Hasta La Creative!

This 1985 commercial, promoting the re-launch of Levi s classic 501s shrink-to-fit jeans, was a breakthrough revival for the brand that, at the time, was largely perceived as old-fashioned. John Hegarty and Barbara Nokes, of BBH, recreated a 50s Americana launderette which presented Levi s 501s as a retro 50s alternative to 80s punk. They used research that young Americans distinguished the fifties as a cool era. The humour and sex appeal of the commercial, where teen idol Nick Kamen strips down to his boxers in front of launderette onlookers, including bewildered older women and enthralled younger girls, caused an increase of 800% in Levi s sales within a year.
The use of the iconic hit I Heard It Through The Grapevine was an early example of effective integrated marketing, sparking the re-release of the original, which entered the charts again, and the 501 logo to appear on the record sleeve.