Bringing New Perspectives: Dunelm Illuminates Hidden Delights

In an effort to address its perceived lack of variety, Dunelm has introduced its latest campaign, called 'Home of Homes'. Marketing Director Sean McGinty believes this campaign will shed more light on the unique selling point of Dunelm being the ultimate destination for all home-related needs. This initiative was launched on 25 September.

"This is more than just an ad; it's a brand platform," says McGinty, who recently joined the business after a successful stint at Aldi. He points out that Homes of Homes is already visible on most shops and vans, and internally, it's a concept the business is well acquainted with. "Our goal is to engage customers by focusing on the solutions our products can provide for their families, rather than simply discussing the products themselves."

According to McGinty, utilizing the platform as the "hub of a comfortable evening at home" or the "center of an organized living space" could help customers understand that Dunelm offers a wide range of products. It is a bold decision for a new marketing director to focus on a pre-existing aspect of the brand instead of creating something completely new. "When I joined, 'Home of Homes' wasn't something we emphasized. People may have expected the new marketing director to introduce something flashy, but I saw that we already had everything we needed," he explains. "Our task is to highlight and enhance what we have."

Upon joining the company, McGinty initiated a segmentation analysis which revealed a perception issue at Dunelm, both in terms of range and category. This issue is still ongoing. McGinty explains that while customers are aware of our market share in certain categories such as curtains and cushions, there is a lack of knowledge about the other products we offer. These categories are not at the forefront of their minds when considering our brand. McGinty recalls observing customers being narrow-minded during his store visits, quickly entering and exiting without fully exploring the breadth of our range.

McGinty explains, "I gained some insight from that, but the segmentation research provided an abundance of it. Our main challenge was that customers had a lack of understanding about Dunelm and what it actually sells. In previous campaigns, our focus was on driving consideration, but we recognized that we needed to start higher up the funnel because people simply didn't know what we offered."

The campaign, created in collaboration with creative agency Creature, aims to tackle this issue by visually showcasing Dunelm's diverse range of offerings. Additionally, a catchy parody of the iconic Grease song 'You're The One That I Want' is used to reinforce this message.

Dunelm has always been a vibrant brand that stands out in contrast to competitors like Ikea. McGinty was tasked with preserving what was successful and discarding what wasn't, without completely overhauling the company. McGinty explains that the brand's potential has always been present, but it was never fully developed. Stay tuned on our website for a detailed examination of McGinty's initial months at Dunelm, including the importance of research, pricing, and his departure from Aldi.