As Europe’s leading online fashion retailer, present across 23 markets and with 45m customers, Zalando is loved by millions of Europeans from all walks of life, genders and creeds.

In late 2020, the company doubled down on its DE&I efforts, committing to hiring more LGBTQIA talent, to promoting female leadership at all senior levels of the company, and to offering customers new assortments from over 70 Black and Minority Ethnic owned brands.

But as rising racist and non-inclusive sentiment permeated across the continent, we knew we couldn’t simply create a typical fashion campaign for our Spring/Summer collection. It was time to take a public stand for what’s right.

To future proof the business, retain and win over GenZ, it was time to make the world aware of the credible actions and the diversity driven values Zalando not just champions - but lives.

Instead of just promoting Zalando’s Spring/Summer 2021 collection, we created a rallying cry for progress in the face of prejudice, discrimination, and close-mindedness.

Here To Stay is about changing the definition of what true style really is. After all, trends come and go - but our values are forever.

A song and music video by the UK’s first openly gay rapper, Mista Strange, is the beating heart of the campaign, which features only real life advocates for causes around inclusivity.

An artist who openly talks about his sexuality in his music, Mista’s lyrics boldly broke down the homophobic walls that often exist within the world of rap, and served as a defiant anthem for all in the face of intolerance.

It said, once and for all, that our values are not going anywhere. Ever.

Zalando wants to drive growth by building a loved brand. And the brands that are most loved and engaged with for our GenZ audience are those that align with their core values. Especially in fashion, this next generation has turned style into an expression of their beliefs.

While Zalando was at the forefront of DE&I, their audience wasn’t aware of the pioneering role they played in that space, so we had to make GenZ aware that Zalando is defined by shared progressive DE&I values.

Our strategy was to live our deeply held convictions around DE&I with our audience and meaningfully contribute to progressive culture around key passion points like music. Thus, we would turn Zalando into a true champion for progress in the face of prejudice.

Whether it be on topics such as gender fluidity and body positivity, or even sexuality and female empowerment, we attempted to bridge the gaps that have widened astronomically in recent years. To be as credible as possible, we only cast true & authentic voices from marginalised or underrepresented groups.

Centred around an exclusive track from Mista Strange, the UK’s first openly queer rapper, we honored voices of defiance to a closed-minded world and activated real communities to create a ripple effect of positive change.

The campaign ran across all Zalando markets and channels, sparking a ripple effect of conversation that elevated and celebrated critically important topics. This was a campaign that positively advocated for greater equity and inclusion across Europe - even in the face of censorship.

Spring/Summer inarguably delivered on Zalando’s ambition to build a loved, talked about and engaged-with brand.

“Here To Stay” became an anthem:

-We put a stake in the ground for Zalando's values, which translated into a more positive attitude towards the brand across all markets. Ad Tracking showed strong lift, with Zalando perceived as diverse, inclusive and values-driven.

-Campaign buzz triggered record “Brand Heat” results - a Zalando aggregate metric for cultural energy - with engagement more than twice as strong as their historic best.

-53 talents participated, creating over 130 content pieces and generating 3.3m campaign impressions.

"Here To Stay" sparked a never seen before cultural conversation:

-Across owned channels, the campaign saw a total reach of 1.3m in 4 weeks - with an Effectiveness rate of over 27%.

-Strong PR coverage in respected titles such as Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, I-D, and Wonderland led to over 115m PR impressions.