no. 13: the commodification of nostalgia.
the pumpkin spice latte and the gap "get loose" campaign.
the date is august 23. the temperature outside is 90 degrees. the drink in my hand is a pumpkin-spice coffee. when did this become commonplace? nostalgia is defined as a sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations. in the last few years, we have seen fall being advertised earlier and earlier. at one point, fall used to be marketed during actual fall (which is, by the way, not until september 22). these days, brands are keen to capitalize on one of the most nostalgic seasons of the year: fall.
why is fall nostalgic?
in 2003, starbucks birthed the infamous pumpkin spice latte. i later learned there wasn’t even any real pumpkin in it until 2015 (that’s for another day). if you had a theory that the holiday season was the first to be commercialized by starbucks, you are indeed correct. the peppermint mocha was actually their first seasonal beverage launched in 2002 - starbucks just wanted to recreate the successful phenomena by commercializing the fall season next. fall is inherently a season of transition - the air feels cooler, the world seems lighter. fall is the easiest target, outside of the holiday season, to invoke a sense of nostalgia in every consumer. 20 years later, starbucks now has a pumpkin-spice cold brew, and a pumpkin spice chai, invoking a feeling of familiarity with every autumn flavored drink they release.
the feeling of nostalgia in marketing has been at the nucleus of several iconic long-standing brands. some that come to my mind are coca-cola, levis, and heinz. nostalgia gives you a “wistful affection for the past” — you are transported to back to a time where you had a crisp coca-cola, or when you received a hand-me-down pair of levis jeans from your mom — all subject to your individual interpretation. nostalgia reminds people that you are familiar, that you are an old, trusted brand, just like an old friend.
when does nostalgia work in marketing?
you can see nostalgia marketing at play with gap’s newest campaign “get loose”
gap is famous for envoking a feeling of nostalgia. it is in their brand dna. this type of nostalgia marketing isn’t new for them, it’s just being talked about more these days1. “part of what we’re doing with this campaign is saying, ‘hey, we are taking a step forward from a creative standpoint,’” everett (head of marketing at gap) said. “and it should feel familiar — we want all of the campaigns we do going forward to feel iconic and incredible.”
i would argue is that nostalgia marketing only works if you can meet the consumer’s expectations on product. and here, for me gap falls short. when i go to shop at gap after seeing this ad, i don’t really want anything (and that is coming from someone who always wants something). perhaps i have to wait a few months as they continue to restore and revitalize their brand to make a fair call - in the long run gap can innovate. and maybe, i am just not the customer who is seeing this ad and then shopping at gap.
taking a gander at gap’s stock validates my current sense of intuition: gap saw a 3% year-over-year increase in the company’s revenue in q1 2024 - a 3% increase in-store sales and a 5% growth in online sales.” i would’ve expected their sales to increase more by now, especially with their big campaign featuring tyla and “back on 74” by jungle earlier in the year.
💭 i want to hear your feedback and thoughts to the ~200 of you all now reading my substack (eep!):
do you think gap will be able to successfully rebrand? are they meant to even introduce new products to be true to their brand?
does nostalgia marketing ultimately work, even without a new product introduction or reintroduction?
if you liked this, let me know what you think and share this post!
📚 what i have been reading lately, linked here for you:
a piece i wrote on brands doing brilliant marketing highlighting gap’s linen campaign in march 2024
ad age article on the cycle of nostaliga marketing
a piece by forbes on why nostalgia marketing works well on millennials
the nostalgia of pumpkin spice
the psl turns 20 by starbucks
see the gap 2023 fall campaign
Such a great post and conversation here in the comments! I think “nostalgia” is one of the key tenets of marketing (“harkening back” despite the fact that we obviously can’t go back - or maybe that’s actually its power), but as a merchant, newness - or the perception of- is the secret sauce to selling product. Nostalgia pulls someone in, but newness is what makes them purchase.
As I was reading, I asked myself why I am not compelled to shop gap and, frankly, it's the price point. I don't budget for $$$ jeans, especially if they're coming from a big box store, anyway. Since you mentioned Starbucks employing nostalgia tactics, it reminded me of this video essay I watched yesterday on Starbucks' recent struggle to maintain their historic sales and their refusal to lower prices: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zok7z5qdcM
With this at the top of my mind, I wonder if the success rate of nostalgia marketing is related to the price point. The target audience for these campaigns aren't people looking to shop luxury- it's the average (often millennial or gen z) consumer. I don't think nostalgia alone is powerful enough to justify record high prices for these brands, especially when there are discount options that very well are using nostalgic aesthetics to draw eyes, themselves.
Perhaps the question isn't if nostalgia marketing "works," but rather how often can it actually compete with the economic factors that repelled potential customers in the first place.