'Discount' doesn't mean 'cheap' in Bob's Discount Furniture's first campaign from Barton F. Graf
Company wants to educate customers in quirky spots featuring its spokespuppet
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As it expands to new locations, Bob’s Discount Furniture is out with a branding campaign to convey that it’s not a cheap discounter. On July 1, the retail chain will debut the new work, which still includes Bob, the brand’s two-foot-tall spokespuppet.
“What we’re finding is absent of any kind of story or context, people go to Bob’s Discount Furniture thinking we’re selling cheap furniture,” says Steve Nesle, chief marketing officer of the Manchester, Connecticut-based chain. “The idea was to change the meaning of the word 'discount' in our name to tell more of the truth behind the brand.”
In one quirky spot (above), a young man reclines on a couch and remarks that it does not look like a “discount sofa.” Spokespuppet Bob sets him straight: “It’s not. Everything I sell is quality furniture, and I give you a discount—Bob’s discount.” The sentiment is repeated in a flash forward, when the customer is old and gray but not senile enough to forget Bob’s discount.
The campaign comes as Bob’s is in growth mode. The retailer, which was founded in 1991, currently has 119 stores—15 of which were opened in the last six months. Two additional locations are slated to open later this year. Nesle noted that the chain is doing well because it has figured out how to maximize its supply chain—something the new ads focus on.
The campaign includes a series of 30- and 15-second spots as well as some radio ads, out-of-home and digital. Bob’s is also giving out swag, such as T-shirts and pins. The new work is Bob’s first from Barton F. Graf, an agency that the retailer began working with earlier this year. Havas Boston handled media duties.
Bob’s is also updating its website, which it tapped Deloitte Digital to help overhaul. A Bob’s app includes augmented reality for customers to see furniture in their homes before they buy.
Credits
- Date
- Jun 27, 2019
- Client :
- Bob's Discount Furniture
- Agency :
- Barton F. Graf-New York
- Chief Marketing Officer :
- Stephen Nesle
- VP Insights and Marketing Strategy :
- Rick Blake
- Director of Marketing Operations :
- Jennifer Blais
- Chief Creative Officer :
- Gerry Graf
- Chief Executive Officer :
- Caroline Winterton
- Strategist :
- Chane Rennie
- Creative Director :
- Kasia Canning
- Copywriter/Art Director :
- Sara Carr
- Copywriter/Art Director :
- Jesse Brown
- Copywriter/Art Director :
- Judy Tannery
- Copywriter/Art Director :
- Owen Weeks
- Executive Producer :
- Cameron Farrell
- Account Director :
- Kate Callander
- Head of Project Management :
- Sara Katsner
- Head of Business Affairs :
- Jennifer Pannent
- Music :
- Butter Music + Sound
- Production Company :
- Sweetshop
- Executive Producer :
- J. Patrick McElroy
- Producer :
- Carolyn Pedrossian
- Director :
- Nick Kelly
- Director of Photography :
- Jon Chema
- Head of Production :
- John Malina
- Assistant Director :
- Otis Fung
- Second AD :
- Jeff Krasner
- Production Company :
- Bob's Discount Furniture
- Director of Animation :
- Michael Bannon
- Senior Animator :
- Dan Driscoll
- Animator :
- Jesse Gurtowsky
- Fabrication Manager :
- Jason Fitzgerald
- Fabricator :
- Nicole Horsman
- BDF Creative Director :
- Tiana Rutledge
- Art Director :
- Susie Howard
- Art Director :
- Carolina Galvez
- Editor :
- David Magley
- Colorist :
- Matt Weiss
- Sound Designer :
- Brian Eldridge
- Compositor :
- Gabriel Mirasol
- Compositor :
- Miguel Mirasol
- Compositor :
- Jessica Haney
- BDF DP :
- John Loos
- BDF Operations Coordinator :
- Justine Higgins
- BDF Carpenter :
- Tim Leffingwell
- 3D Pre-vis Artist :
- Bill Dillon
- Line Producer :
- Jim Nikodemski
- Production Coordinator :
- Jason Rodriguez
- First A/C :
- Chris Hebert
- Gaffer :
- John Minard
- Best Boy :
- Rick Hamilton
- Key Grip :
- Kit di Benedetto
- Grip :
- Jim Purchase
- Grip :
- PJ Brockett
- Audio Engineer :
- Steve Wytas
- Carpenter :
- Larry Harvey
- Carpenter :
- Fred Landers
- Set Dresser :
- Robyn Szarka Roos
- Assistant Set Dresser :
- Jeff Roos
- Assistant Set Dresser :
- Jason Weigand
- Hair & Makeup :
- Patricia Parsons
- Wardrobe :
- Val Gengras
- PA :
- Patrick Balch
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