Jockey: No compromise

The new campaign moves away from cliché innerwear commercials and positions the brand as an ultimate innerwear brand through the tagline, 'Jockey or nothing'.

When one thinks of an innerwear or lingerie brand, one either visualises a macho Indian man trying to win over his girl or a sexy woman trying to seduce her man. Traditionally, innerwear brands have been associated with mainly two words - sex or machoism. The new campaign from Jockey breaks away from the old classic approach and shows the innerwear brand in a new avatar, as it positions the brand as ultimate innerwear, saying 'Jockey or nothing'.

The television commercials, titled
'Dog'
and
'Football'
, showcase two extreme conditions. While the first TVC shows the girl and the dog's unconditional love for each other, the second one, 'Football', shows the spirit of young players whose ultimate goal is play to win or not to play at all.

Explaining the concept, Ravi Deshpande, chairman and chief creative officer, Contract Advertising, says, "The brief we got from the company was this one line, 'Jockey or nothing'. We then used the line to elaborate the meaning, which is either the best or nothing. We added further meaning by creating conversations and showcased metamorphic situations, were one is not ready to compromise when it comes to innerwear."

Interestingly, throughout the films, the agency has refrained from displaying the product - an usual format followed by most brands. "While working on the concept, we made sure that we avoided the usual pattern followed, which is mainly related to machoism, sexual overtones and finally, good looks. The idea here was to bring out the playful character of the brand, creating a healthy conversation - basically ensuring that the brand can be discussed comfortably by the consumer," explains Deshpande.

The television commercials are currently on air across various channels. The company also plans to launch a few more commercials along the same line soon.

No more cliché

Industry experts approve the concept and believe that the innerwear brand has succeeded in talking about its product without making it the centre of attention.

Vandana Katoch, founder, Clayground, says, "The idea of 'all or nothing' is edgy and fun and has loads of attitude. It feeds off the same irreverence in the youth that Fastrack's 'Move on' campaign does. Of the two films, I find the one with the girl and her dog edgier because it almost says 'I prefer my dog to my boyfriend.' Not sure how many young girls do, but they would certainly look up to a girl who does!"

"I like the simplicity of the execution. No storyline, no dialogue, no rejoinders - just well-shot films with a message at the end. I think it brings the brand closer to the youth and gives them another reason to flaunt the Jockey tag just above their low-slung jeans," she adds.

Naresh Gupta, managing partner, Bang in the Middle calls the commercials delightful. "For once, the brand has broken away from showing guys and girls wearing their underpants and yet the play is sensual and naughty. The TVC with football playing dudes is really fun, with true 'guys will be guys' kind of thing. In the end it's cheesy, but that adds to the whole charm of the commercial. The girl and dog commercial is different. Brands rarely show girls in a solo set up (that is always left to guys as lone warriors) and her interplay with her pet is quiet cute."

According to Gupta, for an innerwear brand like Jockey, it is a bold shift to move away from showing its product in an overt way, and yet be a bit basic in its story. "Works for me!" he concludes.