Yorkdale Shopping Centre is keeping close tabs on the fashionable folks that make their way down the red carpet at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
As part of the Toronto shopping centre’s sponsorship, Yorkdale will be following the fashion worn by the style-savvy men and women that walk TIFF’s notoriously chic red carpets and then post its choice of the “TIFF Look of the Day” on its blog.
Starting Sept. 6, Canadians will be able to check out the blog to see the top look from the previous evening and how they can emulate it by picking up similar styles at Yorkdale retailers.
The Yorkdale-approved looks will also be posted daily on the mall’s Facebook page, Pinterest board and its @YorkdaleStyle Twitter account.
Sponsoring the festival “just makes sense” for Yorkdale, said general manager Anthony Casalanguida. TIFF represents fashion and fresh talent, which marries well with Yorkdale’s brand, he said. Not everyone has the means to buy the exact same haute couture fashions that are seen on the red carpet, but the concept with “TIFF Look of the Day” is that people “can mimic that look at the stories within the shopping centre.”
While shoppers may not find the same designer dress in Yorkdale, Casalanguida said if it’s a particular colour or style, “we can give you options of [similar colours or styles] that you can find within Yorkdale.”
Beyond spotting the stars’ impressive outfits, Yorkdale will be putting a spotlight on the film fans as well. In order to get film buffs waiting in line in on the fashionable action, Yorkdale will send out ambassadors dressed in red (a nod to the red carpet) to take photos with festival-goers for an “Outfit of the Day” (#OOTD) contest. Each day winners of a $50 Yorkdale gift card will be selected.
Those that have their pictures snapped will be encouraged to upload the shots to their own Instagram with the hashtag #YorkdaleStylesTIFF. Yorkdale will also be posting the shots to its own social media channels.
Another element of the TIFF activation will see Yorkdale ambassadors at the festival mingle with film fans to promote a contest involving the chance to win a $1,000 shopping experience at Yorkdale with one of its “Style Council” members – people familiar with the 250 retailers within the mall that can help the winner get the best shopping experience for their style.
The ambassadors will use iPads on-site to help film-goers sign up for the contest. Yorkdale-branded tin mints will be given to everyone that fills out a ballot.
As part of the activation, postcards will also be distributed on festival grounds to drive traffic to the “TIFF Look of the Day” blog.
Yorkdale has increased its involvement in the festival considerably compared to last year, when its media lounge let people sample products from new retailers like Microsoft and Ted Baker that had opened stores in the newly expanded shopping centre.
Casalanguida said Yorkdale has roughly tripled its spend on this year’s festival compared to 2012 – the first year it got involved in the festival.
“This year is more a full sponsorship,” he said. “There is a great interest in TIFF. It is world-wide recognized and, because of the talent that we have attending and all the particular attention that it gets, it is imperative that we align ourselves with that type of festival or activity because it is in keeping with what we believe Yorkdale is about.”
Read more of our ongoing coverage of Toronto International Film Festival sponsorships and activations at MarketingMag.ca’s TIFF Sponsor Spotlight
