Pop-up retail is all about generating excitement and buzz. Guerilla marketing at its ubiquitous best, pop-ups rely on a product-relevant location, well-placed PR and word of mouth amplified through social media. Now popular with retailers entering new markets (Target), testing new waters (Nordstrom), leveraging seasonal demand (Ebay) or launching limited edition collections (Roots XL) they are aimed squarely at consumer influencers , early adopters, fashionistas and brand devotees. Typically, these orchestrated brand experiences are active selling spaces with the added benefit of old-fashioned showmanship and product interactivity. However, the latest pop-up to appear on King St. West in Toronto, the Diet Coke and Gilt.com “Get a Taste” Style Bar, is more about sampling than selling; essentially it’s a 3-dimensional 360 degree advertisement.
Fighting the backlash
Much more than a mere beverage brand, Diet Coke like their parent brand Coke, has become a lifestyle brand and is among the most recognizable brands in the world. But, for the last 10 years they have been experiencing declining sales as a result of a consumer backlash, first against sugar laden sodas than aspartame sweetened diet sodas. Last year alone Diet Coke saw an over 6% sales decline.
The main consumer for Diet Coke, almost from its introduction in 1983 has been women (men seem to have an aversion to the word ‘diet’). And virtually calorie-free, it became a favourite of the weight-obsessed fashion sector. Although Diet Coke had long connections with the fashion world, including collaborations with notable fashion designers on packaging and events, in 2011, Diet Coke implemented a 3-year strategy to further focus their efforts solely on the fashion and beauty sectors with the purpose of making Diet Coke synonymous with fashion; using a fashion and beauty platform to solidify their positioning as a lifestyle brand. Over the past few years Diet Coke has collaborated with such fashion designers as Karl Lagerfeld, Jean Paul Gaultier and Marc Jacobs on limited edition packaging designs; co-branded Diet Coke six-packs in signature magenta in celebration of Holt Renfrew’s 175th anniversary; attained savvy product placement in Lady Gaga’s “Telephone” music video and been a fixture at Fashion Week in London, Paris and New York, among many other initiatives. What better way to offset consumer backlash, reach their target market of women and solidify its position as the 2nd most popular soda pop in the world, than by making Diet Coke the chosen brand of fashionistas and style icons.
The benefit of co-branding
Yet another co-branding initiative for Diet Coke, this latest pop-up with Gilt further entrenches the brand into the fashion world. It’s a joint marketing venture that is mutually beneficial, allowing both brands exponential exposure – a co-branded venture that is greater than the sum of the parts. Diet Coke benefits from not only the recognized cache of an established on-line luxury retailer but every single designer brand within the e-tailer’s offering – from Camper to Zegna. And Gilt benefits from Diet Coke’s international brand recognition, massive consumer base and positioning as the accessible fashion accessory. It’s the “Halo of Affection” at work – both brands benefiting as the affection of their respective customer base is extended across the two brands.
The 360 Advertisement
Aside from complementary bottles of ice cold Diet Coke and a beautifully displayed sampling of Gilt’s product offering, the Diet Coke and Gilt “Get a taste” Style Bar is devoid of shoppable merchandise. Heavily branded with Diet Coke’s logo, art installations featuring the unmistakable iconic coke bottle, and their corporate colours (silver, red, white and black) the pop-up is more Diet Coke than Gilt. Gilt’s products are organized in small groupings and displayed cleverly in Coke coolers and on select silver or red mannequins alongside of well-positioned IPads allowing visitors to further peruse the product line; a simple direct extension of their on-line experience. Throughout the space, there are multiple selfie opportunities with giant Diet Coke bottles and logo backdrops – encouraging the kind of social media sharing that drives traffic and creates a larger digital footprint. What is rather unique for any pop-up is their strategic effort to get visitors to return by featuring a different theme each week over its 5 week run – all playing off Diet Coke (light, red, refreshing, boost, luxe).
Even without product to walk away with (except for a Diet Coke swag bag), the Diet Coke and Gilt.com pop-up serves a purpose. A 360 degree, interactive advertisement, it reinforces Diet Coke’s strong association with the fashion world while increasing exposure for Gilt’s online retail.
