TOMORROW Shanghai creates a four-episode series about the contemporary manifestations of true love for Burberry for Chinese Valentine’s Day

Ever since the Han dynasty, on the 7th night of the 7th month of the Lunar calendar, the Chinese celebrate a legendary love story in the form of QiXi Festival.

Also known as Chinese Valentine’s Day, it has always been about inspiring generation upon generation to pursue true love. It’s time for Burberry to challenge this notion with a bold statement.

Dragon Zhang, Associate Strategy Director at TOMORROW explains how it all started, “In distinctively Burberry fashion, we have decided to tear up the clichés about love being just a conventional romantic relationship between a woman and a man and kickstart a conversation about the many forms that true love can take in modern Chinese society.”

At a time when most brands focus on pushing their Chinese Valentine’s Days products in a superficial way, we chose to connect to local culture and the local audience in a way which is both relevant to our consumers and respects their modern aspirations and lifestyle. The inclusivity philosophy, where the campaign stems from, has always been core to Burberry as a brand.

Jason Chen, Head of Copywriting at TOMORROW, explains the creative angle, “We’ve asked ourselves: how about the millions who do not have a romantinc partner for QiXi, and are perfectly happy with that? Or the millions for whom the significant other has four paws, instead of two legs. Or maybe he or she is close only when you are in the front row at their concert. How about those who simply don’t need a significant other, as they have their significant self?”

The campaign launched with a teaser film in which the brand ambassador, award-winning actress Zhou Dongyu, embarked on a quest to capture the essence of true love. She met several senior couples who have been in love for decades, and learned about their view on true love.

We have unearthed authentic stories of everlasting love and consumer reactions have been overwhelmingly positive, a testament to the power of emotional storytelling and local relevance. After the conversation was ignited on social media, we revealed the core of the campaign: a four-episode series about the contemporary manifestations of true love.

We selected the strongest statements from our senior couples and set out to show in our series that their exact quotes are still very much relevant to the new types of love in contemporary Chinese society.

Starring celebrities Zhou Dongyu and Ying Fang, and shot by director Zhao Dan from Nowness, each episode gives a fresh interpretation to the emotional statements made in the teaser film. Entitled “Pet Love”, “Self Love”, “Idol Love”, and “Distant Love” the films invite Chinese youth to proudly share their own personal interpretation of true love with the hashtag #MyLoveMyWay.

The campaign ran across all the brand’s social media channels and included a series of key visuals and a WeChat Mini Program which allowed users to explore several virtual spaces relevant for each type of love and purchase limited edition Burberry products designed specifically for Chinese Valentine’s Day.

Rogier Bikker, CEO TOMORROW said, “We’re thrilled to be creating the first locally conceived and locally produced integrated campaign for the Chinese market. For this Qixi Festival, we invite everyone to be proud of their true love, their way and stand up for it in true Burberry spirit.”

Credits –
Sr. Copywriter: Jing Zhu
Copywriter: Anabelle Xie
Art Directors: Lihan Zhang, Chenmiao Liang
Head of Copywriting: Jason “JC” Chen
Associate Strategy Director: Dragon Zhang
Strategist: Elinor Qiao
Senior Account Manager: Rui Zhang
Community Manager: Zoe Chu
Agency Producer: Fiona Zhang
ECD: Mihai Gongu
CEO: Rogier Bikker
Production company: NOWNESS
Director: Zhao Dan
DOP: Li Dongjun
Production Coordinator: Tang Qian
Line Producer: Liu Jiangbin
Offline Editors: Cheng Lin & FanC
Executive Producer: Yao Hui
Photographer: Yu Cong
Producer: Chai Hu