Rhode Holiday: My Way
As a Rhode lover, I was disappointed in the holiday campaign this year...
Since the brand was first launched in 2022, I have always admired Rhode’s marketing campaigns. As a girl hoping to become a marketer in the fashion & beauty space myself, Lauren Ratner (the woman behind Rhode’s strategy) has been a huge inspiration for me. Season after season, the Rhode team impresses me with their campaigns, and in turn it has turned me into a loyal customer. The first campaign that really caught my attention was with Gabriette for the exclusive vanilla birthday lip peptide.
And since the campaign with Gabriette, Rhode has continued to knock it out of the park with their creative marketing strategies. That is until about a week ago. When I saw the Djerf Avenue x Rhode holiday campaign I didn’t really have a reaction, which is pretty unusual because typically I would be gagged by a collaboration and campaign of this nature. But the campaign photos were just a little underwhelming for me. I’m really sorry Rhode I still love you! The campaign was a bit dull and lacked the Rhode pizazz that I love and admire. And I hate to say it because I am such a fan of the brand, but this shoot was giving “I hope you’re hungry, for nothing!”
Regardless of the information released this week, I also feel that they did Matilda very dirty with the styling for the photo shoot. Usually, I ogle at the pieces hand selected for the Rhode shoots, but the outfit Matilda was in was just a bit boring. For a brand that usually feels so put together on all fronts, this just felt misplaced within the brand image. So without a budget in mind and nothing but a damn dream, here is what I propose the Rhode Holiday campaign should have looked like.
Mood Board:
The overall theme for my Rhode holiday campaign is “winter whimsy.” This theme encapsulates the magic of the holidays through it’s playfulness while being fresh and timeless because it is not overly “Christmas-y.”
The inspiration for this campaign is if the Who’s Down in Whoville were modern fashion & beauty icons. It’s clear in the original shoot with Matilda the Rhode team went for a Grinch vibe, but I hate to say, they didn’t fully commit to the bit. It lacks the whimsical feeling the Who World encapsulates. And I feel it is just criminal to make Who Land feel boring…. And I hate to say it because I have been such a fan in the past but this shoot was giving “I hope you’re hungry, for nothing!”
First order of business, I think the campaign should move away from red. Controversial I know, but it really just feels like every brands’s holiday campaign is in the traditional Christmas colors and I’m in need of a minty refresh. I think that if the campaign focused upon baby blue instead of this classic Christmas red color, it would feel a little more exciting and fresh. If you are an avid Substacker or just love fashion forecasting, you have probably seen that baby blue is the color of this winter season. Especially since the product is a Peppermint lip treatment, I think it would be fun to connect that refreshing minty scent with the cold color of baby blue.
Styling:
My vision for the styling of the shoot is to channel the most iconic “who” of them all, the one and only Martha May Whovier (aka the Grinch’s love interest in the 2000 live action Grinch remake). It’s campy and fun without being too cheesy, but makes the model and the products featured feel magical. I would put the model in a “who-esque” hairstyle similar to the one in the original photos, but more dramatic. I would want some light blue and white ribbon in the hair or some jewels as seen in the top right corner of the mood board. And the makeup would feature super blushy cheeks (as blushy as the typical cold makeup look), frosty eyelids, and a pinky cherry stained lip look, to highlight the pigmentation power of the Rhode blushes. The lip look would also draw the viewer to the lips to see the beautiful shine and glimmer of the new lip peptide look. The model would obviously have glowy skin, showcasing the beautiful glazed effect Rhode’s products provide.
I propose to style the model of this campaign with baby blue icy makeup with elegant tulle robe and a darling little dress under it. I also paired it with these fun baby blue lace stockings and these stunning Acne Studios fur clog boots.
My proposed styling:
Photo Shoot Set:
When I was stalking Rhode on Instagram the other day, I saw a photo they posted of the Pocket Blushes lined up in the shape of a Christmas tree. It was a story so it’s gone now but as soon as I saw it, I immediately thought “oh my god those look like the links of Lincoln Logs.” So I think the backdrop for my proposed campaign should be of a Pocket Blush log cabin. The snowy cabin would be built of the Pocket Blush “logs.” I am not a graphic designer but I hope you can see the vision. Snow will be falling over the Pocket Blush log cabin with photos of a model in her proposed look applying Rhode to stay warm during the chilly holiday season. I imagine it to be snowing out with silly looking paper stars hanging from the ceiling of the set. I personally think there is nothing more whimsy that these paper lanterns and it would provide the perfect ambiance for the modern Whoville setting. *Also, please excuse my poor editing skills and this shoddy AI rendering of a log cabin, I’m not a graphic designer but I really wanted to show you my vision.*
Gift Sets:
And lastly, because we all know Rhode always kills it with the gift sets, I need to revamp the one for this drop. The photo below is the limited edition “Peppermint Parcel” that the first 500 customers would get with their purchase. It’s cool but once again, I’m a little underwhelmed.
So I propose the gift packaging for those first 500 people should be an advent calendar! Especially since Rhode just released their collection of minis, I would love to see them make a star shaped box and in each point a different mini would be hidden. It would only be a 5 day advent calendar, but I think it could be really fun because who doesn’t love a fun little surprise to open up every day.
Obviously, the calendar would be light blue with thin white stripes (to stay on the Peppermint theme). As a customer myself, I would be so excited to receive this and I feel like a lot of Rhode fans I know would too.
Anyways, that is all the ideas I have for Rhode for now. I would love to hear your thoughts, feelings, or any questions regarding my proposed campaign. Ok that’s all for now! Thanks for reading!
<3,
HMC
Hannah I’m obsessed 😍😍