When it comes to selling bags, Lands’ End has had one competitor in mind for years. In 1977, the Wisconsin-based retailer debuted a canvas tote that bore a striking resemblance to L.L.Bean’s Boat and Tote, released in 1944. The difference was, at the time, it had pockets.

“Our long running proposition is we create solutions,” Matt Trainor, SVP of brand and creative marketing at Lands’ End, told Marketing Brew. “Our solution when the tote came out 50 years ago was a reaction to the Boat and Tote by saying, ‘We can make this just a little bit better.’”

After seeing the Boat and Tote’s recent cultural resurgence and the fervent demand for Trader Joe’s tote bags, Lands’ End wanted to get a piece of the action. The brand’s canvas tote was its No. 1 one top-selling product last month following a marketing push, Trainor said.

To keep momentum going, Lands’ End is now offering to send people two tote bags in exchange for $1 and an unwanted tote bag—preferably, Trainor said, a Boat and Tote.

Total recall

When it comes to giving away totes to people (almost) for free, Trainor said “it’s not about margin” and “it’s not about profit.” The dollar fee, he said, is to help mitigate shipping costs.

In addition to the appeal of free products, one of the ideas behind the campaign was to appeal to people who maybe want to cut down on the number of tote bags they’ve accumulated over the years at stores, events, etc.

“People talk about the sustainable angle of these totes, but they end up just wrapped up balls in a corner,” he said.

Continue reading here.—KH

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Macy’s isn’t just a place to buy prom dresses. It’s also a place to buy ads.

Last week, the retailer debuted a partnership with Rokt to expand its retail media network. The retailer isn’t alone: Other blue-chip brands like Lowe’s and Chase have built out their retail media offerings this year and courting ad revenue. Despite the rapid scaling by brands, though, the retail media network landscape needs more collaboration, data customization, and standardization, according to speakers at a roundtable held by the IAB this past week.

Sharing is caring: While some brands are jumping on the retail media network brandwagon, there’s been a lot of collaboration missing between them and the brands that want to place ads with them, as well as the agencies they work with, according to Evan Hovorka, VP of product innovation at Albertsons Media Collective.

“We haven’t always been best friends with agencies, and we haven’t always had to support things like self-serve [platforms,]” he said.

Continue reading here.—JS

Unrivaled is getting an alley-oop from Ally Financial, which will be the first (and founding) brand partner for the new women’s basketball league that tips off in January 2025. The league is currently seeking to drum up brand and viewer interest at a time when women’s sports are bigger than ever.

“I’ve been in this business now 38 years,” David Levy, who is the co-founder and co-CEO of Horizon Sports & Experiences, which has invested in Unrivaled. “This product is coming at the right time.”

Unrivaled, which was announced earlier this year and co-founded by two WNBA players, Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier, signed several players recently, including Kelsey Plum and Chelsea Gray.

• The league promises to pay the highest average salary in women’s sports and is giving equity in the league to its players. Several figures in the sports world, like Megan Rapinoe and Steve Nash, have already signed on as investors.

Eye on the ball: Many of the women's basketball players recruited to the league so far, like Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers, have their own personal brands, which Unrivaled plans to leverage in its marketing to drive viewer interest, Kirby Porter, Unrivaled’s chief brand officer, told us.

Continue reading here.—JS

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