Wrangler Editor's Note In legend and reality, the Western U.S. has for centuries been a meeting ground for Anglos and Hispanics. That's no less true today. VF Corporation's Wrangler subsidiary and its advertising agency, Dieste & Partners, adapted "The Western Original" theme of the Wrangler jeans General Market campaign to develop its successful "Viva La Tradición" (Live the Tradition) theme for the Hispanic market. One of the notable features of this campaign was the extensive use of research. Upfront, an Hispanic market "mindset model" was created to define the most receptive market segments. Focus groups of segment members helped determine how to gear Wrangler's general market products and communications to His-panic needs. Then, every detail in marketing the products -- from styling, sizing and labeling, to integrated communications, to retailer incentives -- worked in harmony to achieve dramatic results as measured by pre- and post-research studies of consumers. In addition to the research components, the campaign described in this case history shows the importance of ... ...understanding the lifestyle and values of the target consumer, ...understanding the heritage and equities of the brand so that these can be adapted to that consumer, ...remaining true to the brand heritage throughout the campaign, ...and going beyond advertising to provide promotional sup-port. Marketing Situation Wrangler, an apparel brand of the VF Corporation's Wrangler subsidiary, is a well-developed brand, dominant in many channels that reach various consumer groups. Identifying a substantive growth opportunity, Wrangler decided to explore the potential for marketing to U.S. Hispanics. This effort began with an identification of Hispanic consumer segments that would be predisposed to Wrangler's values ...epitomized by the positive "Western American" imagery of cowboys, rodeos and freedom -- even if 99% of the people identifying with this lifestyle have never ridden a horse. As Wrangler evaluated opportunities in the marketplace, the Hispanic market stood out for many reasons: It's an extremely large segment -- sometimes described as "the Baby Boomers of the 90's". Hispanics number 25 million -- or 12% of the U.S. population -- and are projected to grow at least five times faster than the non-Hispanic population. By the year 2000, 31 million Americans will be Hispanic. By 2005, the segment will become the #1 minority in the U.S. (surpassing the African American population). By 2010, one of every three new U.S. workers will be Hispanic-Americans. Hispanics are young: 64% are under the age of 35. Hispanics are concentrated in the Southwest and West: five states make up 72% of the Hispanic population. And these are key markets for Wrangler Western Wear, evidenced by high ratings for two commonly-used indicators of marketing potential -- BDI (Brand Development Index) for Wrangler and CDI (Category Development Index) for jeans. Research confirmed that Hispanics are heavy jeans purchasers. While they comprise 12% of the population, they make more than 17% of jeans purchases (a +42% differential). The average Hispanic consumer is 30% more likely than the general market consumer to buy jeans. The average Hispanic consumer buys 3.3 pairs a year, compared with 2.8 for the general market consumer. He/she spends 39% more on total jeans purchases and spends more on each pair of jeans. Jeans are a major part of the Hispanic wardrobe, worn on more occasions. In approaching the Hispanic market, Wrangler recognized that they had considerable ground to make up. Prior to 1992, Wrangler had no Hispanic marketing strategy; they had never developed any His-panic advertising executions. In contrast, their major competitor, Levi's, had been committed to an Hispanic advertising effort for many years. Levi's California base had heightened the company's awareness of the market's potential in a way that Wrangler (based in Greensboro, NC) had not naturally acquired. In addition, Levi's had maintained a well-advertised dominant presence in Spanish-speaking countries, heightening awareness and loyalty among newly arriving immigrants to the U.S. Objectives Working with their Hispanic ad agency, Wrangler set the following objectives for their Hispanic marketing effort: Based on research findings, to ensure the best product offerings to satisfy Hispanic market needs. To develop a positive brand image. Over a two year period, to increase awareness of the Wrangler brand by 30%. To increase advertising awareness by 50%. To increase sales among Hispanic consumers by 10%. For documenting these goals, client and agency arranged the conduct of pre- and post-research measurement. Defining Target Customers Going beyond basic Hispanic market demographic data, the Wrangler-Dieste team developed the "Wrangler Hispanic Mindset Model", based on an acculturation study of the Hispanic market by Yankelovich Partners, Inc. The model contained four psycho-graphic segments, identified as follows: Traditional Conformists (40% of U.S. Hispanic market): These tend to be foreign born, less acculturated to the general U.S. culture, more fatalistic (believing that what happens is pre-destined) and more traditional and religious than other segments. Hispanics in this group are generally looking simply to sustain themselves, not to climb the social and economic ladder. The typical segment member might be characterized as a 40-year-old male construction worker, who may come to the U.S. to earn money and send it back to his family, who chooses to live in a neighborhood where he need not learn English, and who eventually would return to his native country. Recent Seekers (27%): These also lean toward being foreign born; though they tend to be more acculturated than Traditional Conformists (but less so than the other two segments). Hispanics here are more likely to be younger than the Traditional Conformists. They want to "climb the ladder" to better lives. The segment member may also be a construction worker, but he wants to advance to foreman and, someday, sub-contractor. Young Strivers (16%): U.S.-born, this grouping represents the second most-accul-turated of the four segments. "Living with one foot in each culture", these Hispanics are closer to Recent Seekers than Traditional Conformists. They are likely to be children of members of one of those segments. A Young Striver might be a young sales clerk, attending college, speaking English at school and work and Spanish at home, and watching and listening to both languages in the media. Established Adapters (17%): These U.S.-born Hispanics might be considered the most acculturated of the four segments. Likely to be third or fourth generation Hispanic-Americans, they speak mostly English while still maintaining pride in heritage and culture. They may or may not be blue collar; regardless they generally have higher incomes than the other segments. The next step in developing the campaign was to "zero in" on the segments most likely to be receptive to the Wrangler message and lifestyle. Largely because of their youth and aspirations, Recent Seekers and Young Strivers were chosen. But the campaign needed to reach these segments without alienating the Traditional Conformists -- at least a few of whom might aspire to be in the two target groups -- and the Established Adapters. The demographic "overlay" of the primary target customer was an Hispanic male, 34 years old, married, with household income of $28,000. Compared to the general market Wrangler customer, he is younger, less affluent, more likely to work in a blue collar occupation and likely to live in a larger, extended-family household. Because of their role in buying jeans for men in their lives, His-panic women were a secondary marketing target. Research Implications for Wrangler Product and Imagery The conduct of focus group research - held in Texas and California - was key to enabling Wrangler to develop and provide the best products and to creating and testing consistent, appealing imagery for the target market. One important finding was that jeans had to meet different taste and fit requirements for the Hispanic physique. Shorter in-seams and smaller waist sizes than those typically worn by non-Hispanics were preferred. As a result, in introducing the product, retail salespeople were trained to understand and focus on sizing differences, aided by in-store informational materials. Research led to marketing and development of a range of products, all designed to appeal to the target segment. These included "Slim Fit Cowboy Cut" jeans, as well as shirts with brighter colors and patterns (including a line of Checotah Shirts in an Aztec pat-tern). The jeans had very distinct styling, with gold stitching and smooth brass rivets. They featured the Wrangler patch, with a distinctive leather look, on the back right pocket. Informational hang-tags were developed to communicate such special features more effectively in the stores. To develop consistent imagery that would appeal to the Hispanic market, research warned that Hispanics did not easily identify with the traditional cowboy image conveyed by the general market Wrangler ads. However, the U.S. western lifestyle fit naturally with the Hispanic - especially Mexican - lifestyle, as reflected in Norteño and Tejano music. In addition, Hispanics are proud of their heritage and contribution to the cowboy culture. In fact, the original cowboys were "vaqueros" from Mexico. From this came a vaquero concept for the Wrangler Hispanic campaign. Its application is described below. Positioning In adapting the general, or Anglo, market positioning to the His-panic market, the Wrangler-Dieste & Partners team adapted Wrangler brand equities to the Hispanic market. In both markets, Wrangler represented authentic Western apparel that is durable, fashionable and useful for many occasions -- work, dances, parties, rodeos, even weddings. The Wrangler general market equity, consisting of the proud heritage of the West, was adapted to the Hispanic vaquero heritage. The objective was to generate a pride and appeal across all acculturation levels. In effect, the Anglo cowboy equity was adapted to the Hispanic vaquero equity. "The Western Original" theme of the Wrangler Anglo campaign was given a counterpart in the development of the Hispanic campaign: "Viva La Tradición" (Live the Tradition). The theme was rich in meaning and emotionally significant to the target Wrangler Hispanic market segments. It created a strong bond with the brand while retaining linkage to the general market positioning. Media Strategy An integrated marketing program was developed, using this Viva La Tradición theme to make Wrangler the jeans and shirts of choice among Hispanics. Media buys on popular Spanish TV and radio stations were complemented by outdoor advertising, in-store posters, remote radio broadcasts and rodeo sponsorships. The campaign began in four Texas markets in 1992, and by October, 1997, had spread to 16 markets, primarily in Texas and California. Creative Execution Television carried image advertising in the form of one 60-second spot and two 30-second spots. In the 60-second spot, called "Generation," a young Hispanic cowboy, clad in Wrangler products, is shown on horseback amid spectacular (Utah) high plains and mountain scenery. He reminisces about his grandfather -- a vaquero -- and wishes that he had known him. Suddenly, the black-and-white image of the grandfather comes to life in color. The grandfather tells his grandson that he carries the vaquero tradition and should never lose it. The 30-second spots show similar conversations, one in a stable tack room and the other in an outdoor setting in which the grand-father rides up behind the grandson to talk with him. [Prior to release, the "Generation" creative concept was tested in target-market focus groups to ensure that it was preferred to other, more contemporary concepts.] The radio commercials featured endorsements by Tejano music artists Emilio Navaira, Shelly Lares and Rick Trevino, as well as rodeo celebrities. Between 1992 and 1994, more than 80 remote broadcasts, featuring disk jockeys broadcasting from top-selling re-tail stores, added free-media value of 25% to the radio media buy. The remotes also generated heavy store traffic and sales. On-air mentions and other promotional efforts brought total extended media value to 31% of advertising purchases. Both TV and radio commercials offered retailers incentives in the form of taggable spots (that is, able to include the retailer's tag-line). Participating retailers received cooperative reimbursements at a higher rate than that ordinarily paid to Wrangler retailers. In-store posters and outdoor advertising featured vaqueros dressed in Wrangler Western Wear and carried the Viva La Tradición tagline. The outdoor advertising was also taggable by retailers. Rodeo sponsorships, a longtime activity of Wrangler through its involvement with the Pro Rodeo Cowboys Association, were also promoted to the Hispanic market. Results The campaign soon achieved major impact. Top-of-mind aware-ness, advertising awareness and brands purchased were measured in comparison with Levi's before the campaign in 1992 and again two years later: Top-of-mind awareness in the target Hispanic market segments be-fore the campaign was 57% for Levi's and 12% for Wrangler. After the campaign it fell to 49% for Levi's (down 8 percentage points or -14%), and 17% for Wrangler (up 5 percentage points or +42%). Needless to say, this was well ahead of the pre-to-post goal of +30%. Advertising awareness before the campaign was 48% for Levi's and 11% for Wrangler. After the campaign it was 36% for Levi's (down 8 percentage points or -17%), and 18% for Wrangler (up 7 percentage points or +64% ... well ahead of the pre-program goal of 50%). Advertising Awareness In terms of "past 12 month purchases", in the year prior to the measured, 79% of consumers had purchased Levi's and 35% had bought Wrangler. According to the post-campaign research, over the course of the second year of the campaign, 76% bought Levi's (down 3 percentage points or -4%), and 41% purchased Wrangler (up 6 percentage points or +17%). Brands Purchased in past 12 months Purchase intent research questions were equally positive. In June 1995, 16% of the Hispanics surveyed said they planned to buy Wrangler products in the next 12 months. When the same question was asked in June 1996, 24.6% said they planned to buy Wrangler products -- an increase of 8.6 percentage points or +54%. Qualitative research results supported the positive quantitative findings. Focus group reactions showed that the Wrangler TV spots moved people emotionally. In unaided recall, participants associated Wrangler jeans with the type of men -- vaqueros -- and music artists used in the commercials. The campaign also received advertising industry honors; winning National Golden Addy, TOPS, and Se Habla Español awards. By October 1997, the Western trend had weakened in the general market, but remained strong with Hispanics. A 1996 Simmons study indicated that, compared to general market males, Hispanic men were 44% more likely to buy Wrangler products ...and, compared to general market females, Hispanic women were 64% more likely to buy Wrangler products. Future Focus The Wrangler-Dieste & Partners team continued to measure the campaign's effectiveness and to develop updated and compelling communications to increase awareness, loyalty and sales. Continuing research efforts included on-going attitude and awareness studies, covering questions on brand perceptions, company/product image and purchase intent.