Buy Munteanu before he's too expensive
The furniture retailer Jung von Matt/Limmat is running commercials featuring two unknown designers to promote Mobitare's motto, «Design at reasonable prices.».
Furniture retailer Jung von Matt/Limmat advertises the Mobitare credo "Design at reasonable prices" in commercials featuring two unknown designers. Instead of being paid appropriately for their designs, they have to smoke discarded cigarette butts or secretly spoon out cat's milk bowls. What in 30 seconds looks like a crash course in Manchester capitalism turns out, under the light of a designer lamp, to be a commercial for the furniture store Mobitare, concocted by the Zurich branch of the agency network Jung von Matt. The message of the over-the-top short story for TV and cinema audiences: buy designer furniture before it becomes unaffordable, but that's only half the story. Because it is no longer true that in times of crisis, consumers prefer to spend their money on improving their own four walls instead of traveling to faraway countries. For most Swiss consumers (see box), remodeling and refurnishing their homes on a whim is too expensive in view of the tough economic climate. This is also confirmed by Christian G. Malzach, Head of Mobitare AG: "People are still shopping regularly, but less and much more price-sensitive than before."
A trend that has left its mark on the design furniture specialist from the Pfister-Arco Group: At 22.5 million Swiss francs, sales in 2002 slumped by 8.8 percent compared to the previous year. Even suppliers of furniture in the lower price segment confirm that the industry is suffering from consumer reluctance. "It is always said that we do better in bad times," says Klaus Peter Mager, Ikea
PR manager. The Swedish furniture store is also experiencing a decline despite rising visitor numbers
in per capita sales. A development that also affects Migros' own furniture store Micasa, as Head of Communications César Keller admits: "People are shopping even more price-consciously than before."
Swap Ikea for Mobitare
Since April 21, a new campaign has been designed to remind potential customers of the Mobitare furniture store. The agency responsible, Jung von Matt/Limmat (JvM), already has experience in the furniture sector. After all, they were in charge of Ikea's Swiss budget for several years. This budget had initially prevented Mobitare and the JvM team from working together: Due to the conflict of interest, JvM had to let Rüegg Werbung snatch the budget from under its nose three years ago.
In addition to the agency, Mobitare also changed the main medium: this year, the Dübendorf furniture store is present on Tele Züri and Zurich cinema screens with two commercials - flanked by three posters. However, the latter will be shown in more specialized theaters such as the Riff Raff, explains JvM CD Urs Schrepfer. The target audience is 30 to 50-year-old men and women who "have already found their bearings both professionally and privately". The new website aims to position Mobitare as a provider of designer furniture at reasonable, affordable prices.
"Buy his furniture before he makes a fortune with it", the voiceover in the Mobitare commercial urges the viewer - and shows the two young designers Andrei Munteanu and Jacco Bregonje in clearly pathetic poses. For more authenticity, JvM engaged the "real" furniture designers as well as the young director Enno.
With the new concept, the Möbel Pfister sister wants to make it known that she works primarily with designers who are just "starting out". The customer must always be able to understand the price based on the value of the piece. This is easier to achieve with young designers, as they do not yet have "horrendously high, utopian price expectations", reveals company manager Malzach and clarifies that this is not meant disrespectfully, but: "We want more than just the name. We also want a great product behind it."
Malzach is not worried that the designers will become "famous" as a result of the commercials and that the prices for their creations could drift into "utopian spheres". "We already have their furniture."
No-name designer is looking for Mobitare furniture customers to get out of the clochard milieu.
Sales performance of the three largest Swiss furniture retailers over the past three years
Simone Keller
A trend that has left its mark on the design furniture specialist from the Pfister-Arco Group: At 22.5 million Swiss francs, sales in 2002 slumped by 8.8 percent compared to the previous year. Even suppliers of furniture in the lower price segment confirm that the industry is suffering from consumer reluctance. "It is always said that we do better in bad times," says Klaus Peter Mager, Ikea
PR manager. The Swedish furniture store is also experiencing a decline despite rising visitor numbers
in per capita sales. A development that also affects Migros' own furniture store Micasa, as Head of Communications César Keller admits: "People are shopping even more price-consciously than before."
Swap Ikea for Mobitare
Since April 21, a new campaign has been designed to remind potential customers of the Mobitare furniture store. The agency responsible, Jung von Matt/Limmat (JvM), already has experience in the furniture sector. After all, they were in charge of Ikea's Swiss budget for several years. This budget had initially prevented Mobitare and the JvM team from working together: Due to the conflict of interest, JvM had to let Rüegg Werbung snatch the budget from under its nose three years ago.
In addition to the agency, Mobitare also changed the main medium: this year, the Dübendorf furniture store is present on Tele Züri and Zurich cinema screens with two commercials - flanked by three posters. However, the latter will be shown in more specialized theaters such as the Riff Raff, explains JvM CD Urs Schrepfer. The target audience is 30 to 50-year-old men and women who "have already found their bearings both professionally and privately". The new website aims to position Mobitare as a provider of designer furniture at reasonable, affordable prices.
"Buy his furniture before he makes a fortune with it", the voiceover in the Mobitare commercial urges the viewer - and shows the two young designers Andrei Munteanu and Jacco Bregonje in clearly pathetic poses. For more authenticity, JvM engaged the "real" furniture designers as well as the young director Enno.
With the new concept, the Möbel Pfister sister wants to make it known that she works primarily with designers who are just "starting out". The customer must always be able to understand the price based on the value of the piece. This is easier to achieve with young designers, as they do not yet have "horrendously high, utopian price expectations", reveals company manager Malzach and clarifies that this is not meant disrespectfully, but: "We want more than just the name. We also want a great product behind it."
Malzach is not worried that the designers will become "famous" as a result of the commercials and that the prices for their creations could drift into "utopian spheres". "We already have their furniture."
No-name designer is looking for Mobitare furniture customers to get out of the clochard milieu.
Sales performance of the three largest Swiss furniture retailers over the past three years
Simone Keller
