“A Modern Take On British Luxury”
Welcome to Good TikTok Creative! We are Simon Andrews and Anthony McGuire, two people who have been working in marketing, advertising, and media for decades. Find Simon and Anthony on Twitter.
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Simon’s Take:
Are celebrity endorsements still a thing? Or has the rise of creators negated the value of famous people?
I think when we look at creators, the cream are true classic talent. Most of them would have been discovered by previous eras fame machines – be that Hollywood, the music charts, the catwalk, etc.
This was a pyramid that was hard to climb and harder to stay on.
Now TikTok allows true talent to shine, without the barriers that shaped the market in the past, this pyramid also still has room for micro creators. I think they are best compared to the Famous for 15 minutes people – those given celebrity status by their success at Love Island or Traitors, or their partners. People that are famous for bring famous have a limited shelf life.
But the thing about real talent is how magnetic it is. Brands can still find a role for real celebrities, but the rules have changed. The greater example is how Burberry are using talents on TikTok.
Whilst vintage Burberry trench coats now dominate the bars and streets of East London the brand is telling its heritage story with iconic British talent.
The latest versions have Richard E. Grant talking up his audition for his legendary film Withnail and I, where he was wearing a vintage trench. Joanna Lumley talking about the weather and public speaker Sosa and Grime Granny too.
The first round last autumn featured more British talent – each in a micro drama where a different Burberry garment is featured.
Cara Delevingne wears the Aviator, Zhang Jingyl rocks the classic Trench, Barry Keoghan wears a Puffa and Olivia Coleman drives a vintage Range Rover in a Quilt whilst Little Simz is on the train in her Parka.
Footballers feature but no bling; going with Eberechi Ezra – in his Harrington – and Cole Palmer (in a Duffle) showing them at one with nature is refreshing.
Another series of TikToks features each of these talents talking about their love of English Breakfast tea – and making a cuppa the way they prefer it.
The latest ones have small numbers but it’s early yet; the ones last autumn were all in the millions with Cole Palmer top with 11m views.
I am sure all these guys have more traditional endorsement deals and we will see Burbery all over the red carpet. But the intimacy of these films perfectly conveys the essential Britishness of the talent – effortlessly underlining the Britishness of the brand.
Anthony’s Take:
Throughout its history, Burberry has struggled with brand perception issues. While aiming to maintain luxury positioning, Burberry has also found itself associated with “Chav culture,” large volumes of counterfeit products, and advertising that has often fell flat—especially in critical markets like China.
In 2024, Burbery got a new CEO, saw large declines in sales, and announced a major cost-cutting program. This is truly a brand in the middle of much needed transformation.
Over the last few years, you’ve seen Burberry embrace a more diverse set of ambassadors to represent the brand. This includes a new brand direction defined as “a modern take on British luxury.”
Within Gen-Z lies an opportunity for the brand to reposition and reinvent itself for a younger generation that’s hopefully more open to new brand stereotypes and perceptions.
And here we have this recent campaign on TikTok, a platform that gives birth to Gen-Z culture on the reg.
What I like about this Burberry TikTok campaign lies in their fundamental decision around structure. They have created a beautifully executed format that is entertaining. I have developed an unhealthy obsession around brands that develop content formats rather than just traditional ads. And that’s what we have here with Burberry.
Each talent selected for this campaign is interviewed in a templated way – with a similar camera angle and consistent visual frame, yet allowing the creative freedom of each individual to shine through.
People are asked the same questions, They are asked the same questions like “Have you ever had a romantic moment in the rain?”, engineered to generate poetic answers that highlight vibrant personalities like Joanna Lumley.
At the same time, it’s lo-fi production that doesn’t come across as unattainable luxury fashion gloss. Another way that Burberry demonstrates this idea is through their selection of talent. While they have recognizable celebrities, they also include creators like Grime Gran, who is a more endearing representation of British culture than a classic Burbery supermodel.
In another format, people like Little Simz and Cole Palmer are shown to be making tea. They are given minimal direction and go about “tea making” in a way that feels most natural to them. This comes across authentically and plays to the broader idea here of Burberry providing viewers with entertainment and associating themselves with a desirable lifestyle, rather than just making quirky ads.
The challenge for the brand here is consideration, perception, and desirability. Building consistent entertainment formats is the best way to achieve that and TikTok is the best place to achieve that.
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