Manscaped’s In-Your-Face OOH Takeover of Penn Station Aims to Destigmatize Male Grooming
With an approach focused largely on humor to break the awkward commuter silence
Below-the-waist grooming is not a typical conversation topic among commuters, but that hasn’t stopped men’s brand Manscaped from featuring its product line in New York’s Penn Station.
Manscaped hopes to break stigmas with a healthy dose of humor by turning heads with its station takeover, which includes 225 creative displays. It will run through the end of November.
The campaign features moments that capture Manscaped’s goal of inspiring comfort and confidence among men, according to Marcelo Kertész, svp of content, brand and design.
“Each visual offers a combined sense of spontaneity and confidence that comes from being ready for anything,” he said. “We are excited to have landed on a set of powerful images that convey this notion in a single frame.”
Manscaped started working with out-of-home (OOH) agency Intersection to plan this campaign before the pandemic. They had to rethink that original strategy to fit into the Covid-19 landscape, according to the brand’s senior director of marketing Joey Kovac.
“Even with a decrease in travel, the NYC landmark sees a very high number of commuters passing through every day,” he said. “We wanted to make a strategic splash with our rebrand so we targeted an area where we could deploy a high-frequency takeover.”
The brand, which is no stranger to disruptive marketing, employed memorable taglines, including “When you trim the hedges, the tree stands taller” and “Precision tools for your family jewels.”
Manscaped has developed a dedicated TikTok fanbase, in large part due to its entertaining taglines. According to director of social media Tyler Wentworth, a strong presence on the app was a natural fit that aligned with the tone of the brand’s messaging.
“Using humor as means to destigmatize the conversation about below-the-waist grooming among men has always been fundamental in our social media strategy,” he said. “We were one of the first DTC brands to lean into TikTok because it felt like a natural extension of our brand personality.”
Wentworth noted that TikTok is both a strong revenue channel and a platform for authentic messaging that reaches “a fresh audience of Gen Z enthusiasts.” Wentworth also keeps up with trends and incorporates viral audios from the platform into Manscape’s content.
“The production constraints of remote work also forced me to jump in front of the camera more regularly, which quickly created a sense of familiarity among our growing community,” he said. “This, in turn, fueled our growth and engagement.”
