‘Behind the Leather’ aims to make the truth of cruelty so big that it overshadows preference for luxurious beauty. We brought animal cruelty to life in a place most familiar to those craving for beauty in exotic leather, a high-end boutique that sells seemingly authentic luxury fashion items. The key was to connect the beauty of luxury to the animal cruelty involved by making them exist in the same place.

We set up a boutique store in the heart of Bangkok’s fashion district displaying an exquisite collection of fashion products seemingly made from exotic animal skin. On the outside they appeared identical to brand name fashion items. However, the product interiors recreated the moment of excruciating agony animals endure – of being skinned alive. Design mechanics were utilized to replicate animals’ live internal organs, from a crocodile’s beating heart and contracting intestine to a python’s delicate blood vessels and epidermis.

Hidden cameras captured the shocking reactions of visitors who afterwards were facilitated by PETA’s staff, brochure and video to learn about animal cruelty behind the production process.

The shop was taken online to amplify the campaign’s reach. Browsing into what appeared to be ordinary product posts, shoppers learnt about the horrific process behind each item.

“Behind the Leather” created massive impact. 87% shoppers reported to have changed their minds about buying exotic skin products. Within just 12 days, the campaign generated over 42 million views globally. Participations across social network amounted to 800,000 interactions. Worldwide media coverage helped spread the word, and generated USD 22 million worth of earned media. All this with zero media cost.

The target audience is exotic skin shoppers, those who know little about the horrors that exotic animals endure and have fallen prey to luxury marketing that masks the ugly truth behind the leather. Heavily blinded by beauty, informing facts about animal cruelty is not enough to establish understanding and create positive change. The “shock” tactic was chosen because it is unforgettable, compelling and humanizing. The human mind is designed to crave the unexpected and it is the unexpected that changes behavior. An integrated campaign including event, online, print and viral, this out of the norm approach cuts through the messaging clutter, generating an amount of viral and public relations that will create impact on the exotic skin trade.

In Thailand, millions of exotic animals have endured unimaginable pain such as being cruelly skinned alive to serve as luxury fashion items. The country is home to the world’s largest source of crocodile skin supply and is a major exporter of exotic skins to leading global fashion brands. At the same time, Thai consumers rank among the world’s top buyers of exotic skin products as they fail to connect their luxury purchases to animal cruelty.

With PETA’s objective to end the use of exotic skin, the campaign aimed to get people who are blinded by luxury beauty to realize the animal suffering behind this brutal trade, and pledge against all exotic skin products.