This was a great example of how pricing and promotions weren't the solution to the problem - OPSM had lost focus on its brand. In partnership with the client, I led the transformation of the brand from beginning to end including presenting the new brand platform to 236 Franchisees.
This case is all about how a big idea is much more than a communication campaign. It directs and informs every aspect of a business.
OPSM had a problem. It was getting squeezed at the bottom from the likes of Specsavers and squeezed at the top by disruptive entrants like Warby Parker and Oscar Wylee. On top of that, they had premium prices to boot - the same pair of lenses that you could get 30% cheaper somewhere else. As a result, OPSM sales had been declining for 5 years and was seen as a 'daggy brand'. No surprise as OPSM stands for Optical Prescription Spectacle Makers. That was to their advantage when the quality of optometrists differentiated eyewear retailers, but with advancements in technology everyone had access to the same standard of care. In fact, the latest research showed that consumers thought the quality of 'eye care' was the same across all providers. And they were right.
We needed to shift from 'eye care' to 'eye wear'.
To do so, we went back to the brand's roots. OPSM is owned by Luxottica who manufactures all the top eyewear for the world's premium fashion brands including Chanel, Miu Miu and Gucci, among others. It also owned the iconic Ray Ban line. OPSM's DNA was, in fact, the literal home of luxury. And luxury is the one thing you are willing to pay a premium for.
We created a new brand platform called 'Style Is Why'. It's why you pay a premium to look good. It's why you're so concerned with a feature that you live with every day. And in the world of social media, it's a driving force.
But for the 'Style Is Why' platform to ring true, it needed to be delivered across the business. You couldn't have a fancy ad campaign and then walk into a store that was anything but stylish. As such, OPSM moved to transform their entire business.
The first step was to remove all the inexpensive private label brands from their stores. If we were about style, we couldn't have 'the cheap stuff' sitting alongside the likes of Prada and Channel.
We then needed to ensure that our retail staff didn't look like doctors trying to sell a pair of $500 Chanel glasses. We needed to come up with something that was easy and didn't put off people at the lower end of the scale either, so we developed simple and fashionable t-shirts with prints. Accessible, but fashionable.
And lastly, and the most complex, we needed fast track changes to our stores. CAPEX was increased to refurbish 50 stores in key locations to bring them up to par. This would move to a further 75 stores in year two.
And, of course, we needed to bring it to life with our campaign. Given we couldn't use the likes of Prada or Miu Miu as each brand would need to sign off on every aspect of the campaign, we needed to use OPSM owned brands and ensure our campaign oozed style and cool. To do so, we used the voice of American philosopher and political activist Dr. Cornel West describing the definition of 'style'.
Our campaign made the link between how you see, and how you are seen: style is why.
Carrying private label brands
Wearing optometrist uniforms
Stocking only premium label brands
Wearing stylish outfits
Stores like doctors offices
Stores with style
Click to view the film
For the first time in 5 years, OPSM had positive sales with Avg +7% growth over two years and OPSM was the only Luxottica business to post growth globally.
The campaign was successful for a few fundamental reasons:
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It brought an inherent truth about the brand to life
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It wasn’t just a campaign, it was a business transformation
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It was a premium brand delivered with the craft a premium brand needs to be authentic
A big idea that was pretty easy on the eyes.