The list of dilemmas facing the denim industry is greater than the invention the yoga pant. In a Kingpins Amsterdam presentation titled “Solving Denim Dilemmas: Right Products, Right Story” on Wednesday, Jean Hegedus, Invista global segment director for denim, outlined three common denim dilemmas women encounter while shopping for jeans and the steps the fiber company is taking to provide solutions.
Data from a consumer research study Invista conducted last year found that 65 percent of consumers said fit is the most important factor when purchasing jeans. However, fit and appearance continue to be the most frequent frustrations women experience while shopping for jeans, Hegedus noted.
Invista’s research found that female consumers struggle with finding jeans that provided the best fit and appearance, they have difficultly navigating stores’ dense denim sections and are unsure of which fit and fabrication is best for their body type. But the same study found that women reported having a positive experience with jeans that used Lycra Dual FX technology, naming shape retention and comfort as the jeans’ main benefits.
To help streamline the shopping process, Invista partnered with fashion editorial and shopping website Who What Wear this fall for a month-long, multi-prong campaign that drove home the importance of combining an easy shopping experience with clear and concise brand communication.
For the campaign, Invista and Who What Wear created a curated shop offering 37 women’s styles from 19 brands from various price points, with the criteria being that products use Lycra Dual FX and the brands communicate that through hangtags and on their websites. Participants included American Eagle, Citizens of Humanity, Frame, Joe’s Jeans, Old Navy, among others.
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Hegedus said the objectives for the campaign were to increase consumer awareness of Lycra Dual FX, to show the technology used in silhouettes other than skinny jeans and to encourage consumers to look for the specific technology during their shopping experiences.
Specifically, Invista wanted to target millennial women, which is why it selected Who What Wear as the vessel for its new campaign. Hegedus said the website’s readership possesses the highest spending power compared to other sites like Refinery 29. Its readers are also the most influential in others’ fashion choices. Who What Wear also had consumer research that fell in line with what Invista’s, which helped create editorial that was “on brand” for both companies.
The campaign began with an introductory editorial about the benefits of Lycra Dual FX, followed by homepage takeovers by brands like American Eagle and Joe’s Jeans, influencer spotlights, articles on how brands like Citizens of Humanity, Frame and Mother rely on Dual FX to create comfortable high-waisted jeans and a series of video trend stories. The centerpiece, Hegedus said, was the curated Lycra shop that allow visitors to the site to see the breadth of denim with Dual FX technology.
The campaign, which concluded on Oct. 15, was also rolled out across Who What Wear’s Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube platforms, helping drive viewers back to the site.
The campaign, Hegedus said, was a success. The campaign had over 28 million impressions overall and saw more than 6 million video impressions and more than 1.5 million impressions for the curated shop. And Hegedus said results are still coming in.
She added that it is not a “one and done” campaign and that Invista plans to launch more consumer-focused projects that support both their message and their denim brand partners in the near future.