"The activities as an advertiser and musician cross-fertilize each other"

Advertising Week: Grégoire Vuilleumier, are you a sneaker freak?

Grégoire Vuilleumier: Absolutely, definitely.

From the consumer's point of view, how would the current Public Eye Campaign Change your behavior, or how does it change?

When I learned through Public Eye that the conditions in shoe production are at least as bad as in the textile industry, it piqued my interest. Interestingly, I have noticed that my shoe consumption - which is very high - has decreased since the campaign has been running. And that I'm also paying more attention to older pairs that I would have "shot down" before: I'm now trying to maintain and gently renovate them.

Were you not interested in the topic before?

I have already dealt with the issue of sustainability in the textile industry, because the problem is often raised in public. Also because it is a USP of certain brands to combine fashion demands with sustainability. This added value corresponds to an obviously existing demand. On the other hand, I have never asked myself what the situation is like with shoes.

Why not?

Perhaps this has to do with the fact that shoes are made from many different components: Leather, rubber, etc. The more complicated the supply chain, the more difficult it is to trace the associated abuses.

But do you think the average sneaker freak will follow your good example?

Fortunately, we are not starting from scratch. If sustainability and fair working conditions in clothing weren't already an issue and we had to kick that door in first, then it would be much more difficult. But there is an existing intersection of young people who are extremely interested in fashion, but also in sustainability at the same time. A lot of groundwork has already been done there. That's why that's our core target group. It's about showing that fashion and sustainability are not contradictory. To address them, we created a world that not only shows the problems and possible solutions, but also comes in a design that picks up on the fashion vocabulary.

Does this approach work?

Definitely. Example: I also collect and sell vintage sunglasses. At the same time as the campaign launch, I was asked by the Zurich sneaker fair "Sneakerness" if I wanted to do an eyewear stand there. I immediately implemented this with the branding of "The Shoe Creator". It was interesting that many people there already knew the campaign - and how good the feedback was. The "Sneakerness" itself is interested in doing something on this topic next year, because the sustainability aspect is still missing from their overall concept.

The next step will be to have the "winning shoe" produced fairly. What are your expectations?

Completing the campaign to produce the shoe will be an extremely exciting challenge for both the agency and Public Eye. We can't reveal too much yet. But the key point is this: I'm not alone. Public Eye, creation and consulting work hand in hand. That's how you get much further than if you produce something on your own and you're not in ping pong with others. That's the point I appreciate about my work at Freundliche Grüsse compared to my job as a musician, where I'm the sole executive producer and have to solve every problem myself.

The team concept seems to play a central role for you in your new job.

Exactly, for me as a musician who now works in an agency, the most interesting thought: The relief provided by consulting leaves a lot of room to be creative. As a musician, I've always said: I may have a talent for music - but in an album production, the creative process accounts for 15 percent at most. The rest is administrative work.

Was that also a reason why you got into the advertising business in the first place?

That was a longing I had again and again. Be it when I did something with M&C Saatchi in Geneva. Or when I met Christian Haueter (consultant at Freundliche Grüsse, editor's note) and Samuel Textor (partner at Freundliche Grüsse, editor's note), with whom I studied and have been close friends ever since. Whenever I saw them and they told me, I said: I'd "uhuere like" to do that someday, too. At some point it just became a reality. But I definitely also had a yearning to work in a team where several brains solve a problem together. My expectations in this regard were completely fulfilled.

That all sounds perfect - do you have any motivation at all to continue your musical career with the same commitment?

Absolutely. The activities cross-fertilize each other. I've only been here since October, but I've already learned a lot about systematizing creative processes. I try to let that flow into the songwriting. I've just been in the studio for a month, trying to think through to the addressee.

Didn't you do that before?

There are many songs that I wrote a few years ago that I don't understand today. Because at the time I was extremely enamored with the complexity of the thought I was having. But simplification as an art form has always interested me. And I can learn and practice that here.

So can we expect this simplification and reduction musically from Greis in the future?

I will try. But this hasn't just been an issue since Friendly Greetings. I've been trying to do this for about five years. But I get the necessary tools here much better than before when I tried to figure it out on my own. And that has to do with something above all: With vanity. The reason I didn't simplify more before was that I was in love with the subordinate clause and the image. This is where you learn to butcher darlings with a machete. To constantly reduce. I benefit a lot from that.

As a political person, do you also have concerns in this industry - if you had to promote a product or cause that contradicts your stance?

I certainly had these concerns and therefore also talked to people in the industry about it in advance. The custom was that you could basically walk out on any customer if you can't represent something. However, I don't think that this will happen any time soon with Freundliche Grüsse, because I can identify 100 percent with the agency in terms of attitude. But: For me, by the way, working for Public Eye is much more difficult than with any other client.

Why is that?

Because my heart is in it. I've done a lot with Public Eye privately over the last 15 years. Because it's something personal, I take it much more into the after-hours. I think the less closely you're tied to a job, the freer you can approach it.

Interview and photo: Thomas Häusermann