Dive Brief:
- Hanes is shifting its brand messaging to demonstrate how the comfortability of its clothes let the wearer exude confidence, even in awkward or taboo situations, per a press release shared with Marketing Dive.
- A series of four new spots depict different scenarios, such as a man getting his pants pulled down at a bar as a prank and a woman grocery shopping in her underwear, where the main character remains unfazed thanks to Hanes providing an ego boost.
- “Get Comfortable” will appear nationally across social, online video, retail, display and owned channels while Hanes is also running out-of-home ads around New York City. The marketer has also refreshed its logo to align with the new creative direction.
Dive Insight:
Hanes is embracing a more risqué marketing approach with “Get Comfortable,” the leading piece of a larger shift in creative direction for the over 125-year-old marketer. The basics brand is positioning the campaign and refresh as a deliberate break with its past messaging, with an emphasis on coming across bolder and more entertaining. The launch follows parent HanesBrands getting acquired by rival Gildan Activewear for $2.2 billion late last year.
Some of the Hanes ads center on situations that are usually the stuff of anxiety nightmares, like getting caught with one’s pants down at a bar or grocery store, but they underscore how Hanes lets the wearer brush off potential embarrassment and come off as cool. Others have a cheeky, slice-of-life quality.
One spot, “Keep Em On,” tracks across an apartment floor littered with discarded clothes before arriving at a couple lying together in bed, their Hanes socks poking out from under the comforter serving as the only visible part of their bodies. Nick Ball directed the videos, which were shot on film.
Hanes is also running OOH in New York transit stations that carry the same thematic thread. “Très Cheek” reads one ad with a closeup of the backside of a woman sporting red Hanes undies. The ads also display Hanes’ updated logo, which has the brand’s signature red flag icon floating above its wordmark.
Agency partner Special U.S., which Hanes appointed in 2024, handled “Get Comfortable" and the logo revamp. This is the first major campaign out of the independent network’s New York office under a new leadership team, including executive creative directors Kasia Canning and Estefanio Holtz.
