Alshaya Group is one of the largest retailers in Saudi Arabia, running brands such as The Cheesecake Factory, MAC, Boots and Foot Locker in the region. It needed to create and launch a compelling employer brand that would work not just for the group, but also account for the number of unique customer brands that sat underneath it. Its ambition was to open new malls and stores across the country, which would mean hiring around 7,000 new employees. Attracting people into retail in Saudi Arabia is a major challenge, however, as it is not considered a prestigious career.

Pink Squid decided to immerse itself in the culture of Saudi Arabia and find out what made employees tick. It ran 16 focus groups, reviewed 10 digital platforms, spoke with more than 200 Alshaya employees, and benchmarked several competitors. Research showed that it needed to illustrate the positive aspects of a career in retail, which led to the creation of the ‘Moments Made’ brand pillars. The three key elements of this were belonging (your voice will always be heard); empowerment (take ownership of your career); and impact (creating unique encounters and moments of connection). The agency developed four, trait-based personas so it could connect with different types of talent groups.

Because Saudi culture depends highly on word of mouth, Pink Squid needed to recreate the feeling that candidates were getting a recommendation from someone just like them. It held a groundbreaking shoot within strict advertising regulations and a culture where women did not tend to show their faces in major campaigns. The concept and brand were designed to work with both English and Arabic languages. Internally, Alshaya employees were supported to create organic and self-sufficient employer branding content with a brand playbook and online training module. Social posts and key influencers helped spread the message far and wide. Early into the campaign there had been a significant uplift in applications, particularly from Saudi nationals and female candidates.