Doner Brands Future

Canadian electronics retailer Future Shop is launching its most aggressive brand-building effort to date with a TV and radio campaign from Doner.

The Burnaby, British Columbia, retailer previously has focused on sales promotion, said Kevin Weinman, executive vice president and account management director of Southfield, Mich.-based Doner. The new campaign aims to bring emotional depth to the Future Shop brand by demonstrating the “life-enhancing benefits” of the retailer’s products, he said.

The client spends about $25 million a year. Future Shop’s last new creative broke about two years ago, Weinman said. The direction for the new creative came about from the notion that the retailer could show a much bigger point-of-difference from its competitors than just prices.

The first of five 30-second TV spots broke Saturday in Canada in both English and French. It features contemporary original music and quick-moving footage of a young man buying electronics equipment, moving it up to college with his parents and setting it up. The parents finally say “goodbye” and leave their son to enjoy his new room. As the door closes, the son is obviously excited with his new freedom and electronic toys as he slips on his headphones and jumps on the bed.

“This is an incredibly emotional experience for people when you buy the kinds of things [Future Shop] sells,” Weinman said.

The campaign carries the tag, “Future Shop. You’ll like what the future has in store.”