Jeans brand Mudd is rolling out a new back-to-school campaign that uses a backdrop of real-life girls and their charitable causes to target other teens.
The campaign, Mudd Girls Move the World, is designed to inspire teens to make a difference in their community while boosting the Mudd brand. Mudd uses a print campaign and online microsite as a call to action for teens to take on their own cause initiative.
Each image in the print campaign features a real-life girl (six in all) in Mudd clothing and accessories, her story and goal to make a difference in the world. In one image, a 15-year-old hurricane Katrina survivor pledges to help rebuild New Orleans. The print ads reads, “This fall, I will rebuild my city.” In another, a 17-year-old hip-hop artist will donate funds to the Polaris Project, which supports victims of human trafficking and slavery. That ad reads, “This fall, I will set someone free.”
The ads will appear in Teen People magazine and Seventeen magazine in the August issues, now available on newsstands. Mudd will distribute $5,000 to each of the six girls featured in the campaign to assist with their charitable cause.
Iconix Brand Group, New York, acquired the Mudd brand in April. The company also owns brands including Candie’s, Bongo, Joe Boxer, Rampage and Badgley Mischka.
“Today’s teens are extremely conscience of what is going on in the world and are humanitarian driven,” said Neil Cole, CEO of Iconix in a statement. “By featuring each of these real girls in a national advertising campaign, we are giving them an enormous platform to get their cause and message across to America.”
Iconix, with the Catherine Sadler Group, New York, launched a casting call this spring in four cities (Houston, San Francisco, New York City and Atlanta) and via an online searching for real girls and their causes for its campaign. The company considered girls based on their personality, cause and geographic location, said Iconix Brand Group spokesperson Maria Dolgetta. More than 2,000 applicants entered the contest, she said.
To further support the campaign, Mudd is giving teens a chance to share their own stories through an interactive microsite at MyMuddWorld.com. Teens can post stories and make comments on the Mudd Girls’ stories via an online community on the site.
In addition, Mudd and Seventeen magazine are on the hunt via an essay contest for more real girls who want to make a difference. Four grand-prize winners will receive $500 toward the charity of their choice, the chance to have their picture and story featured in a future issue of Seventeen magazine and Mudd gear. Seventeen second-place winners will receive their name and charity choice in a future issue. To enter, consumers must send in an essay (maximum of 250 words) via e-mail to [email protected] or mail with their photo and birth date. Details are available on Seventeen.com. Online materials support. The promotion ends July 31.
Iconix’s in-house team handled the marketing and advertising initiatives with the Catherine Sadler Group.
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