At Hollister, we have been on an ongoing journey to amplify BIPOC voices - and listening to our Gen Z customers about how we can do so authentically has been a core component of that work.
The Latinx community represents an important part of Hollister’s consumer base, and our customers made it clear that they not only love seeing Latinx representation within the creators we work with, but also wanted more programs developed specifically for the Latinx community.
Our north star was to create a program design to uplift and support Latinx voices, and engage with the Latinx community in an authentic way.
In the past several years, the call to diversify influencer marketing has intensified. As we looked at the influencer marketing industry, we saw a lack of Latinx representation and with it, a place where Hollister could authentically add value, support, connect, and engage with the Latinx community.
We were excited by the opportunity to make impact, and authenticity was of utmost importance. An integral part of the strategy and process was to talk to our Latinx consumer via a series of research and ensure that this program was led by and built with Latinx, and after months of planning and research, in 2021 Hollister was proud to officially launch Hollister Good Vibras, a first-of-its kind, long-term program dedicated to the Latinx creator community.
Through this program, Hollister works with up-and-coming micro Latinx creators to develop social content and music, all while supporting the creators’ growth and amplifying their voices.
The inaugural collective featured 16 hand selected, up-and-coming Latinx creators across the fashion, music and comedy verticals on TikTok and Instagram, representing six different Latinx heritages. The creators worked with Hollister to coin the “Good Vibras” name, which is a nod to the nuanced relationship many young U.S. Latinos have with Spanish and English. The collective combined this idea with the phrase “good vibes” to represent the positive, vibrant nature of both the Latinx creator community and the Hollister brand.
To officially kick off the program, Hollister partnered with the creators on a social media campaign in honor of Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month, plus a bilingual, made-for-TikTok Latin pop/hip hop album that was produced by the collective’s music creators and boosted by all the creators in the collective.
Throughout the program, the creators engaged the Latinx community on social every month through evergreen content creation. Hollister also opened up our own platforms to amplify their voices via IG Takeovers and Lives themed around their passions – whether that was fashion/outfitting, or having an open conversation about Latinx identity and language.
No program is complete without celebrating the meaningful relationships built –Hollister flew the creators to Hollister HQ for a summit in November, where they bonded, brainstormed, heard from speakers, and worked on their content strategy with mentorship from the Hollister team.
The team was thrilled with the results, the incredible growth of the Latinx creators in the program, and the amazing support from the community for the program and our creators.
