• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, March 1, 2024

Spanx, best known for compression shapewear, wants the world to know it makes apparel too.

The company is debuting its first-ever brand campaign called “We live in Spanx.” For the first time, ads will run on connected TV as the company continues to re-balance brand versus performance marketing.

Andrea Port, vice president of brand and integrated marketing, talks with Marketing Daily about the shift.

Marketing Daily: Spanx has been selling apparel for some time and started doing retail pop-ups last year. This is the first campaign. Why now?

Andrea Port: In the past, we have never made such an investment in brand awareness. And this is our first moment to showcase our apparel to the world. You won’t see any shapewear in these ads. This is a very important campaign for us, and we’re using connected TV (CTV), which is a first for us.

Marketing Daily: The ads star Olympian Allyson Felix, British model Charli Howard and Nadia Munno, TikTok’s Queen of Pasta. Why these celebrities, as opposed to the more famous names that have been Spanx fans – like Reese Witherspoon or Oprah?

Port: The idea behind this campaign is to capture the female experience of being many things all at once. We spent a lot of time choosing talent.

The woman we’re trying to market to is a lot of things. She’s a mom, a career woman, and has some kind of side business. She’s a friend, a wife. So we found women who embody that spirit. Allyson Felix isn’t just the most decorated track-and-field athlete ever; she’s also an entrepreneur. Charli Howard is a British body-positivity activist and a model, and we’ve got a big presence in the U.K. Nadia has four kids and just launched a line of sauces.

They all do many different things during the day and need a wardrobe that will work. And we wanted to introduce some new faces to the conversation.

Marketing Daily: How are you viewing the split between brand awareness and performance marketing?

Port: Spanx is more than just a product. We think a lot about the brand's essence and getting that message into the world. That happens at the upper funnel, and our current advertising is done in lower-funnel spaces.

That direct response has been working fantastically for us. But outside our great relationships with celebrities and organic social, this is the first time we're introducing Spanx at a brand level.

We want to say, 'Hey, we're more than just shapewear. We have this apparel and activewear to get you through your life.’ We want to show the world that we are an endless wardrobe destination for every layer you have.

Marketing Daily:Spanx invented the category. You’re like the Kleenex of shapewear. But many, many companies make pants. How does that change messaging?

Port: It's about fit, technology and innovative design. People love us for our shapewear, and we've put some amazing core shaping and smoothing into our bottoms.

That’s why we didn't rush to market with these, so the team could take time to figure out how to make sure that products are comfortable. I can sit in denim Spanx all day, even wear them on long-haul flights, and they are always comfortable. They’re designed for women.

Marketing Daily: Who is that woman, exactly?

Port: She’s multifaceted, with many roles. She's a career woman. She's probably a mom. She’s more seasoned in her career, probably urban, and between 30 and 40. She wants to look put together and professional. She’s not chasing down the hottest trend off the runway, but wants to look polished.

Marketing Daily:Spanx are pricey, and many new competitors are more affordable. You joined Spanx nine months ago from Kohl’s, so you know plenty about value shoppers. How do customers size Spanx up in terms of cost?

Port: People know us for quality. Our clothing stands the test of time, and it's not seasonal. It's something you wear over and over. It’s machine washable and holds up well. We’re confident that if we can get her to try on a pair of our pants, she’ll realize Spanx are worth the price.

Marketing Daily:Where are the CTV ads running?

Port: Hulu. We’re the exclusive sponsor of Hulu's Women's History Month. This is a perfect alignment. We were founded by a woman, our products are made by women, and we’re female led.

About 79% of our budget is going to connected television, and 21% to paid social media. On social, we’re focused on Meta platforms.