Oak Jeans Case Study

CONNECTION:

I bought a pair of jeans from the boutique store, and unaware I was being served by the designer, I made a comment about the fit based on my knowledge of fashion.

RELATIONSHIP:

I worked with designer denim brand Oak, [founded by Scott Rogers in 2006] for eighteen months. Scott was my first client when I set-up Portal PR at the end of 2009, officially launching in January 2010.

AIM:

To improve the brand message; British designed quality unisex jeans at affordable prices; increase brand awareness, and to encourage more custom to the boutique store.

STRATEGY:

  1. Reinforce branding: I organised product shoots and named the washes different UK cities, to further highlight the homegrown designer talent of Scott Rogers. I compiled press material, wrote online stories and created consistency between the denim brand and the retail outlets.
  2. Collaborations: I organised fashion shows, collaborations with Kissy Sell Out [BBC 1 DJ], and UK charity Jeans for Genes.
  3. Retail: I assisted Scott in internal communication with staff, and with the launching of two stores in 2010 [which I initiated 3rd-party investment]. I raised awareness for the brand, and built relationships with the shopping centres leading to in-store promotions (e.g. live shop windows), and shows at the centres.
  4. Celebrity-VIP angle: I gained coverage across all media for the brand, [including FIVE, ITV, Made in Chelsea, celebrity wearers], celebrity store opening, as well as publication placement.

  • Anna Williamson has worn her Oak jeans on GMTV, and ToonAttik, and she opened the Oak store in Hatfield shopping centre.
  • Actor Jan Uddin ensured he packed a couple of pairs of his favourite Oak Jeans when filming in the desert for Black Gold, also starring Antonia Banderas. Jan, who has graced our UK screens in Eastenders, and Brit flick Shank, teamed his black skinnies ‘London’ with a long sleeved white t-shirt, with cross motif, designed by Spyce Tees (another client of Portal PR).
  • Model-actress-presenter, Oreke Mosheshe sported her indigo Oak Jeans on her birthday in South Kensington’s popular fashion venue, The Collection.
  • Owner of Oak Jeans, TV presenter-model Jessica Jane Clement, opened the store in Clacton Shopping Village.
  • Suzanne Shaw wore acid wash Oak Jeans to re-create Sarah Jessica-Parker’s Sex in the City look for Closer Magazine.
  • Other owners of Oak Jeans include: Penny Smith, Noel Fielding, Funda Onal, and Kirsten Dunst.
  • The lads from Missing Andy had always been a fan of Oak Jeans, having worn them on the Sky 1 talent show Must Be the Music, as well as in photo-shoots. The lads were regulars in their local Oak boutique in Braintree Freeport.
  • I initiated and cultivated a relationship with Oak Jeans and Kissy Sell Out, and with a fusion of music and fashion, it was apt for Mixmag.com to include the Kissy Sell-Out and Oak Jeans collaboration in the fashion section of their website, the article reads as follows:

He’s almost as famous for his super skinny jeans as he is for his Radio 1 show, killer DJ sets and releases. So, it makes total sense that Kissy Sell Out has teamed up with Oak Jeans to design two pairs of skinny jeans.

The San City High jeans are the result of a collaboration between Kissy and Oak Jeans designer Scott Rogers, in a stylish union of music and fashion.

Having previously trained at Central Saint Martin’s College of Art and Design, Kissy was able to put his experience to good use. He’s created the labels, tags and chosen the two different washes of the jeans while Scott’s been responsible for the cut and production.

The jeans will officially be launched at the London date of Kissy’s San City High Tour at East Village, Shoreditch Wednesday 13th October (2010).

This collaboration between Oak Jeans and Kissy Sell Out gained much press across all media including national title The Scene Magazine, Fresh Direction, and the capital based London Glossy published a DPS interview alongside a competition.

Download the archived Press Pack: oak2011

Scott moved on to being a successful furniture up-cycler with his own retail outlet in the town he lives in, and also is on a spiritual teaching path, with his own not-for-profit organisation.