WALGREENS - CASTRO: Innovate or Lose

PROBLEM:

  • A Walgreen's store in the heavily gay populated San Francisco neighborhood of Castro informed Hallmark that they would be dropping Hallmark greetings and gifts to provide the square footage for more profitable product.

  • Hallmark's greetings and gifts were not meeting the needs of LGBT consumers

  • Hallmark's supply chain and distribution system made it difficult to cater to such specific needs

  • Hallmark had a third of the usual time allowed to execute the plan and launch the new offering in-store

SOLUTION:

  • Get permission from senior leadership to work outside of Hallmark's old methods, when necessary to accomplish the vision

  • Help pull together a team of multi-disciplinary experts to develop an innovative solution (we gathered researchers, LGBT people who matched the demo/psychographic characteristics of Castro, designers, writers, supply chain and production experts, and visual merchandisers)

  • Tap into our Employee Resource Groups, HERE (LGBT), and AARCH (Asian American) and collaborate with the ERGs from Walgreens

  • Find the right team members who are comfortable pushing back on old methods in order to achieve the best product in the shortened amount of time

  • Create a brand positioning statement and work with other leaders to develop the creative strategy and creative direction that will guide the team and maximize efficiency and impact

  • Consult, alongside other leaders, with product and merchandising teams during the development of the project to assess and iterate on the product assortment and the way it would be presented to consumers

  • Collectively drive the execution of a never-before-done Hallmark boutique store within Walgreens that catered to LGBT consumers

RESULT:

  • The revamped Hallmark department offers more than 50 cards for the LGBT community, including a collection of 12 StudioINK cards titled “Out and About.”

  • The line includes cards for same-sex marriages, baby showers for two moms or two dads, transgender coming out and other occasions.

  • The products are more gender-neutral in editorial and captions and have a larger focus on pets, in line with Walgreens’ expansion of its pet department in the store.

  • The department features more Hallmark Signature cards to create a boutique feel for this trend-aware consumer

  • The visual merchandising includes photos of gay and lesbian couples, LGBT-specific products highlighted by two-foot stripes using rainbow colors and the removal of gender-specific signage identifying products, such as “For Him” or “For Her.”

  • New grand-opening event to raise awareness within the community of Castro

  • Buzz-worthy news for social media to help improve brand perception

  • A new model of working to reach innovation

  • A new retail model for other neighborhoods and cities with specific cultural needs

  • To read an article about this, click here