2022 is officially over! We wanted to reflect on some of the outstanding work in the industry over the last 12 months as we move ahead to 2023 (that wasn’t by us!). Here is a selection of some of our team members’ favourite campaigns, what was your favourite?
Amy – Francis Bourgeois X Gucci X The North Face
It’s incredible how TikTok has evolved into the app that turns normal people into celebrities. Cue Francis Bourgeois, beloved TikTok trainspotter. Over the past 12 months, the 22-year-old has been delighting TikTok audiences with his love for “magnificent locos”. It’s hard not to fall in love with his authentic enthusiasm and passion for all things trains. Whilst at first viewers were sceptical whether Bourgeois was merely a character, it’s become pretty clear that Francis is just really into his trains.
Francis’ persona is captured by his natural wit and awkward charm paired with his rather old-fashioned clothes. So, it only seemed a natural fit when major fashion house Gucci invited him to be the face of their collaboration campaign with The North Face. The campaign featured a short film, where viewers see Bourgeois as a train conductor, calling the arrival of a train with youthful passengers heading to the mountains, adorning 90’s style The North Face x Gucci Kit.
The campaign worked really well and it’s only the beginning of the crossover between internet culture and high-end luxury fashion. The campaign generated a huge amount of attention, both on social and beyond.
Credit: Tom Dream / Highsnobiety
Cat – Love Island X eBay Preloved
It’s one of the nation’s most popular TV shows – and while it has become a firm favourite in my household (and many others) for its classic one-liners, petty drama and general summer escapism, Love Island has attracted its fair share of criticism over the years.
Fast forward to June 2022 when a summer of love in Mallorca approaches and the ITV2 show announces it will be no longer working with fast fashion partners, but rather it will be “coupling up” with eBay for the very first time to dress all the contestants during their time in the villa. With huge potential for advertising spending, it was a daring, but necessary move from the Love Island PR team to decide fast fashion wasn’t “its type on paper” anymore 💔
Cue a massive positive response from both traditional and social media. The public lapped up this good news story, showing that taking genuinely positive and considered steps to reduce environmental impact will always be attractive.
Credit: eBay
Kirsten – PRH unburnable Handmaids Tale
The subject of censorship has always been a sizzling, hot topic in the world. In 1959, Britain launched the Obscene Publications Act, which allowed the censoring of publications for the ‘public good’. Penguin Random House has a personal history with this type of censorship, with Penguin Books ending up at the centre of the Lady Chatterley Trial in 1960 in a bid to censor D.H. Lawrence’s book. So, it makes sense that this year PRH came out with an unburnable copy of their dystopian novel, The Handmaid’s Tale, perfect for reminding people of the book after the release of the TV show’s fifth season.
Recently, the discussion around censorship has been cropping back up, with the American Library Association reporting a spike in organisations trying to ban books in schools. Penguin Random House has refreshed the conversation in a stylish, attention-grabbing way with this lovely copy.
Constructed using white heat shield foil pages, the unburnable book features a phenolic hardcover, stainless steel head and tail bands, and not to forget the black Cinefoil dust jacket. Not only was it an impressive-looking copy, but PRH got Margaret Atwood in on the action for a dramatic ad to prove its lack of flammability by brandishing a flamethrower. The copy was auctioned and sold in New York to raise money for PEN America in support of their non-profit work for freedom of expression and human rights, for an impressive $130,000.
I think this PR work is brilliant because of this. It brings The Handmaid’s Tale back into the media in a stylish and thought-provoking way and helps a great cause while it’s at it. The Media seemed to love it, with the campaign gaining more than 3.5 billion impressions and earning over $33 million.
Credit: Penguin Random House
Chris – The city of Copenhagen elevated its public benches to raise awareness of rising sea levels.
The best ideas are the simplest, and I think the stunt from TV 2 Denmark sent out a strong message about the dangers of the climate crisis and rising sea levels. Taking a new approach to climate change communication, the TV channel installed elevated benches that would withstand rising sea levels – the stunt was thought-provoking and sent a stark message to people as to what the future could look like.
All the benches were fitted with a copper plaque reading: ‘Flooding will become part of our everyday life unless we start doing something about our climate. According to the latest UN Climate Report, sea levels are expected to rise by 1 meter by 2100 if global warming continues.’
The campaign was supported by a TV spot, outdoor print ads and an influencer campaign – it got people’s attention and sounded the alarm on climate change, it is now up to us.
Credit: Maria Schumann & Kristian Vestergaard
Bella – Corn Kid x Chipotle
Quickly after the corn kid went viral on social channels Chipotle’s social media team got involved whilst it was still trending and relevant and involved the young boy in a simple, original, and funny Tik Tok video that also went viral. It’s a great example of efficient and reactive comms and how important staying on top of social media trends is
Credit: Chipotle
Jacquelyn – Gender Pay Gap Bot
I love any campaign that has a true cause at its heart. Not a stunt, for the sake of a stunt, something that is really trying to drive a change in behaviour and make us better. Back in March, the Gender Pay Gap Bot absolutely won International Women’s Day. Every time one of the hundreds of companies posted a half-baked sentiment about female empowerment using #IWD, the Twitter account @PayGapApp quote tweeted them along with their gender pay gap. The anonymous bot (later revealed to be copywriter Francesca Lawson and her software developer partner Ali Fensome) dominated Twitter and received national and international coverage. Huge companies, charities and councils were exposed and received a clear message that we want action, not ‘supportive’ tweets.
Credit: Twitter / Metro.co.uk