Powering the consumer

Last year the brand was a title sponsor, but this year upped its presence at the show substantially with a much bigger investment. The theatre, which they also had last year, continued this year.

They ran two workshops per day for the duration of the show. Mayan Desai, trade marketing manager: Southern Africa for Stanley Black & Decker says they were inundated with entries for the workshops. “So much so that we had to show people away. The success of it has got us thinking about how we can take this outside of the show and make it broader. We provided all the materials and tools at the workshop and participants could take their final product home.”

All pics from Grand Designs.

All pics from Grand Designs.

All pics from Grand Designs.

All pics from Grand Designs.

All pics from Grand Designs.

All pics from Grand Designs.

This is the first time the brand has invested this heavily into a more experiential type of marketing. Traditionally in this category, the how-to, the price does the work. However, today’s environment calls for more than this, explains Desai. “An advertisement can show you the product and describe it and give its price, but it does not allow the consumer to engage with it.”

This form of marketing - experiential - allows consumers to experience the brand. “It ticks a lot of boxes for us. In this category, all the brands import their products so the tool range is quite commoditised and by expanding into additional activities, such as experiential marketing, it frees us from the commodification our category is prone to.”

Many consumers are also intimidated by power tools and by operating the tools. The workshops also encourage them to experiment - which is part of the process of owning a home.

The Grand Designs show was also the perfect platform for the brand. “The positioning of Grand Designs, out of all the home shows in the country, is best suited for our brand and this positioning as it provides consumers with luxury that is accessible, with good quality brands that do not demand a ridiculous price.”

In South Africa the trend of a growing, emerging middle class has continued unabated for several years now. This has resulted in more first-time home owners. These home owners are very proud and so they undertake various DIY talks to improve their homes. “We are supporting the trend of greater and greater DIY uptake in South Africa and globally.”

People are proud of their homes and of the tasks they complete to make their homes better. “People take pride in DIY, even if it is a simple picture frame they have made.”