For its holiday campaign, dubbed “Anything Roots,” Roots, the 52-year-old Canadian brand best known for leather goods and sweats, tapped a famous Canadian face: Seth Rogen, creator, writer and star of the Emmy-sweeping show “The Studio.” Rogen stars as Roots’s holiday concierge, available to advise on gifting needs.
The campaign was developed in-house, based on customer insights. “Customers were coming to us and saying that anything from Roots is considered a great gift,” said Roots CEO Meghan Roach, explaining that this feedback had come through surveys and social media, among other channels. “We were initially surprised by that,” she said. “It was fantastic to hear, and we thought it was really ownable.”
Roots has worked with celebrities before, but Rogen is the biggest it has ever tapped for its holiday season campaign. While the campaign does not focus on specific products, per se, Rogen is seen wearing distinctive items, like the brand’s Landscape Sweater.
Rogen felt true to the brand’s mission and values, Roach said. “He’s so approachable, from a personality perspective, and he’s so engaging. … A lot of the content [he creates is] light, funny and approachable, and I think that reflects a lot of what Roots is, too,” she said.
“We wanted to do something this holiday that would really break through the noise, come across as witty and warm, and touch on all of those amazing holiday moments while still being modern and aligning with what we stand for at Roots,” said Micah Cameron, Roots’s image director.
The brand, which has 110 stores in Canada, 110 partner stores in Taiwan and two in the U.S., remains focused on continuing to grow its global presence and brand awareness. While the fact that Rogen, like Roots, is Canadian, appealed to the brand’s executives, they also appreciated that he is famous on a much broader, global scale.
“He’s had success on a global stage,” Roach said. “For a brand like ours, which also has global resonance and is continuing to drive toward increased global presence, it’s important to partner with people who can be recognized, liked and engaged with by all different types of consumers.”
The campaign will have a 360-degree rollout. It will be promoted on social media, out-of-home billboards in Vancouver and Toronto, and streaming ads on Google, YouTube, Netflix and Spotify.
In its most recent earnings report, Roots reported semi-annual gross revenue of $90.75 million CAD, or approximately $66.25 million USD, representing a year-over-year increase of $5.54 million CAD, or $4.05 million USD.
