On a whim, we wrote an ad and posted it on Facebook- we didn’t expect the reactions and engagement it got.

It was a late Friday evening at Archibald HQ and talk turned to writing a new advert. We were wearied by the comments that kept rolling in on our standard ad set- mostly along the lines of ‘your products are overpriced, who would spend this much on a [t shirt] [scarf] [jacket]’. There’s only so many times you can explain that quality, craft and good wages mean our products are priced fairly before you grow a bit tired of standing on your digital soap box. 

We wanted to try something different. We have an advantage over big brands with high marketing budgets and staffed, hierarchical marketing teams. What we lack in resources, we can make up for in creativity and a sense of humour. When there’s two people in the room coming up with a brand strategy instead of twenty, you can have fun without waiting for approval, feedback and analysis from a slew of higher ups. 

What if we wrote an honest ad, as though we were one of our fast fashion mid tier competitors? We can talk about quality and craft till the cows come home, but ultimately those are words on a webpage that are freely thrown around by competitors who never deliver on their promises. Consumers know that a vast bulk of the products they purchase are made under terrible conditions, using terrible materials, and sold at a terrible markup. It’s no secret that mass production has taken over the world, swallowing whole communities, polluting everything in its path, putting thousands of skilled workers out of jobs and subjecting thousands of others to atrocious and unsafe work conditions. 

We wrote the ad that evening, written as though we were our competitors telling the truth about themselves. It took a few minutes and we weren’t sure if we would use it. We ran it past a few members of the team who laughed and gave their seal of approval, and that was all the research we needed before it went live. 

It’s fair to say the ad was a hit, though there was a share of mixed reactions. It didn’t automatically resonate with everyone, and we had countless private messages asking if our account had been hacked. A journalist rang asking if the ad had been written by a whistleblower and threatened to expose us to national press for our illegal practices. Some accused us of murdering animals to make our products (which isn’t true), and others implied that mass production actually benefits workers by providing them with jobs (which we disagree with- people deserve better, skilled jobs for good pay in safe working conditions). 

Many thought the ad was cooked up by a crack team of marketing strategists, a well thought out and calculated decision. But in reality it was a spontaneous reaction that reflects our broader philosophy. We promise our customers honesty, and that extends to how we operate beyond product sourcing. We like being transparent and bringing a little humour to a part of the business that’s meant to be dominated by analytics and dull digital marketing mechanics. Having honest discussions about the state of retail is important, and we’re glad this played a small part in that conversation.