Label Emmaüs restores meaning to second-hand gifts in ‘Christmas Backstories’ via Havas Paris
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Amid ultra-fast fashion, low-cost products of all kinds, decreasing purchasing power, and the shock surrounding revelations about Abbé Pierre, Label Emmaüs, the solidarity-based second-hand marketplace, has seen its website traffic drop since early 2024.
As the holiday season approaches, the activist e-shop is launching a unique campaign supported by a nationwide public campaign to call on the country to reconnect with meaningful consumption this Christmas.
In France, second-hand items are everywhere, except under the Christmas tree. 58% of French people say they do not consider giving second-hand gifts at Christmas. This is further amplified by the apprehension about how the recipient might react to such a gift. Label Emmaüs, the third-largest second-hand platform in France, must act as the holiday season approaches to promote its brand and the 2 million items in its e-commerce catalog.
A person will always value the story of a second-hand item at Christmas. This is what Rob Walker, a journalist from the NYT, proved with his “Significant Object” experiment. In 2024, Label Emmaüs will democratize access to the power of storytelling for all its vendors in reintegration programs, thanks to AI.
Just a few days before the holiday season and Black Friday, this initiative aims to shatter the glass ceiling around second-hand gifts. The idea is simple: this Christmas, offer more than just an object,offer a story. To achieve this, we have been developing, for several months now, an AI capable of transforming the traditional description of a product into a true story, based on its journey. When a product is donated, it goes through a form. Using various data points, we transform its description into a story that restores its full value.
Everyone benefits:
– Label Emmaüs, first, as it doesn’t undervalue its products.
– The gift giver, who offers not only the object but also a meaningful story attached to it.
– And finally, the recipient, who receives a gift that is both sustainable and unique, thanks to its story.
The development of this tool, along with its adoption by individuals in reintegration programs supported by Emmaüs, also provides an opportunity for people often affected by digital illiteracy to access new technologies. This initiative, which creatively reimagines the model of a tech company pioneering in the second-hand market in the most virtuous way.