American Eagle on Tuesday announced a partnership with celebrity homemaker Martha Stewart for the latest chapter of its holiday campaign, “Give Great Jeans.” The tie-up is part of the retailer’s efforts to position denim as a universal gift while expanding beyond its typical Gen Z focus.
“Martha Stewart Does the Holidays in American Eagle” sees the apparel brand embrace a multigenerational audience of both gift givers and recipients. That goal is achieved through the presence of Stewart, who is easily recognized by older and younger generations alike, explained Chief Marketing Officer Craig Brommers.
“Gen Z’s watching her on TikTok, mom is watching her on Instagram, grandma is watching her on ‘The Today Show,’” said Brommers. “There’s not a place that people aren’t experiencing and loving Martha.”
The campaign was informed by an E-Poll study which found that Stewart’s name and image awareness among Gen Z grew by 33% between 2020 to 2024 and is now on par with millennials. Stewart has become something of a marketing mainstay in recent years, working with brands ranging from Pure Leaf to Miracle-Gro and Tito’s vodka.
At the center of American Eagle’s campaign is a 30-second spot, “Martha Wraps the Gifts in AE,” that features a denim-themed set, backdrop and wardrobe, complete with presents wrapped in the material by Stewart. Additional content will showcase the star’s hosting abilities while continuing to focus on American Eagle’s core denim product. The creative is intended to provide an uplifting moment to consumers, many of whom are contending with economic pressures.
“American Eagle consumers’ sentiment is that they want some joy to diffuse stress,” Brommers said.
Something for everyone
The latest chapter of the retailer’s holiday campaign spans digital and social media, including Stewart and American Eagle’s owned channels. Creator partnerships will support the campaign across platforms including Instagram and TikTok. The campaign will also air on connected TV, a channel the brand hopes will help it reach a more diverse audience. CTV has also become a greater focus for connecting with Gen Z.
“CTV has been part of our media mix over the course of the year, and we’ll continue to look at how it performs for Gen Z,” Brommers said. “I think there are moments of togetherness that Gen Z is craving right now. They don’t always want to watch everything on their phone.”
American Eagle’s “Give Great Jeans” campaign kicked off in late September with “AE Holiday House,” a content series that appeared on social media, in-store and digital channels and brought together a multigenerational cast, all of whom are seen wearing holiday outfits from the brand. The next chapter of the campaign with Stewart continues the push to resonate with a more diverse audience, a strategy Brommers said the brand typically reserves for the Q4 shopping period.
“We are Gen Z’s No. 1 retailer who sells jeans — we are very proud of that,” Brommers said. “It is at this very moment in the holiday season when we broaden the customer base, and our jeans are for everyone everywhere.”
A multigenerational focus has been adopted by other marketers this holiday season, including Gap and Sam’s Club. The multiple chapters of “Give Great Jeans” align with an always-on content strategy that has become increasingly common among marketers. American Eagle’s goal is to stay front-of-mind for consumers for the duration of the holidays, according to Brommers.
“I feel like when you’re a retail CMO now, you’re basically programming a streaming series,” Brommers said. “You have main characters, and when people tune in, they know the general plot line. But it’s important to bring in guest stars, it’s important to have a plot twist, it’s important to create a sense of urgency.”
“Boring is the enemy of great marketing ... I think that doing things that surprise people and cut through the noise are the campaigns that are connecting with people.”
Craig Brommers
CMO, American Eagle
“Give Great Jeans” follows American Eagle’s tie-up with Sydney Sweeney earlier this year for “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans.” The fall campaign made headlines for spurring a wave of backlash, with some critics arguing that the ads promoted the long-disproven theory of eugenics. The brand around the same time teamed with NFL star Travis Kelce’s Tru Kolors brand. Together, the celebrity-led marketing campaigns generated “unprecedented” new customer acquisition for the brand, with customer counts up 700,000 over the summer period, Brommers said during a Q2 earnings call, an indication of how staying the course despite blowback can pay off.
“The American Eagle Sydney Sweeney campaign was intended to be a brand and business reset, and it has,” said Brommers on the earnings call. “To be clear, that consumer acquisition is coming from every single county in the U.S. This momentum is national, and it is pervasive.”
While Stewart possesses a similar level of star power — and the overarching “Give Great Jeans” campaign could be interpreted by some as an extension of the brand’s fall effort — American Eagle’s latest push is intended to stand on its own, Brommers said.
“American Eagle always stands for great jeans, we have great jeans, and when you think about the past campaigns, it all ladders up to this idea that we have great jeans for everyone,” Brommers said. “‘Give Great Jeans’ is a new and distinct chapter in that particular story.”
Beyond the brand’s goal of reaching a wider audience, American Eagle’s partnership with Stewart is intended to surprise and delight its customers, a core principle within its marketing strategy and one Brommers recommends to other brands navigating this season.
“Boring is the enemy of great marketing,” Brommers said. “When we think about recent campaigns, we’ve taken big bets at big moments … and I think that doing things that surprise people and cut through the noise are the campaigns that are connecting with people.”
