Elton John is as much known for his music as he is for his sense of style, particularly his ever present, always attention-grabbing eyewear. So when Walmart and Sam’s Club came to us to launch his first ever consumer eyewear line, we knew we had to announce it in a way that authentically resonated with fans and captured the magnitude of the moment. Rather than spending on traditional media, we turned to Elton himself to partner on a social-forward splash that would capture the imagination of his community and earn media across fashion, music, and product publications.

For decades, Elton John’s glasses have defined his look and made him a style icon. So when it came time to launch Elton’s first eyewear line, we did the one thing we knew would spark the most conversation around his frames: we took them away. We had Elton himself post a series of classic photos with his glasses seamlessly edited out. These cryptic social posts had fans in a frenzy trying to figure out what was going on, all before the partnership was even revealed. By launch day, social buzz had reached a fever pitch, and people were ecstatic to find out the reason behind the mysterious photos: Elton John Eyewear had finally arrived, with sales benefiting the Elton John AIDS Foundation. The campaign unfolded along with a tagline for the new brand: “Look Yourself,” which celebrates Elton’s legacy of self-expression and highlights unique individuals looking themselves in their frames.

Elton John's following is vast, leaving us with a target that spans all generations and walks of life. So to speak authentically to his community of fans, we knew we had to be authentic to the one thing that connects them all – their love of a man who inspired them to simply be themselves. Our core insight was that it's not the glasses themselves that fans' admired, but the connection to a legacy of unwavering individualism. It's what truly sparked fans' requests over the years for an eyewear line based on his unique look. Our strategy was to answer the fans' call with a campaign roll-out that would first pique their intrigue, set social on fire with speculation, and finally make that emotional connection with the Elton-inspired ethos behind the line.

We created three posts that featured iconic photos of Elton sans his recognizable glasses, and had Elton himself post one a day in the three days leading up to launch. Each post progressively generated more and more fan speculation before the partnership was even revealed. Finally, on launch day, we had him release a video post showing his glasses returning, along with the Walmart x Sam’s Club collection launch announcement. Fans were ecstatic to find out the reason behind the mysterious posts: Elton’s stylish eyewear was finally accessible to anyone and everyone.

Elton John’s 4 million followers were sent into a tailspin by the posts, speculating what they could mean and driving double the fan engagement. Overall the posts resulted in over 850 million total impressions across social platforms and garnered the attention of over 400 media channels, including notable mentions by Rolling Stone, People, Variety, and AdAge. On launch day, traffic to Walmart and Sam’s Club websites spiked by 32%.