In the realm of iconic furniture, there is the Parsons table, the Eames chair—and the Jeremy Allen White couch.
The rumpled red sofa shot to fame thanks to a viral Calvin Klein campaign that showcased “The Bear” hottie stripping slo-mo to his skivvies before stretching in sizzling repose on its corduroy cushions.
But while the fashion brand no doubt paid dearly for the effort, Mojo Supermarket found a way to capitalize on the campaign for zero budget—while garnering 2.7 million earned media impressions and 90% positive sentiment for a brand far from relevant to White’s young fans.
The plan, according to Mojo, was to put its client Facebook “at the center of things, moments and cultural events [that young adults] care about.” The thing in this case was the couch, which the agency obtained after the Calvin Klein shoot and put up for grabs on Facebook Marketplace.
The listing read “FREE—Red corduroy sofa from famous ripped chef shoot,” and the entreaties—and resulting publicity—poured in. Local and national TV networks, People, TMZ, ET and more hyped the hunt for what Drew Barrymore, who featured the sofa for two days on her talk show, called “the world’s most coveted couch.”
The traffic was so strong on Facebook Marketplace that it temporarily crashed the site.