Boden Tone of Voice

Boden is a British fashion retailer that was born in the ’90s and acquired a fan base that still shops with the brand today. These women have lived in Boden and dressed their families in Boden. But were their now grown-up daughters following in their footsteps? Not necessarily. Fast approaching its fourth decade in business, the company was keen to address this issue.

My challenge was to set a new direction for Boden’s tone of voice, creating a brand language that would sound relevant and appealing to a younger demographic – women in their thirties. I conducted a thorough review of all content, identifying opportunities for evolution, and highlighting personality traits worth amplifying to keep the spirit of the brand alive. I researched the competitive landscape for inspiration and benchmarking. I worked with the brand’s Insights team to get a full understanding of its target customer. I then wrote and rolled out a new set of tone of voice guidelines and oversaw all creative, leading and editing a team of five writers, as well as putting pen to paper myself. 

Below are some copy snippets to show you the end result of all this work – how it came together for the customer. If you’re interested to know more about my process for defining a brand’s tone of voice, I’d love to share that with you – please drop me a line.