Mktg - Hrithik stops traffic for John Players

Rohit Nautiyal

With so many hoardings peppering the cityscapes in the country, breaking through the clutter is the biggest challenge brands face today. But John Players, the ITC lifestyle apparel brand, seems to have ‘largely’ tackled this problem with an innovative outdoor campaign for the launch of its denim range.

Placed strategically on a prominent unipole in Gurgaon, a Delhi suburb, the John Players campaign features a larger than life cutout of its brand ambassador, Hindi film actor Hrithik Roshan. Dressed in John Players casuals, Roshan strikes a pose and flaunts his jeans. The creative utilises the entire pole for his body; the top of the hoarding, where Roshan holds onto his hat while falling backwards, tips slightly over the road, thus creating a visually captivating sight. The illuminated hoarding looks even better in the dark.

The size of the front-lit cutout is 32.5 feet by 17.5 feet. The copy at the top of the hoarding strip says, ‘Introducing John Players Jeans. For All Your Moves.’

John Players has capitalised on brand ambassador Roshan to create a buzz around the campaign. Roshan’s innate style, vibrancy and playfulness personify the core attributes of the brand.

The campaign, ideated and executed by Primesite, the OOH arm of Mudra Communication, kicked off on October 1 and is expected to be on for a month. The ad is being displayed in all the metros and in several mini metros, including Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Pune, Indore, Bhopal, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Lucknow and Kanpur, and at all the locations where there are John Players outlets.

What was the reason for this huge innovation? Sanjeev Hajela, president, Primesite, says, “As the festive season draws near, all lifestyle brands join the leitmotif of visibility campaigns, but only the ones that stand out of the crowd make their presence felt. This was the guiding factor that led the team to come up with this unique creative.”

The campaign has been a visual eye-catcher and already garnered positive feedback from clients, media friends and channel partners. Hajela says, “Some enthused consumers are even taking pictures of the campaign and forwarding them to friends.”

For John Players, outdoor has always been the medium of preference and the brand has relied heavily on it since its launch. Primesite has been executing the OOH campaigns for John Players for the last four-five years.

Dipra Lahiri, general manager, marketing, ITC Lifestyle and Retail Business Division, says, “John Players comes out with outdoor campaigns twice a year for its Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter collections. We use 350 hoardings across the country. But this is the first time we have come up with such an innovative outdoor campaign.”

Lahiri adds, “A regular TVC needs spends of around Rs 3 crore. Outdoor has a huge impact at a much lower cost and, most importantly, it’s a highly impactful medium with which to reach our target audience, which comprises youngsters.”

John Players has also used print for advertising its denim range. The brand is available across the country through a nationwide network of 250 exclusive stores and more than 1,300 multibrand outlets.