Levi's 501s

Docker's Khakis- old ad but a good one

The Levi's Man

GREEN Levi's

Levi’s is making its ‘green commitment’ public with its ‘jean donor’ program. It has the foremost reputation for being a ‘green company’ of any in the apparel industry, including Nike. Levi’s has been active in ‘green’ since the early 1990s when it implemented global sourcing and operation guidelines. Even the label is ‘green’. Corporate offices even have a “Boot the bottle’ campaign for getting rid of plastic water bottles, retail stores are on alert for air conditioning that is too high and recycling is not just a word but an action for the company overall. It is also a leader in child labor restrictions, working conditions and human rights. (Levi’s was involved in a major scandal in the 1970s regarding these issues in Marianas). Moreover, Levi’s initiated a cross promotion with Proctor and Gamble’s Tide detergent within Walmart stores placing Coldwater Tide in displays with Levi’s to encourage cold water washing of the jeans to save energy. In 2007, a third party life cycle study was done to determine the environmental impact of 501s and Dockers Khakis. The most negative aspects of the products were at the cotton production stage and at the consumer use stage. New strategies were embraced to reduce water and pesticide usage and to improve working conditions for farmers. Levi’s joined the Better Cotton alliance with Ikea and Marks and Spencers to mobilize and consolidate buying power to influence these factors globally. In addition, Levi’s reduced packaging and launched the ‘Care Tags for our Planet’ program with environmentally friendly care instructions for washing in cold water and donating old jeans to charity rather than putting them in the trash. Their own studies have indicated that consumers care about the planet but they need to receive ideas about how to make a difference. Levi’s is very careful to be ‘authentic’ in all that they do pertaining to ‘green’. They know that insincerity could cost them customers permanently and that their efforts must be much more than ‘greenwashing’. They discovered the people will not pay more for organic unless there is a tangible or intrinsic value. Apparently consumers are convinced that Levi’s is a green company. MapChange, an environmental organization that assesses the ‘greenness’ of companies reports that Levi’s scored an 86% on consumer perceptions of being a green company (while actually scoring a 58% on measures of greenness- which is far superior to any other apparel manufacturer).

Mischa Barton in Levi's

Steve Jobs' work day uniform

Megan Fox in Levi's

Go Forth Campaign

Levi's and the Economy

LS&Co. has not been immune to the world economy woes. In the second quarter of 2009, it reported a loss of $4.1 million compared with earnings of $701,000 for that same quarter the previous year. There was weakness in the mature LS&Co. markets and even in Japan consumers opted for cheaper apparel and chain store retailers. Even with these problems Anderson’s intention is to prepare LS&Co. for growth as the economy improves.


The Asia-Pacific web portal has just undergone a complete revamp in support of the goal of growth. They hired OgilvyOne in Singapore to create the site with a younger, more contemporary face. It incorporates a heritage message in a very Asian settling which celebrates Asian street style. Levi’s ads for brands are on the side of recognizable Asia buildings within the site and rooms within the building tell the heritage story. The launch of the revamped website preceded the launch of a new viral campaign for Levi’s Hong Kong’s Type 1 Jeans which was aimed at the 14-24 demographic. This campaign was designed by Tequila/Hong Kong and is called the ‘How bold are you’ campaign. There is a ‘Bold’ video competition with prizes for video clips uploaded to Youtube.

Now that is Diversification!

Levi's Economic picture

In the Americas, Levi’s has come back in a big way with their newest advertising campaign for jeans which features a very patriotic theme. In 2010, Levi’s advertised during the Superbowl and the ads which have a Walt Whitman poem as a voice over were a great hit. Levi’s had also purchased a number of retail stores and spent considerable sums on refurbishing the stores for a more contemporary shopping experience. For the first part of 2010, there were rising sales in the Americas. Strong currency exchange also lifted earnings results for denim sales for Levi’s. For the first quarter they reported a 17.2% rise in earnings to $56.4 million compared to $48.1 million for the same period in 2009. Revenues increased 8.8% to $1.04 billion from $951.5 million and sales gained 9.1% to $1.02 billion from $931.3 million with the Levi’s brand accounting for 84% of sales. American sales rose 8.2% to $545.2 million from $5.03.9 million. This was influenced by currency exchange but gains were also noted for the Levi’s men’s, juniors and boys wholesale channel.


At the same time the Dockers label and Signature Label showed declines. Robert Hanson, president of Levis Strauss Americas has said that revitalization of the other brands is in the works. While sales were down, Hanson reported that the Superbowl ads did provide a bump for Dockers and that online sales had increased as a direct result. Interestingly, Docker’s Europe has shown double-digit growth. European revenues rode 14.5% to $306.1 million from $267.3 aided by favorable currency exchange. The wholesale segment showed declines which were offset by company owned stores.

In the Asia Pacific region, India and China remain the growth engines. Revenues are up 2% to $183.8 million but that was boosted by a very favorable exchange rate which masks a slight decline. This was caused by lower sales in Japan. Stores are being added across India and China. In addition, LS&Co. is experimenting with selling jeans on credit with no interest fees in these markets.

A Levi's Frame of Mind

Crazy Legs- A blast from the past

Impact of Digital on Strategy and Operations

Sharon Novak discusses digital media in the context of the fashion industry but the facts and information are relevant to all businesses.

All I need

Drew Barrymore and Justin Long in Levi's

When will Levi's Guys and Girls get to stay home?

Dakota Loves Levi's

To measure Levi’s competitive advantage there are several key accounting ratios to figure out the economic performance as well as the accounting performance. The key ratios that are going to be used are the Return on Assets (ROA), Quick Ratio (QR), and Debt to Assets (D2A). Looking at Levi’s key ratios, they were struggling within their market in 2007t. The ROA is actually competitive in their market. The number that Levi’s should be worried about is the D2A because it is over 1 which means that it has a higher risk of bankruptcy. Looking at the financial ratios gives Levi’s a sustained competitive disadvantage.


                                              2007            2006             2005

Return on Assets           14.255%          8.523%          5.36%

Quick Ratio                        1.156             .0737           1.1296

Debt to Assets                   1.13818       1.3538           1.4358

Net revenue for 2008 was $4.4 billion, a 1 percent increase over prior year. Gross margin was strong at 48.6 percent compared to 46.8 percent in 2007. Operating income was $525 million, approximately 18 percent below 2007, reflecting investments in retail expansion, technology systems and global marketing efforts. Net income was $229 million, down 50 percent mostly due to a $215 million income tax benefit in 2007. Year-over-year earnings before tax, which exclude the “one-time” impact of the tax benefit, were comparable. Cash flow from operations was strong, which allowed Levi Strauss to invest in the business, pay a stockholder dividend and reduce debt. Net debt at year-end was $1.6 billion, the lowest year-end level since 1996. Global strategies helped them weather the economic downturn during the second half of the year. These strategies included building on LS&CO.’s leadership in jeans and khakis, capitalizing on their extensive global footprint, driving growth in the world’s developing markets, and expanding our retail network in each of our three regions—the Americas; Asia Pacific; and Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.

Adam Lambert in Levi's

Levi's financial position in this downturn

LS&Co. has not been immune to the world economy woes. In the second quarter of 2009, it reported a loss of $4.1 million compared with earnings of $701,000 for that same quarter the previous year. There was weakness in the mature LS&Co. markets and even in Japan consumers opted for cheaper apparel and chain store retailers. Even with these problems Anderson’s intention is to prepare LS&Co. for growth as the economy improves.


The Asia-Pacific web portal has just undergone a complete revamp in support of the goal of growth. They hired OgilvyOne in Singapore to create the site with a younger, more contemporary face. It incorporates a heritage message in a very Asian settling which celebrates Asian street style. Levi’s ads for brands are on the side of recognizable Asia buildings within the site and rooms within the building tell the heritage story. The launch of the revamped website preceded the launch of a new viral campaign for Levi’s Hong Kong’s Type 1 Jeans which was aimed at the 14-24 demographic. This campaign was designed by Tequila/Hong Kong and is called the ‘How bold are you’ campaign. There is a ‘Bold’ video competition with prizes for video clips uploaded to Youtube.

Orlando Bloom in Levi's

'I wear no pants' parody

They say that imitations is the sincerest form of flattery!

Docker's "i wear no pants' ad

The Dockers Super Bowl television commercial became interactive by letting smartphone users tag the ad to get branded mobile content. Dockers partnered with Shazam to develop an integrated program that let consumers who watched the new Dockers “Men Without Pants” TV commercial use their mobile devices to engage at a deeper level with the brand. “The Dockers brand is always seeking to engage consumers in ways that are meaningful and relevant,” said Jen Sey, vice president of global marketing at Dockers, San Francisco. “With the explosion in mobile technologies and consumers increasingly turning to their smartphones for discovery and engagement, we wanted to make sure we were connecting with them on their terms. The integration of Shazam was developed in partnership with Ignition Factory, a creative media specialty unit of Dockers’ media buying agency OMD, a unit of Omnicom Group Inc. Viewers who installed Shazam on their smartphones can tag the TV spot and are taken to a branded-content landing page. There consumers can read about the “Wear the Pants” campaign and learn about or buy the “I Wear No Pants” music track. The ad debut also included a khaki pant giveaway promotion that could be entered on the spot via consumer mobile devices with the Shazam technology. The khaki give away ran Feb. 7–15. The commercial continues through 2010 on a variety of shows and networks including the NBA on TNT, FX, Comedy Central and the Discovery Channel. The “Wear the Pants” global ad campaign launched in December 2009 and is integrated with broadcast, print, billboard, radio, social media, events and digital marketing. The campaign has stirred up gender debate which is excellent for Dockers and their memorability.

Guitar blues

Levi's- I think I love you

Wow! What do you think of this AD?

Quilts made out of old jeans

Levi's has Brand Wowability!

Wowability Branding

The Levi's Attitude

Unbreakable.

Asian Rap for Levi's

In the great mixing bowl of life that characterizes media in our time, Levi's initiates much of the mixing and stirring. For decades, Levi's has taken American concepts, images and styles to international markets. Here is another example.

Levi's and Wieden + Kennedy

In December of 2008, Levi’s changed advertising agencies and hired Wieden + Kennedy, an agency which had done many epic ads for Nike.The spots were initially shown in movie theatres in 2009 and then moved to television. They “go from traditional advertising and digital promotions to social media and mobile—the interactive campaign encouraged consumers to ‘go forth’ in provocative new ways. “We didn’t start with digital, because it’s more important to disrupt the market in a way that people look at this TV commercial, the execution, as part of a larger [multichannel] campaign and say ‘This is not really the Levi’s I know, this is a refreshed Levi’s brand.’ Coehn-Szulc says.


Levi’s is not the only brand embracing digital media. The Dockers Super Bowl television commercial became interactive by letting smartphone users tag the ad to get branded mobile content. Dockers partnered with Shazam to develop an integrated program that let consumers who watched the new Dockers “Men Without Pants” TV commercial use their mobile devices to engage at a deeper level with the brand. “The Dockers brand is always seeking to engage consumers in ways that are meaningful and relevant,” said Jen Sey, vice president of global marketing at Dockers, San Francisco. “With the explosion in mobile technologies and consumers increasingly turning to their smartphones for discovery and engagement, we wanted to make sure we were connecting with them on their terms. The integration of Shazam was developed in partnership with Ignition Factory, a creative media specialty unit of Dockers’ media buying agency OMD, a unit of Omnicom Group Inc. Viewers who installed Shazam on their smartphones can tag the TV spot and are taken to a branded-content landing page. There consumers can read about the “Wear the Pants” campaign and learn about or buy the “I Wear No Pants” music track. The ad debut also included a khaki pant giveaway promotion that could be entered on the spot via consumer mobile devices with the Shazam technology. The khaki give away ran Feb. 7–15. The commercial continues through 2010 on a variety of shows and networks including the NBA on TNT, FX, Comedy Central and the Discovery Channel. The “Wear the Pants” global ad campaign launched in December 2009 and is integrated with broadcast, print, billboard, radio, social media, events and digital marketing. The campaign has stirred up gender debate which is excellent for Dockers and their memorability.

Very edgy cultural ad by Levi's. Does it go too far or send an interesting message?

This ad is certainly one that should make us think. An asian man is chased by ominous and threatening white people. He finally decides to turn and face them and assert himself. They run. This commerical is more political and goes into different territory than any others I have seen. Is it dangerous territory? You judge.

Levi's International Marketing

The Long Arm of the Levi's Legacy

Strategic Initiatives at Levi Strauss and Company

For the first two years of his tenure President Anderson worked to take care of the basics at LS&Co. In mid 2008, a new global advertising campaign was unveiled with the ‘Live Life Unbuttoned’ tagline. It focused on the traditional 501s with the button fly and it was the first world wide coordinated advertising campaign. It was very successful in elevating and reinforcing the Levi brand image. The core brand accounted for about 76% of sales in 2008 which translates to approximately $3.27 billion. This represents an increase of about 3% of sales over 2007 and 6% over 2006. The total Levi’s advertising expenditure was $297.9 million worldwide. The message that Anderson took from these stats was that a single global message could drive results and elevate the awareness of the iconic brand.


Even with the global economy on the decline, Anderson chose to take advantage of the company’s size and resources to boost brand image while competitors were doing less advertising. Jaime Cohen Szulic Chief Marketing Officer of Levi’s is embracing mobile media and moving the marketing strategy forward very quickly. The website in Singapore is a good example. He feels that courting the potential for consumers to be advocates and not just loyal is where the future will be made. “If you enact changes for the people, they will carry your brand,” he said. “It’s about moving from loyalty to advocacy. “Brand loyalty is very passive, but brand advocacy is about being active, not passive. .He believes that online advertising should be fun. Levi Strauss & Co. plans to build on traditional advertising campaigns by adding digital channels such as social media and mobile to the mix. At a conference in April of 2010, Szulc, who is also VP of Levi Strauss & Co. in San Francisco stated that the “important trends that are driving change include faster product lifecycles and challenging macro-economics, as well as the increasingly complex marketing mix. The reason why the Internet and digital channels [such as mobile] are so important, they touch the core of human values—the need to connect, the need to feel loved and the need to feel productive, which can be really difficult to do in real life.”

Last month, the first official Levi’s/Fader Fort application for iPhone and Android launched. While traditional television, print and out-of-home advertising is still integral to Levi’s marketing strategy, the brand is increasingly using digital channels such as mobile to complement and enhance that strategy. “As market becomes more fragmented, we want to have more control over our consumer experience, both online and at retail outlets,” Mr. Cohen-Szulc said. “Going global means you lose control of the dialog and you have to manage that dialog. “In the digital space, it’s not necessarily a controlled environment, so as a brand you have to lose a little bit of control to gain other advantages,” he said. New technologies and new consumer behavior is pushing marketing toward a tipping point, according to the Levi’s executive. “Consumers are in the driver’s seat more than ever, and they only care about what’s original, real and relevant to me,” Mr. Cohen-Szulc said. “The strategic role of each marketing mix element is changing by the minute. “We wanted to change course and eliminate stagnancy by being disruptive with our Go Forth campaign,” he said.