Benetton's Unemployee of the Year

Building on the success of last year’s award-winning ‘UNHATE’ campaign, United Colors of Benetton is introducing another compelling, socially-charged effort: ‘Unemployee of the Year’. This timely campaign calls attention to the crisis felt all over the world that has left nearly 100 million young people aged 15-29 in search of a job, and has created a generational clash with stigmas that seem impossible to shake—the youth are lazy and it’s their own fault, if they protest and ask for a fairer world they are anarchists.

 

 

 

The ‘Unemployee of the Year’ initiative, set up under the aegis of Benetton Group’s UNHATE Foundation, seeks to challenge these clichés about youth unemployment while asserting a belief in the creativity and dignity of the world’s youth. With strong digital, film and print elements, the new campaign will reach audiences in more than 35 countries, including the United States, France, China, India and Brazil.

 

"Benetton is a brand with a point of view; today we call attention to the legacy that previous generations have left this one, and we reflect on the difficulties that people under 30 experience when trying to enter the job market,” said Benetton Group’s Worldwide Communications Director Gianluca Pastore. "Social engagement, always a vital and distinctive characteristic of our brand, is a very current value and way of behaving. Since our first Unhate campaign, we’ve made a strategic decision to focus on digital media and put social engagement at the core of our communications. The site unhatefoundation.org will welcome competition entrants, as well as those interested in expressing an opinion on the subject. The worldwide communications plan includes newspapers, magazines, and MTV in 35 countries.”

 

“We’re proud of what we were able to achieve in creating ‘Unemployee of the Year,’ because it gave us license to produce striking creative that also shines a spotlight on an important social issue,” explains FABRICA Creative Director Erik Ravelo. “Each element of the campaign was designed to deliver a powerful, holistic experience and we couldn’t be more pleased with the result.”

 

“Working on the United Colors of Benetton brand together with FABRICA presented a unique opportunity for us,” says 72andSunny Amsterdam Executive Creative Director Carlo Cavallone. “We were able to express ourselves on topics and messages for a brand that dares to push boundaries and continuously strives to have a real impact on culture.”

 

The digitally led campaign is supported by international TV and print efforts.

 

To spark a global conversation there will be a digital initiative allowing ‘Unemployees’ to share their experiences, ideas and plans and talk about causes they support.  On the unhatefoundation.org website participants can build a profile, upload their data and create an “un-work experience” CV, allowing them to present themselves and communicate what they stand for.

 

Contestants will be invited to submit a worthy project, for which they would require financing. All the projects will be hosted on the unhatefoundation.org website, and voting will be open to all the ‘Unemployee of the Year’ community members. By October 30th 2012, 100 out-of-work young people will be awarded €5000 each to help fund a project they are passionate about.

 

In terms of film, United Colors of Benetton will release a global TV commercial through a partnership with the MTV Network. It will follow the lives of 4 motivated young people as they struggle to find a job or champion a cause they are passionate about. 

 

Finally, an iconic print and poster campaign featuring the ‘Unemployees of the Year,’ will be rolled out across traditional and digital media worldwide.