The “New Year, New You” mantra is a powerful motivating factor every January, sending people to gyms, libraries and the dental hygiene aisle of the drug store.
But for fashion brands, it’s a marketing opportunity. Brands across activewear and luxury alike used New Year’s resolutions in campaigns throughout the end of December and beginning of January, capitalizing on the desire to refresh wardrobes and establish new active habits.
The luxury activewear brand Losano, for example, has been running an email campaign for the last two weeks with the subject line “New Year, New You.” The emails highlight a matching set of leggings and sports bra, along with images of celebrity ambassadors like Jordin Sparks and Maria Menounos wearing the styles. On the activewear brand and retailer Bandier’s website, the homepage has a big “It’s your year, it’s your fitness” message.
The similarly upscale activewear brand Forme capitalized on the New Year by focusing on its clothing’s supposed ability to help correct posture. For a post on Instagram, where Forme has more than 20,000 followers, the brand collected numerous Tweets and Instagram posts from users complaining of their poor posture, coupling them with a 20% sitewide discount and an encouragement to make a change in their lives in the new year.
“New year’s resolutions provide a great opportunity for everyday people to set goals for better themselves,” said Forme co-founder and COO Seiji Liu. “It’s a time to set the right foundation for your health and wellness.”
Forme has been around since 2018, doubling its revenue every year since, and typically makes New Year’s resolutions a feature of its marketing strategy in the months of December and January. It uses Instagram posts and paid ads, as well as customer emails.
But not all New Year’s campaigns focused on fitness or wellness. Ivy Cove, an accessories brand, is pitching itself as the perfect tool for a different resolution: being better for the environment.
Ivy Cove’s New Year email campaign focused on the sustainability of its products, the renewable aspect of its materials and the certifications that every part of its supply chain has. “If one of your New Year’s Resolutions is to shop sustainable brands (also you’re a kind human!), we’ve got you covered,” the ad copy said. The same messaging was used in the brand’s Instagram marketing, both paid and organic, in January.
According to a rep for the brand, email open rates for the New Year’s email campaign saw a bump compared to December emails, though they couldn’t share exact numbers.
And while some brands have rejected New Year’s resolution marketing this year, Ivy Moliver, founder of Ivy Cove, said it can still be a powerful marketing tool. For her, it’s a way to frame her brand’s products as aspirational, life-changing tools and to play to the brand’s strengths.
“For us, it’s about education and awareness,” she said. “It’s a great opportunity for everyday people to set goals to better themselves and be better for the planet, and it works perfectly for us.”
