DZE_GEORGIAN PROJECT

TitleDZE_GEORGIAN PROJECT
BrandAMERICAN FRIENDS OF GEORGIA
Product/ServiceDZEGVI SHELTER
Category A07. Not-for-profit / Charity / Governemt
Entrant WINDFOR'S Tbilisi, GEORGIA
Idea Creation WINDFOR'S Tbilisi, GEORGIA
PR WINDFOR'S Tbilisi, GEORGIA
Production WINDFOR'S Tbilisi, GEORGIA
Credits
Name Company Position
Nino Gordeladze Windfor's Executive Creative Director
Mari Sukhishvili Windfor's Art Director
Teona Skertki Shelia Windfor's Art Director
Irina Sakvarelidze Windfor's Copywriter
Beqa Meparishvili Windfor's Executive Creative Director
Inga Svanidze Windfor's Account Manager
Masho Nartkoshvili Windfor's Graphic Designer
Vato Kavtaradze Windfor's Chief Creative Officer
Tamar Tsintsadze Windfor's Account Director

Why is this work relevant for PR?

When it comes to popularity between charity and fashion, fashion always wins. Stylish accessories, clothes and most importantly, people who wear them easily grab media attention. This campaign helped to put an important issue, that is philanthropy in the same spotlight as fashion and made wealthiest and most influential people of the country to think about the importance of charity.

Background

The Dzegvi shelter community is the only free center in Georgia where vulnerable individuals of all ages live together as one, large family. American Friends of Georgia, an NGO supporting the cause, wanted to raise awareness about the shelter and remind the society that the well-being of these people entirely depends on the attention they get from the public.

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

As we know, street style (as some call it "trash style") is the most talked about fashion trend today. Especially in Georgia, birthplace of Demna Gvasalia - creative director of Vetements and Balenciaga. It’s interesting that the trashier, the more 90's the outfit looks - more expensive it is and more buzz it eventually generates. (Street style was actively discussed in the public due to the upcoming most awaited fashion event - Mercedes Fashion Week, which is held twice a year in Tbilisi, Georgia). When we started to work on the campaign, we’ve immediately caught the similarity between the outfit of Dzegvi residents and supermodels and celebs wearing the trendiest clothes. With one important difference: for Dzevi inhabitants it’s a reality not a fashion choice - the clothes they are wearing are not a trendy replica of the 90s but “The Originals” created decades ago.

Describe the PR strategy (30% of vote)

First we created a pseudo fashion brand Dze_ Georgian Project and launched a full-scale PR campaign to promote it. All brand materials were featuring Dzegvi residents as models wearing their own outfit. With the help of the local fashion influencers and designers we created an anticipation for the brand presentation and therefore "big revelation" held at the Mercedes Fashion Week.

Describe the PR execution (20% of vote)

A teaser video, walls around the city, web and Instagram pages were featuring partially covered visuals, inviting the public at the brand presentation. At the Mercedes Fashion Week, the biggest fashion event of Georgia, attended by 20000 local and international guests, journalists and bloggers, we’ve unmasked the visuals, showed the full version of the film and revealed the main message - for Dzegvi shelter inhabitants, 90’s clothes are not fashion choice but the only choice and the reality they live in. The same message was sent through all media channels.

List the results (30% of vote)

Since it was for the first time, that a shelter for the homeless promoted philanthropy not with drama but with style, everybody was happy to share the story and be a part of it. Main TV channels TV 1; Rustavi 2; Georgian Public Broadcaster, Maestro, Imedi TV talked about Dzegvi shelter in the most prestigious, primetime shows.. The trendiest fashion bloggers, celebrities and magazines (Zoe, Fucking Young, OK Georgia) discussed the importance of charity - and the attention it should get. In only one week, a pro-bono campaign with zero media budget got 25 000 000 media impressions, resulting in a 600% increase in the number of donations