H&M, also known as Hennes and Mauritz has become the most prominent fashion and clothing retailer in India, surpassing even ZARA. Over the years, this multinational brand has made a strong presence in the household name thanks to its social-centred and savvy marketing campaigns. 

The key element and a major feature to point out of H&M’s advertising and marketing approach is its continuous focus on sustainability, inclusivity, diversity, awareness, etc. H&M is also known for being involved in campaigns that show the brand being environmentally conscious. Also, collaborating with high-profile designers in its marketing campaigns is another aspect of H&M’s branding strategy.

The company, being a sustainable and fast-fashion clothing retailer, along with featuring eminent collaborations shows its trendsetting characteristics that people can afford. Let’s take a close look at this case study of the marketing campaigns of H&M that makes it one of the most significant clothing retailers in the world. 

What is H&M?

Hennes and Mauritz, popularly known as H&M is a Swedish clothing company for men, women, and children. Founded in 1947 by Erling Persson, the company operates in over 75 countries. Presently, H&M has more than 4800 stores all over the world under the CEO, Helena Helmersson.

The brand is preferred by all sections of society due to the versatility of its products. Meaning, the H&M stores, usually have clothing for all ages, sizes, body types, ethnicities, etc. Moreover, the brand has launched a line of gender-neutral clothing and accessory options to attract a wider audience.

It is important to notice that H&M has always been seen as a brand that is responsible towards society and the environment by taking inclusive initiatives, carrying out diversity campaigns, committing to reducing the carbon footprint, and promoting better manufacturing practices. These are some of the reasons why a larger audience considers the brand reasonable and appreciates its quality.

Why does H&M do marketing?

Like every other company in the market, H&M also has similar needs when it comes to marketing and branding, i.e, to introduce the brand and its products to the market and the audience, increase sales, and increase its customer base. And it can be seen that there is cutthroat competition in the clothing industry as the world is getting more fashion-conscious by the day.

Since the brand, unknowingly, plays an integral part in people’s lives, a certain amount of expectations and societal pressure falls upon the company. And, that’s why the business needs marketing campaigns showing its concern and responsibility towards society. H&M’s branding strategies have always been centred around appealing to customers by displaying their moral values and ethics.  

Top Marketing Campaigns (Offline) Case Study: H&M 

Here is a list of the top offline marketing campaigns of H&M that have made the brand what it is today, one of the top clothing retailers in the world. 

H&M Conscious

This is a very smart and efficient marketing campaign that along with profiting its brand, also creates awareness among people about shopping consciousness. H&M proposed an idea of reducing the carbon footprint, reducing, reusing, and recycling cloth materials. The Conscious collection is made from at least 50% sustainably sourced and organic materials.

In order to encourage customers to buy into the campaign, the stores reward them with conscious points when they purchase from the collection. Moreover, H&M has come up with a solution in the form of a machine called, ‘Looop’ that shreds old and worn clothing materials into new garments in over five hours. It is an H&M advertising tactic to advertise the quality of their products and make sure that people trust the manufacturing process.

Bring It!

H&M launched this campaign with the release of a short film, called “Bring It!”, where the brand tries to encourage people to submit old and worn clothes to H&M stores. To make the campaign seem more credible, the film depicts the journey of the clothes that are collected in the stores and how their lifespan can be increased for as long as possible.

People are free to bring any type of clothes and textiles of any fabric from any brand. And for every bag of clothes, the customers get a certain amount of voucher and discount for their next purchase. This strategy came out as a success as the company was able to collect over 40,000 tonnes of clothing material since its launch. Also, the target has been set to collect 25,000 tonnes per year by 2020. 

Close The Loop

This campaign was an extended form of the “Bring It!” campaign, in which a collection is launched comprising garments made up of recycled materials. The collected clothing items from the “Bring It!” campaign are later categorized into three categories: re-wear, reuse, and recycle. All three categorized clothing are properly made use of and submitted to form a new line of clothing, called “Close the Loop”.

Another key element of this campaign was “repairing”, which centres on the idea of taking proper care of your clothes so that they last longer. A program named “Take Care” has been introduced in all retail stores where people can go and learn how to correctly treat their garments. 

The motive of the campaign is to keep fashion i.e, clothes and textile items in a closed loop by reusing and recycling them over time. Knowing the fact that the collection is made out of their own old clothes is what appeals to the audience and makes this marketing campaign a huge success. 

Brighter Than Ever

This campaign was launched to celebrate the festive season. A collection called by the same name “Brighter than Ever” was introduced featuring vibrant and shiny western wear and home decor. This stylized campaign included a festive colour palette, focusing on hot electric and warm shades, sequinned designs, fringes, and shimmers.

Since this campaign was specially planned for the Indian audience, a lot of Indian celebrities like Manushi Chillar, Shantanu Maheshwari, Isha Talwar, Jim Sarbh, and more were featured. These high-profile personalities are very prominent and popular among the target audience, particularly, the GenZs. One key element of this H&M marketing campaign was that all the Home Decor items and most of the garments were 100% made in India to appeal to the customers.

The whole vibe and display of this marketing campaign were designed in a way that shouts festivity in the Indian style. The H&M advertising and branding were made visually appealing and attractive to get the audience into the festive feel, and needless to say, the strategy worked out well.

Love for All

This campaign was launched during the start of the Pride Season to promote the message of love, equality, and self-expression. A new collection of clothing, named “Love for All” was introduced in celebration of Pride month. The key factor of this campaign was to donate 10% of the sales price from the line to the UN Free and Equal, the United Nations Human Rights Office. 

Since this organization is running a campaign supporting sexual orientation and gender identity, the “Love for All” marketing campaign of H&M was also considered to be a part of this social activity. And this is what attracted the audience toward it and increased its sales, especially from this collection.

ONE/SECOND/SUIT

This “One/Second/Suit” marketing campaign is basically about rental service, where men can rent ready-to-wear suits for free for 24 hours. This marketing campaign of H&M was solely focused on men’s wear branding. 

The entire idea of this campaign was to rent suits to job interviewers so that they can make an impression in just one second. H&M got a good amount of recognition for this initiative to help the young generation to build confidence and make an effective first impression. Along with this, assistance for improving professional image is provided to all the shoppers. 

This H&M marketing campaign also came out as a feasible and affordable idea because people no longer have to buy a whole new suit just for an interview. And since they get introduced to the products personally, it also works as a marketing agenda to lure them toward the brand.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the marketing campaigns of H&M shout loudly about social responsibility, sustainability, and minimalism. The idea is majorly centred on promoting and supporting social causes. All the marketing strategies are made in a way that speaks to the conscience of the target audience and subconsciously lures them into making purchases from the brand, feeling good about it. Overall, H&M’s advertising strategies and campaigns have kept up with their social image as well as their sales.