• by Larissa Faw , November 19, 2015

HauteLook, the Nordstrom-owned online flash sale platform and creative shop Omelet are introducing the "Hot Look" campaign to increase the HauteLook's brand awareness among a broad demographic of online shoppers.

This initiative is happening as HauteLook has been a bright spot for the upscale retailer which has struggled to attract shoppers to its stores in recent months.

In fact, the level of shoppers flocking to this discount online site is exceeding expectations, say Nordstrom executives. Since the retailer acquired HauteLook in 2011, this channel now represents over 10% of its off-price business. In contrast, it took the retailer over 10 years for Nordstrom.com to reach that level of online penetration.

In order to continue this momentum, the campaign is designed around HauteLook’s name and uses sound, repetition, and humor to make the brand both accessible and memorable for the new wave of consumers looking for the best deals on the most coveted fashions, agency execs say. 

“People totally know what HauteLook is and what they offer, but we learned there was some confusion around the pronunciation of their name," says Alex Delyle, associate creative director, Omelet. "Rather than shy away from that, we wanted to address it head-on in a cheeky, playful spot that leaves zero room for confusion." (Spoiler alert: As you can hear in this video haute sounds like oat when pronounced correctly.)

The campaign will begin airing on networks with a female-centric viewership, including E!, Bravo and POP. Ads will also run on some networks with more balanced mix of male/female audience including MTV, CNN, Destination America and USA as HauteLook also offers men’s fashion. The second phase of the campaign that continues through 2016 will focus on social and experiential channels. 

“We are always exploring fresh ways to resonate with our demographic and we needed a partner that inherently understands both our brand’s needs and what our future customers are looking for,” said Terry Boyle, president, HauteLook. “Omelet had the vision, along with the creativity and wit to pull it off.”

Omelet has been working with HauteLook for a few months and this is its first project under the partnership.