Dr Martens

DR MARTENS PR MARKETING PLAN

#STANDFORSOMETHING

Situation Analysis

BRAND HERITAGE

The famous British brand, Dr Martens was born when Klaus Martens and Dr Funk developed the idea of an air-cushioned sole for a stronger, more comfortable shoe. With the help of the Griggs family, the iconic Dr Marten was created during the1960’s.

Dr Martens played a dynamic role in a variety of subcultures such as the skinheads and punks, which has consequently become embedded into the soul of the brand.

Over the years, Doctor Martens have represented the attitude of the street and British culture which continues to inspire its designs today. The brand is sold worldwide, with key markets in the US and Asia.

Doctor Martens brand values revolve around creating classics; constructed with craftsmanship and made to last. The brand encourages self-expression, non-conformism, individuality and creativity.

CUSTOMER DEMOGRAPHIC

Doctor Martens are an established, worldwide-recognised brand that boasts a global fan base with 90 stores worldwide. Doctor Martens’ customer is diverse and is becoming increasingly so; ranging from ages 16 to 50 years. However, unification of the customer is evident through their individuality and attitude to stand out. The target audience is no longer limited to subculture which is displayed through its wider product range and collaborations such as the blend of Liberty London and Dr Martens. With this collaboration and celebrity endorsement ASOS reported a 230% rise in sales of Dr Martens (Fashion Telegraph, sowray, 07 2012).

Situation Analysis PAST MARKET POSITION

During the 1960’s (when Dr Martens were created) the brand was most popular amongst working class people and those who were on their feet all day, such as police officers, who required a hard-wearing product.

The customers soon evolved into subcultures including skinheads, who adopted the Dr Marten boot as a symbol of rebellion and anarchy. These youth groups began their own revolution with Dr Martens on their feet, achieving worldwide recognition that created a very specific image of the brand and its customer.

The popularity of the brand was encouraged further, when famous bands such as the Sex Pistols started to wear the boots, highlighting the brands core, music. Due to its connection to musical subcultures, Dr Martens went on to sponsor leading musical festivals such as Phoenix and Reading since 1996 and the renowned Glastonbury during 1997 and 1998.

Other collaborations and campaigns created include the 2011 First and Forever advertising campaign. This aimed to drive online interaction and to celebrate heritage, encourage self expression and increase the brand awareness of the breadth of the Doctor Martens product range.

PRESENT MARKET POSITION

Doctor Marten’s market position has adapted and become more diverse due to subcultures being less noticeable in society after the new millennium. Marketing director, Dr Martens, stated: “Dr Martens has been associated with British sub-cultures for fifty years. It is time for the brand to become more mainstream.

As culture moves on so must a brand.” Doctor Martens now includes: sandals, clothing, accessories, and a kid’s range though still retains its core strong to music, subculture, youth and British heritage. Dr Marten’s current competitors include Hunter, Converse, and Ugg.

Situation Analysis

REGIONAL CUSTOMER

Doctor Martens is relatively new to Newcastle’s city centre with its store being opened in September 2013. The store is located opposite the Landmark Monument where many protests occur; highlighting Dr Martens rebellious, free thinking attributes. The regional customer is diverse, with a variety of ages wearing Dr Martens. However, with two universities and a college, the city thrives on young individuals, who represent and express themselves as creative non-conformists.

The update of Newcastle’s shopping scene is enticing more fashion conscious individuals who also contribute to this customer group by entering the Dr Martens Newcastle store. Representing this group is 23-year-old Sam Lowerson from Durham who has been chosen to star in the Spring/Summer 2015 advertising campaign.

Situation Analysis EPR AND MARKETING ACTIVITIES

Doctor Martens EPR and marketing focuses on social media, music sponsorships and their multi-award winning campaigns, with their current one being global campaign #standforsomething which builds upon the brand’s heritage and revolves around the values and personality of the brand and its customer.

Situation Analysis SWOT ANALYSIS

Situation Analysis TARGET AUDIENE: The Taste makers IN THE NORTHEAST

Newcastle has grown and adapted into a diverse, vibrant city. With a decline in industry and manufacture, the creative industries have grown. Newcastle has become the perfect place for people who are talented nonconformists or freelance professionals with a desire to start their own creative business’ and collaboration projects. This has resulted in the tastemakers of Dr Martens in the regional area of the North East to be the young individuals who represent and express themselves as creative, non-conformists. These individuals don’t want to be considered as part of a group because of how they act and what they wear, but alternatively they wish to be viewed as strong-minded individuals with their own creative flare in their lifestyle, profession and also in their skill. They frequently go to the nights and venues in Newcastle, which were initially considered as the ‘underdogs’, such as MSA, and LOOP. These venues have specific music and art tastes; they appeal to people who are freethinkers (like them), who do not conform to what is perceived as ‘normal’ or ‘popular’ for the city of Newcastle. Finally, they have a love for social areas such as restaurants and bars like Lola Jeans. These places are full of local art talent and bring something new and diverse to the city. This audience is encouraged and inspired to initiate creative, businesses and collaborations of their own in the city of Newcastle, just like the owners and creators of their favourite venues.

PR Objectives

-Divert interest from the past of Dr Martens to the present, communicating the brand’s diversity and movement whilst maintaining its values.

- Underline the brands interest in the ‘Art of Industrial Manufacture’ and its connection to musical subcultures, creativity and selfexpression - Connect with local creative individuals and inspire them to showcase their creativity and what they stand for.

-Celebrate Newcastle’s creative scene.

-Build networked conversations and memories through the use of social media.

PR STRATEGY

PRE LAUNCH

LAUNCH

POST LAUNCH

Due to the increase in creativity and versatility of individuals and businesses in the city, the campaign #THENANDNOW aims to celebrate inventiveness and originality in terms of the movement of the city and the movement of the brand Dr Martens.

During the pre launch, preparation will be completed. The main aspect of the launch will be to develop the excitement for the film and purpose of the campaign.

To do this, we will be launching #THENANDNOW on to social media, with its main platform being Instagram. This involves the creative individuals in the North East to send in their ‘then and now’ pictures of Dr Martens; whether it’s their parents wearing a pair, a band member, or maybe even their icon. We then want to see them demonstrating their own creativity wearing their favourite pair of Dr Martens; to highlight the development of the brand and its creative consumers. Immediately prior to the launch, the top 5 photo owners will be contacted and invited to attend the launch evening, with a chance to win a Dr Martens store collaboration and an online profile on the website as means of celebrating and launching the winner’s creativity.

The launch will be primarily be posted and launched live on Facebook and linked to additional social media sites. During the online launch, the film will be shown to Dr Marten and industry professionals in the North East as well as the top five photo winners at the Tyne side cinema, where numerous creative exhibitions are staged.

During the launch at the Tyneside, each one of the winners will perform/speak about their creativity and ideas for their Dr Martens store collaboration, which will also be filmed. All of the photos and clips of the evening will be uploaded to social media, therefore keeping the fans updated.

To maintain the ambience and atmosphere up during the post launch, all of the images collected from the #THENANDNOW online campaign will start to be crafted into an in-store installation timeline. The images of this ‘making’ process will be updated regularly on Instagram. During the post launch, videos of the winners from Tyneside cinema will be posted on Facebook and a voting system for the viewer’s favourite candidate will be determined by the most Facebook video likes.

The winner, once announced, will collaborate their creative style (either providing artwork, photography, or performing, according to their specific art) at the Doctor Martens store in Newcastle. In addition their creative profile will be set up on the Dr Martens website as a platform. Finally, the installation timeline will be up in the store to showcase the movement of both brand and society.

PR STRATEGY TIMELINE

Film blurb Dr Martens was known as a subculture brand built on heritage. Newcastle was known as a historic city built upon the industrial revolution. Things have changed. Let us show you the diversity and movement of society and the British brand Dr Martens, through the original creative people of the North East in this short film.