Consumer Products and Services

Carpet Court knew they had a huge task on their hands when launching into hardwood flooring, yet their creative persistence saw them change consumer perceptions. 


The Challenge

Carpet Court have long been associated with plush, high-end carpeting following their 2009 TVC featuring a real-life Rhino living on their carpets which then cleaned up like new. Given the success of this campaign and customer perception that the brand is only associated with quality carpets, Carpet Court knew it would be a challenge to move into the hard-surface flooring space which many of their customers had pivoted towards.

The company saw hard-surface growing 15 percent per annum, yet knowing they’d never shake the Rhino reputation, decided to use it to their advantage. 

The Response

The Carpet Court found through brand workshops that they needed to engage and disrupt the market like their 2009 Rhino TVC did. Yet, through focus groups they also knew they couldn’t use an animal in captivity to sell a product, meaning they’d have to rethink the entire creative. The team focused on telling a story that was real, relatable and retained the essence from 2009, which lead them to create the in-store demonstration stand and to the Stokes Velley Junior Rhino Rugby Club for a recreated rhino TVC using a rugby theme. 

Rhino ‘Evercore’ hit the market, and with it a comprehensive multi-level engagement internal launch strategy. This involved a national conference, two-week roadshow, technical hot lines, branded hoodies and pizza and beers to get installers to learn about the product. In addition, the development of a unique in-store hard floor demonstration display stand added drama and theatre to the in-store experience and meant the sales team could fall in love with the product.

The Result

The project to extend the Rhino brand to an exclusive range of high-preforming, high-quality differentiated hard-surface flooring was clearly aligned with their overall strategy. And, through this new position they were able to crush expectations, with wholesale targets reaching $988,000 versus a forecasted target of $305,000. Brand ads delivered three times what ‘regular’ Carpet Court ads did, and the three-minute behind the scenes achieved a 61 percent view rate on YouTube.

Quote volumes on the new range were at record levels for a new product – from the date of launch Rhino Evercore has made up 3-5 of Carpet Courts quoted hard floor products every month.

Rhino was also awarded in April 2020 a Reader’s Digest Highly Commended Trusted Brand Award for the first time.

Entry details

Category: Consumer Products and Services
Company: Carpet Court
Marketing Initiative: Rhino Brand Hardfloor Launch
Marketing Partners: Camistry, The PR Shop
Judge’s Comments: “An engaging and effective path to purchase that demonstrates the full value chain disciplines. The results were impressive and how the overall strategy integrated at every touchpoint a deciding factor.”
Finalists: NZ Post, Meridian Energy


This article was originally published in the December/January 2020 issue of NZ Marketing. You can subscribe to the magazine, here. Or read the other winner stories, here.

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