Throughout Black History Month, we’re partnering with agency owner Derek Walker on a series that highlights the ideas, perspectives and successes of Black advertising professionals.
Today we’re spotlighting creative director Jerome Jones and a print ad he created that still holds a special place in his heart, even decades after its run. “The Look” campaign was created jointly by JCPenney’s in-house advertising team and Temerlin McClain, an ad agency that closed in 2019.
Read why this ad remains important to him below.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Derek Walker: Why are you proud of this work?
Jerome Jones: Any ad person that has written, art directed, styled or photographed an ad starring a baby knows you must have supreme patience, quick reflexes, serendipity and plenty of backup talent.
This classic JCPenney ad shows that a Black art director was responsible for a classic campaign and that casting people of color for a national campaign was a simple task. I am most proud of this ad because it served to produce two strategic results: it increased infant merchandise sales in top 10 “urban” markets, and it showcased that a little brown bundle of joy could be used in a national ad print run of 10 million.
Would you change anything about this work? Why?
I would have changed the 10 layers of management approval needed for the ad to run, made the subhead bold and reduced the JCPenney logo 20%.
How did you get here with this idea?
In the early 1990s, featuring an African American child on a national print run of 10 million was a big move for a major retailer. JCPenney was one of the first corporations to make diversity training mandatory across the entire organization, and they put their money where their mouth was by approving this ad.
Learn more about Jerome Jones on LinkedIn.
