Visitors to Montreal on Canada Day will likely recall a familiar scene: sidewalks crowded with discarded furniture.
While the province’s “Moving Day” of July 1st is a bonanza for scavengers, those who’ve moved often spend the early days of July in spartan quarters, sitting on the floor of their new apartment.
In a clever—and timely—bit of regional marketing, Leon’s and Taxi 2 used discarded furniture to remind Montrealers they deserve better.
“Leon’s furniture always ends up on the moving truck,” said Andrea Graham head of marketing at Leon’s.
“And what better way to highlight that than by letting discarded furniture that didn’t make the cut do all the talking.”
On moving day, AOR Taxi 2 created large coupons on the street by framing discarded furniture with colourful installation pieces.
When you move, some things make the cut. Others don’t. At Leon's, everything is Move-Worthy.
#GetMoveWorthy
https://t.co/nWvCLIf3yF
— Leon's (@LeonsFurniture) July 9, 2015
Designed with mobile and social in mind, passersby were able to snap pictures of the displays and create their own redeemable coupons.
“Anyone walking by with a smartphone could immediately interact with the brand,” said Jeff MacEachern, executive creative director at Taxi 2.
“Even though coupons are quite traditional, the digital element allowed for them to be texted, tweeted or shared.”
While Graham said the Taxi team had to rush out the concept, traffic and sales at Leon’s stores in Quebec over the weekend spiked 20% and 30% (respectively) over last year’s numbers.
The campaign, which ran alongside Leon’s “Save the Tax” event, is also a long-term, strategic one: While Leon’s is Canada’s overall top furniture dealer, the brand isn’t the top dog in Quebec.
Graham also said the stunt was a chance to connect with Quebecers and speak to a younger demographic in the province.
“We had to giddy up … It would have been a missed opportunity,” she said.
The digital-coupon-meets-street-art approach is Taxi 2’s first campaign since getting the nod as Leon’s AOR earlier this year.
Pascal DeDecker, executive creative director at Taxi Montreal, said the campaign was a collaborative one between the Montreal and Toronto offices.
“The collaboration allowed us to come up with a full-fledged campaign in record time,” said DeDecker.
