HONG KONG: Watch and eyewear brand Solvil et Titus has dropped
celebrities from its new campaign, citing the high celebrity clutter
factor.
Instead, the brand is taking an aspirational lifestyle approach and
contemporarising romance for the younger consumer segment, according to
the brand's agency, Hotdog Creative Workshop. The result is the "Follow
my own time" theme for Solvil's watch collection and "I see things my
way" for the company's eyewear products.
Cheung said the strategy gives Solvil et Titus a consistent but new
brand image, as well as the freedom to develop separate advertising
executions in the two categories. The campaign, which broke this month,
is print-focused but also has an outdoor element, with advertising in
the MTR.
Over the past decade, Hong Kong celebrities Anita Mui and Chow Yun Fat
and Manchester United star Ryan Giggs fronted Solvil's campaigns.
However, Hotdog creative consultant Ron Cheung said celebrity
endorsements had been worked to death, and were no longer desirable or
appealing. But the agency has retained the romance aspect of the brand,
which Cheung said was a traditional feature of the Solvil image, in the
new creative work.
Cheung commented: "We have to take the romance concept and redefine it
in a contemporary manner in order to appeal to the 21st century
consumer. To the new generation, romance is more short-term than a
lifetime commitment. There is also an emphasis on self and
independence."
Solvil's repositioning follows the change in its advertising agency.
Hotdog took the creative account off Ogilvy & Mather earlier in the
year, while BGX won the account management brief.
