A life less ordinary (in L.A.)

“I walk around my house naked.” “I look in people’s windows.” “I own leather pants.” Unusual messages are appearing around Los Angeles, on billboards and sidewalk clings, in nightclub bathrooms and on gym locker-room mirrors. On brightly colored backgrounds, they’re hard to miss. And they’re partnered with the Web address, www.amiordinary.com. Crafted by Dentsu’s Colby & Partners for Beverly Center, an eight-story mall known for its high-end boutiques and rooftop views of the city, the messages are meant to convey the “Less ordinary” attributes of the mall’s fashion-forward shops and shoppers, says Rick Colby, president and creative director of the Santa Monica, Calif., agency. “When you’re serious about shopping, you go to Beverly Center,” he says. Those intrigued enough to visit the Web site can “rank themselves in terms of normalness,” Colby says, via a multiple-choice “fab or drab” questionnaire. Results teetering on normal? “Keep the hope alive. Consistent visits to Beverly Center would add so much more panache to your life,” the site advises. Barbara Bach Garrison, marketing and sponsorship director for the mall, admits the “Shop less ordinary” project “was a tall order, [with] a somewhat different tactic. But the big-picture brand idea is great, it really speaks for itself.”

—Posted by Randi Schmelzer

April 18, 2005 | Permalink