A guy appears in the hot sweaty bar of a '50's mid-Western motel dressed in his white boxer shorts and open shirt. He pushes past the girl behind the bar and opens the refridgerator where he finds his Levi's 501s and puts them on.
Philosophy
BBH's solution for the 501 was to celebrate the authenticity of the Original Jean. Our aim was to focus on the 1950s when Levis 501 was adopted as a badge of youth rebellion and cool. We developed a Mythical America far from contemporary reality and captured the enduring values of youth: sex, rebellion, freedom and individuality whilst luxuriating in product detail. The brand territory we identified for Levi's was Originality and the Big Idea was The Original and Definitive Jean, a positioning which Levi's still adheres to today.
Problem
When Levi's first came to us in the early 1980's the denim market was in decline. There was no brand leadership in the market and Levi's were seen as old persons jeans. Being an American brand, Levi's was associated with Ronald Reagan, Dinasours of Rock and fat tourists. In product tests, consumers found Levi's 501s unattractive.