The Art of Manufacturing
Vale Desconto Shopping
São José dos Campos, Brazil
Since Vale Desconto Shopping opened in 1994, its advertising and
promotional campaigns had strongly positioned it as a price-oriented
center. Two years later, surveys showed that consumers recognized the
outlet center's good value, but did not associate it with either high
quality or its manufacturers' brands. Moreover, they associated low
prices with low quality.
That was challenge enough. But the center management and marketing team
also anticipated difficulties in the first quarter of 1997, when a nearby
regional mall would open an expansion and a new community mall was to
open 10 minutes away.
The team needed to create a high-impact campaign that would position
Vale Desconto Shopping as a true outlet center, reinforcing that
top-quality goods can come at low prices.
OBJECTIVES
1. To reinforce and clarify the center's brand identity, top
quality and low prices.
2. To increase newspaper publicity.
3. To increase Christmas traffic by 7.5% over 1995.
4. To increase small tenants' Christmas sales by 15% over 1995.
5. To increase first-quarter 1997 traffic by 15% over 1996.
6. To increase small tenants' sales in the first quarter of 1997 by
30%.
7. To increase Mother's Day traffic by 25%. 8. To increase small tenants'
Mother's Day sales by 50%.
IMPLEMENTATION
The new ad campaign needed to spell out how top-quality products can have
low prices at Vale Desconto Shopping. The answer was to focus on the
outlet center's manufacturers, and to explain that they sell their own
products directly to customers. But to build a new consumer perception
about quality, the message needed to be told in an upscale visual
language. The campaign's theme, "The art of manufacturing," was supported
by images of craftsmen demonstrating their skills and their pride.
A six-month campaign was developed using TV and radio ads,
black-and-white newspaper ads, colored storefront posters and billboards.
To reinforce the new positioning, the same theme was used during
Christams, the summer sale, the fall/winter collection and Mother's
Day.
RESULTS
The campaign effectively repositioned the center and had a strong impact
on traffic and sales. For Christmas 1996, traffic increased 10.4% and
sales increased 34.6% over the previous year. In the first quarter of
1997, traffic increased 28.5% and sales increased 93.3% over the previous
year. For Mother's Day, traffic was up 40.4% and sales rose 79.7% over
the previous year.
During the six-month campaign, traffic rose by 26% and sales increased
69.6% over the previous year. Within the same time frame, some 175
newspaper articles mentioned the center, a $170,359 value.
Finally, Vale Desconto Shopping's last survey demonstrated a new
consumer attitude. Shoppers understood that it was a real factory outlet
center, where they could buy top-quality products at low prices.
CREDIT
Owned by: SPASA
Managed by: Victor & Schellenberger
Professional recognition to: Victor Almeida, corporate manager;
Mario Almeida, corporate marketing director; Martha Serra, center
marketing director; Martha Sampaio, center advertising agency.
EXPENSES
| Research | $19,266 |
| Posters | 3,291 |
| Newspaper | 3,225 |
| Billboards | 12,603 |
| Radio | 24,662 |
| TV ad production | 57,798 |
| TV ad placement | 100,788 |
| Miscellaneous | 9,587 |
| Total | $231,220 |
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