Argos’ new commercial for its Spring/Summer home and furniture collection by The&Partnership opens with a woman who is wearing a lampshade on her head. It’s an image that no one is likely to ignore or forget quickly. The ad develops into a music video in which fashion models wear Argo’s homewares as if they were designer clothes. The point the brand is making is that its homewares are so stylish you could wear them, targeting those who view their homes as a reflection of their fashion sense.
“When planning this campaign, the insight that really stood out to us is that homewares – like fashion – enable you to express your personal style. And as many of us look for ways to make our homes more and more instagrammable, this notion is increasingly important for our customers. In a joyful parody, our campaign plays on the idea that Argos home and furniture is ‘so stylish you can wear it’, celebrating the style credentials of our new range by tapping into familiar tropes from the fashion world,” explained Gary Kibble, marketing director, Sainsburys and Argos.
The humorous film was directed by Traktor at Stink Films and shot on Ari Alexa camera over three days in Bucharest.
“Once we had sign-off from the client it was about bringing in a director who could envisage how good this could look, whilst having the subtlety to walk the comedy line,” noted Danny Hunt, creative director at The&Partnership. “Traktor is known for its great pastiches and ability to combine excellent humour with sophisticated art direction. Being Black Pencil and Grand Prix winners didn’t hurt either. With their talent and the fantastic designs of Verity the costume designer, and Carl & Alice our creative team our vision came to life,” noted Danny Hunt, Creative Director at The&Partnership.
One of the biggest tasks for the commercial was to make the homewares catwalk ready. Stink Films brought in Verity Hawkes, an experienced costume designer who has worked on films such as Snatch, Revolver and About Time, and commercials for Sony, New Balance, HSBC and Guinness.
“Argos is definitely one of the best jobs I’ve worked on, so much fun with such a great brief. We decided to approach the outfits from a couture view point to avoid venturing into the absurd. With the cushions it was about creating the best silhouette, in the most pleasing colourways, but with the bigger pieces such as the tables, chairs and lampshades it was about designing complementary outfits that did not detract from the product but created a complete catwalk look. Chairs as hats will be SS19’s biggest trend,” Hawkes stated.
In order to inspire customers to shop Argos’ new homeware range and show it is a fashionable and stylish homeware destination, Omnicom Media Group’s PHD have transformed the media approach. The campaign will launch across AV, DOOH and digital channels. AV will reach and engage a new younger audience with contextually relevant home content on TV, by using sophisticated demographic and behavioural targeting across VOD and in cinema.
Credits
Agency: The&Partnership London
Executive Creative Directors: Yan Elliott & Micky Tudor
Creative Director: Danny Hunt
Creatives: Alice Burton & Carl Storey
Head of Planning: Rebecca Munds
Senior Planner: Claire Carmichael
Executive Producer: Andy Roberts
Producer: Hannah Greene
Chief Executive Officer: Sarah Golding
Business Director: Gary Simmons
Account Director: Oliver May
Senior Account Manager: Imogen Blackburne
Account Manager: Hannah Gray
Media Agency: PHD
Production Company: Stink Films
Director: Traktor (Patrik von Krusenstjerna)
Producer: Nick Landon
Director of Photography: Franz Lustig
Costume Designer: Verity Hawkes
Production Designer: Nick Foley Oates
Editing: Ed Cheeseman @ Final Cut
Audio Post-Production: Munzie Thind @ Grand Central
VFX & Post Production: MPC
Producer: Phil Whalley
VFX supervisor: Bevis Jones
Colourist: Jean-Clement Soret
