Priming

 I love Hollister! Why do I love it?  For me, when I walk into a Hollister store, regardless of the time of year, I suddenly feel like I live in San Diego all over again.  Hollister does it perfectly!  The front entrance to the store is lined with surfboards and surf magazines and already I'm feeling like I am right back on Mission Beach surfing the day away. Hollister primes the consumer so well that when you're in their store you automatically feel like you are on the beaches of California.  The loud music, the cologne - that somehow smells like Southern California, the web-cams that flash live video of Hunington Beach, and the surfing gear that lines every store, primes the customer by stimulating the senses.

Recently, I was in NYC and I was walking down 5th Ave and I heard the sound of waves crashing.  The sound was coming from the larger than life Hollister store that had streaming video of Hunington Beach on the entire exterior of the store.  (See Above)  Instantly, I was taken back to the warm sunny weather of California and I had to go in! 

Priming is setting consumers up to feel a certain way. Hollister is a constant interaction that I have that primes me to get into the mood of the brand.  My senses instantly awake, the sun is shinning, I can see the ocean, I can hear the music, the lingo of the staff, and the smell of California always entices me to make a purchase.