Carhartt will debut its first television commercial (in decades) in accordance with an interactive website as part of a national, multi-million dollar media plan designed to reposition the 100-year-old brand.
“Our products are known for their rugged durability, and we wanted that aspect of our brand personality to take center stage in this integrated campaign,” said Randy Meza, marketing director at Carhartt. “Having real wolves attack one of our Detroit jackets allowed us to visually demonstrate the toughness of Carhartt apparel to consumers.”
“We consider ourselves very fortunate to have been selected by Carhartt for this assignment,” said Greg Braun, executive creative director of Team Detroit, its ad agency. “As a client, they were not afraid to push the comfort boundaries,” continued Braun. “With that in mind, we were able to create a campaign that demonstrated the sheer toughness of Carhartt's product in a scary, yet funny way.”
Deemed too frightening for television, the commercial can be seen on the interactive website www.getcarhartt.com. On this website, visitors can view the five alternate endings to the commercial, share their own “campfire stories”, participate in a contest and view behind-the-scenes footage.
Targeted to the 18- to 34-year-old male, the television spot will air on ESPN, The History Channel and the Discovery Channel beginning October 18 and will run through December 19. The broadcast campaign will work in tandem with a digital media buy, featuring rich interactive banners and a social media campaign on Facebook. An in-store campaign will feature various forms of POP supporting the initiative.
