Is American Eagle’s ‘Give Great Jeans’ Follow-Up With Martha Stewart a Good Idea?

Following the controversial, yet acclaimed by American Eagle as very successful, “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans” ad campaign which dominated headlines for months this past summer, the fashion brand is showing its commitment to the messaging with its latest push.

As Retail Dive editor Jessica Hammers noted in a breakdown of AE’s holiday “Give Great Jeans” campaign – one which features celebrity chef and lifestyle icon Martha Stewart – it appears that celebrity crossovers, and a doubling-down on the game plan, are still part of the retailer’s overall strategy.

“’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,” Hammers wrote, going on to quote Brommers verbatim.

“Gen Z’s watching her on TikTok, mom is watching her on Instagram, grandma is watching her on ‘The Today Show.’ There’s not a place that people aren’t experiencing and loving Martha,” Brommers stated.

The “Give Great Jeans” campaign began in earnest in September, hot on the heels of the Sydney Sweeney blitz that generated a sky-high level of buzz around American Eagle. Critics accused the ad, and later Sweeney herself, of being tone-deaf to concerns around the jeans / genes double entendre, while others enjoyed the ad – and Brommers counted himself among the latter when discussing the Sweeney campaign’s most vital deliverable.

“The American Eagle Sydney Sweeney campaign was intended to be a brand and business reset, and it has. To be clear, that consumer acquisition is coming from every single county in the U.S. This momentum is national, and it is pervasive,” Brommers said during a Q2 earnings call.

American Eagle Brings Martha Stewart to the Fore, Cementing its Celebrity-Focused Strategy

In the kick-off piece of media attached to the American Eagle x Martha Stewart ad roster, Stewart appears clad in a baggy denim shirt and is backgrounded by an array of muted teal cabinets, Christmas décor, and accessories all in complimentary hues.

“This holiday season we’re settling for nothing less than a perfect fit,” Stewart says to open the 30-second spot. She then pulls a length of denim fabric from a nearby roll and gets to work, cutting and sewing that fabric around an American Eagle-branded gift box, complete with fashionable bow.

“There, seamless,” she adds, following a satisfactory inspection of her work.

“This gift is giving. Giving generously during the holiday season is one of my greatest joys,” Stewart says, ending the ad.

Given the previous partnerships with Sweeney and NFL star Travis Kelce, American Eagle’s belief in star power is cemented by this holiday-themed collab starring the widely known Martha Stewart.

“I feel like when you’re a retail CMO now, you’re basically programming a streaming series. 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,” Brommers suggested.

Reaffirming the aforementioned point about Gen Z appeal, AE believes Stewart might resonate cross-generationally:

“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,” Hammers highlighted.