Upon their 50th anniversary in 2008, the Mitchells, a world-renowned family in luxury retail, approached us to take their branding to a new level. They wanted a campaign that would express what sets them apart: long-term customer relationships and unique service offerings, combined with a signature edit of men’s and women fashion, jewelry and accessories.
Playing off of the concept of CEO Jack Mitchell’s retail bestseller “Hug Your Customer,” we turned the “hug” into something uniquely ownable, emotionally compelling and surprisingly hip with our “Hug Campaign,” winning the account. WSAA has been Agency of Record ever since.
Since acquiring the account in 2008, the unique branding and marketing assets WSAA continually creates for all channels has played an integral part in the company’s growth from three stores on the east coast (Mitchells in Westport, CT and Huntington, NY and Richards of Greenwich, CT), to also include Wilkes Bashford stores in San Francisco and Palo Alto, CA, three Marios stores in the Pacific Northwest and an integrated online shopping experience.
WSAA’s campaign and creative work evolves with the world of fashion, but the signature visual style, brand personality and positioning we’ve created for Mitchells Family of Stores shine through in all executions, as does the essential connection we create with the customer.
Projects include:
• Advertising
• Brand Identity
• Brand Guidelines
• Interactive
• Catalogs
• Content Marketing
• In-Store Publications (Editorial & Design)
• Branded Video Content
• Packaging
• Corporate Communications
• Events Marketing
• Environmental Marketing
Interlude, a luxe modern home collection engaged WSAA in 2015 to completely overhaul their brand identity, which was quiet without a strong look or point of view. They wanted their branding to be more sophisticated, sexy and chic, befitting their product and audience. The company’s co-founder & Creative Director Wendy King Philips, a former publisher at W, is inspired by fashion and wanted branding that would capture the imaginations of people who love fashion. Our campaign “Fashion-Inspired Living” graphically marries the worlds of fashion and home furnishings, with a new fashion-inspired logo and fashion visuals juxtaposed with Interlude product.
A multi-channel project, WSAA’s overhaul of the Interlude brand includes the following:
• Advertising Campaign
• Website
• Catalog
• Collection Theme Booklets
• Postcard campaign
• E-mail blast campaign
• Creation of blog
• In-showroom posters
In the Spring of 2013, menswear designer Robert Graham engaged WSAA to conceptualize and execute a body of photography for their Fall 2013 collection.
After a great success, the following season, upon hiring a new head of marketing, they asked us to create their first direct-to-consumer fashion catalog for Spring 2014, including a body of photography that would also be used across channels for the season.
Originally conceived to be more of an image builder than a sales driver, the first catalog exceeded sales expectations several-fold and has quickly evolved into a significant vertical sales tool for their business, which also includes wholesale, free-standing retail stores and on-line shopping.
Charged with developing the catalog into a major sales tool and driver of online sales, it was also critical that the catalog builds and maintains the brand’s status as a high end luxury brand at the same time. As a result, we have created a unique vehicle: a catalog that builds an aspirational lifestyle brand while doing double-duty as a hard-hitting sales driver.
The Robert Graham brand has grown quickly and the catalog has also proven a great vehicle to communicate the rapid evolution of a head-to-toe lifestyle brand, adding new categories each season. Originally mostly shirt brand, they now offer pants, jeans, bathing suits, sportcoats, outerwear, hats, sunglasses, suits, ties, socks, cufflinks and will soon introduce a fragrance and eyewear lines.
With each season’s new collection theme, we create a printed & digital catalog and body of photography that brands and expresses a creative, luxurious and colorful lifestyle brand with a unique joie de vivre. WSAA’s “lead creative” for each season is utilized by their in-house marketing team to flesh out all marketing initiatives, including in-store, outdoor, print ads, website and more.
Pink Aid is a very successful non-profit brand which was created completely by WSAA. WSAA principals Amy Gross and Renée Mandis are co-founders of this 501C3 organization started in 2011, which provides free screening and compassionate care to underserved breast cancer patients and populations throughout Connecticut, with a second chapter serving Long Island since 2014.
WSAA created the name “Pink Aid,” the logo and all graphic and communications assets associated with the brand, including invitations to Pink Aid’s Annual Luncheon & Fashion
Show, event ads, website, newsletter, event signage and experiences and more. WSAA has also created sub-brands, such as the Pink Aid’s Pink Purse fund and Sweat4Pink.
In seven years, Pink Aid has granted a total of over $4.5 million in Connecticut and Long Island Pink Aid attracts hundreds of individual and corporate donors each year, has robust programs in schools and communities and thus far has provided screening, financial assistance and or/services to over 40,000 people in Connecticut and Long Island.
