Organic furniture

Ad agency RSA and Post Production house Golden Sq created this interesting and different commercial for furniture company Otobi.

http://www.goldensq.com/news/stories/2009/Aug/otobi?portfolio=page1

The cinematic feel of the film portrays the lush feel of the rainforest well, and the furniture growing out of the foliage is an interesting image, but I'm not sure if it does the job of selling the furniture that successfully. The furniture "grows" fairly effectively, but after it has done it just ends up looking like it's been "plonked" there rather unnaturally. Unfortunately I don't think the rather ordinary-looking furniture looks that great in the beautiful rainforest surroundings! In fact the rainforest seems to steal the limelight somewhat. I think it's a nice idea in theory, and I guess the company want to tout their products' links with nature, but I don't like the final resolve. Perhaps it would have been better for the background to fade away after the furniture had grown? Or grow the forest into a white studio setting?

Cheeky Dixons

This new advertising campaign from online electricals retailer Dixons.co.uk caught my eye on the tube the other day.

At first glance, the poster looks a lot like an advert for John Lewis, emulating the department store's very recognisable typeface, colours and style. By the time you have read to the end of the poster, Dixons.co.uk has taken over.

It's a cleverly written poster, because this is the way many people end up purchasing electricals these days - checking out the product first in a store and then buying it for a much cheaper price online. It also never mentions any other brand name, but most people will be left in no doubt of the stores which it refers to. Though ironically the campaign demonstrates the power of the John Lewis branding - the Dixons branding in comparison looks weak!

The only downside of the campaign for Dixons is that some people might not realise that the store is now online only - Currys Digital was the brand which replaced all of Dixons' high street stores in 2007 (my Mum being one example of such a person!). In which case the advert seems to say that Dixons' staff are untrained and not "well brought up"!

Perhaps if more care was taken to build Dixons.co.uk as an online only brand when the rebranding took place, this new campaign would be more successful.

Retail Week article on the campaign

I <3 Bovril

I love Bovril. And every since the unsightly Lidl store building in Redhill was demolished, a lovely old painted Bovril logo has been uncovered on the side of the adjacent building. Great reminder of the past. I love it when things like this are unearthed, having been lurking there all the time behind or underneath layers of other things.