Ad of the Day: Diesel highlights personal flaws in first campaign from Publicis Italy to push its apparel
Clothier Diesel has courted a younger, edgier audience for some time, and now the apparel maker is challenging the conformity of perfection with its new ‘Go with the Flaw’ campaign.
In a two-minute film, by French director François Rousselet, a young filmmaker dices together a film with clips of models dancing around in an urban landscape. The models, as we see in closeups, all have slight, what some would consider, flaws. A gorgeous woman has a unibrow, another has a mouth full of braces, a billiards-playing woman has a wonky eye, another big ears. Others have scars and skin flaws, but make no mistake, all of them are stunning in their own ways, and the film comes off gorgeous in its portrayal of these carefree hipsters.
The ad is essentially telling people to be unordinary ‘because flawless is forgettable. Roll with what you have, even though it may not be ideal. Embrace what you cannot control. Find a little bravery to wear your flaws with pride, take a front seat and enjoy the ride’, according to a release by Publicis Italia, in its first creative work for Diesel after taking over from Anomaly Amsterdam.
During the mini-movie, Edith Piaf sings ‘Non, je ne regrette rien’ (I regret nothing) as the cast embraces their lives, and the Diesel clothing they wear.
“I was fifteen years old when I made my first pair of jeans by hand. Of course they weren’t perfect. But that made them special – and unique, like everything we have done so far”, says Diesel founder Renzo Rosso. “I have always been more interested in imperfection, because it stands out from the crowd.”
Added Bruno Bertelli, global chief creative officer, Publicis WW and chief executive officer, Publicis Italy: “Diesel has made flawed denim a thing. It has always tackled mistakes and challenges head on and succeeded in focusing on what it has that others do not, all the while poking the world’s nonsense with a stick. That is what we continue to do in ‘Go with the Flaw’. It is a reminder that our flaws help us stand out in a world that increasingly acts the same. Embracing our physical and character flaws, or the daily mishaps, or the awkward situations we get ourselves into is where the real fun and ‘Successful Living’ comes from.”
