damaris:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/allenadamson/2019/01/07/mastercards-smart-new-branding-strategy-speaks-louder-than-words/#77e07b2c5dbc

In 1997, Mastercard launched a campaign that would run for more than 20 years with a touching statement: “there are some things that money cannot buy for everything else there’s Mastercard”. What a way to connect! Just as importantly, the campaign has evolved in breath and depth. Back in the day, customers of Mastercard were able to see a plastic with the logo of Mastercard and the name on it. However, the firm had to adapt to electronic payments and with that came another challenge, how to continue to connect to customers across the globe? One of the strategies was to create a brand identity in different dimensions. This marketing campaigns include experiential marketing using sensory elements to create feeling. In doing so, it eliminated the brand name in the logo launched campaign called “a taste of Priceless.” Raja Rajamannar, CMO of Mastercard, has created fantastic and creative differentiation to connect with users of Mastercard and used the benefits of previous campaigns as a building blocks, taken to another level.

Mastercard’s sound identity.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbM4F9YQEpw&list=PLIfOLx3HAATeXShwtTev7DglfgpdlevA2&index=2 (

https://www.thedrum.com/news/2020/02/18/resy-scales-marketing-post-amex-sale-its-cmo-holding-media-house?utm_source=Bibblio-Related&utm_campaign=editorial-content

Mastercard’s “Taste of Priceless” identity.

Prices May Be Falling…But At Least The Employees Aren’t

Via your classmate Sawinder:

Walmart COVD-19 Testing Sites

I believe Walmart had one of the strongest and most comprehensive responses to the COVID 19 Crisis, because their response was not just for their customers, but for their workers and local communities as well.

After the announcement of public-private partnership on March 13, 2020, Walmart worked with their lab partners and the Department of Health and Human Services, and opened up testing sites in several US states. The are now testing in as many as 50 sites (see image above). These are drive-through testing facilities that work within CDC guidelines, and are available to whomever might be showing symptoms as well as health care workers and first responders even if they are not showing symptoms.

Showing its appreciate for its employees, Walmart boosted its pay program and announced a special bonus program for its employees. Walmart Canada announced that its hourly workers would get an extra $2 an hour between April 3 and 30 and an additional 10% discount to help them purchase the essentials.

New emergency leave policies were implemented to encourage employees showing any symptoms to stay at home and be assured of support that they needed. The services that were being provided under the health plan were provided at no cost to the employees.

Changes to Return policies were made, whereby the returns were to be processed online in order to minimize contact. For customers unable to return products under certain categories, the return periods were extended by 6 weeks. Finally, no contact pick ups and deliveries were introduced.

Walmart is doing everything that they can to support communities through this pandemic. They are utilizing their effective supply chain to expedite the deliveries of medical supplies. They have teamed up with McKesson to provide gowns to front line workers. They have also partnered with Salesforce and State Farm to provide N95 masks and shoe coverings for frontline health workers.

The company waived rent for all Walmart property partners for the month of April as they understand that there is a need to help the small businesses that run out of their stores. The action also was extended to eye doctors who operate out of their Sam’s Clubs.

Individual Walmart stores are donating edible food for food banks and other groups helping communities in this time of need.

I believe that Walmart has strengthened its image as a strong community brand by applying a holistic approach to respond to this crisis. It has received a widespread recognition for the efforts that have been put in to help the communities, workers and front-line health staff. Walmart has lived up to its claims of the strong value that they provide as a community-oriented store and have stood true to their mission of bringing value to customers and communities.

Think Big and Shop Small

via your classmate Tavneet:

Image 1: Shop Small map showcasing affiliated local businesses within Waterloo

In the credit card industry, American Express (Amex) has always struggled with its customers’ perception of how widely accepted it is. With a higher fee structure than competitors for merchants, many small to mid-size businesses are reluctant to offer customers the option to pay using their Amex card. To mitigate this, a few years ago the brand launched Shop Small, a nationwide initiative that supports small businesses. Merchants taking part in the program receive discounted fee structures, free marketing material and a feature on the Amex Shop Small map. To entice customers to sign up for their card and/or increase share of wallet, customers are given discounts or statement credits to incentivize them to shop at small businesses.

During the pandemic, this program has become increasingly important, as small businesses need support during this financially difficult and uncertain time. Amex has revived the campaign across Canada and other international locations to support affiliated small businesses as they strive to recover from the impacts of COVID-19. The campaign’s message encourages Canadians to shop at small businesses as they start to reopen. It features local owners and their stories on social media and traditional media platforms. Additionally, Amex has backed the campaign with the largest-ever Canadian Shop Small offer to incentivize spending within local businesses. The offer allows card members to earn $5 back in statement credits when they spend at least $10 at up to 10 qualifying small businesses. Therefore, each card member is eligible to earn up to $50 in savings through the program up until the end of July. Typically, card member offers similar to this are funded by the retailer, but Shop Small offers are funded by Amex to show their support for small businesses. Amex Canada will continue to run the campaign until mid-September.

The brand has also used the Shop Small campaign to show support for the Black Lives Matter movement. As more large corporations are being held accountable for doing more against racial inequity and systemic racism, Amex has committed $10 million to fund new programs that support Black-owned small businesses over the course of the next four years. The money will aid businesses through community upheaval and the re-opening of businesses as COVID-19 restrictions start to lift.

In my opinion, American Express has leveraged their voice and influence to make a difference. They have recognized what they can do and how they can engage their customers to make a change. Through the use of authenticity and sincerity in both marketing campaigns and initiatives, they have been able to strengthen their reputation within the financial sector by giving back in the form of donations. More importantly, they are also incentivizing their large card membership to also engage by spending at local businesses. Featuring mom and pop shops and their raw stories, as well as the experiences of black owners during this unfortunate time helps customers to see that issues they support are being taken seriously by the brand. Additionally, it helps the brand come across as more sincere, which is an attribute not usually associated with the financial service sector.

As this presents as an opportunity to increase perception of coverage and reputation, Amex has strategically leveraged a previous campaign to obtain great results. In your opinion, do you think that American Express is doing enough? Do you think their efforts come across as sincere and authentic? What more can they be doing in this campaign to make a bigger difference for small businesses, especially as the amount of money they can donate may be limited?

https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/american-express-canada-stands-by-local-businesses-with-shop-small-a-major-campaign-to-support-small-business-revival-in-canada-and-around-the-world-834274790.html