April 30, 2026
Photo courtesy of Claire’s
Claire’s Comeback: Will its ASMR-Driven Campaign Aimed at Gen Alpha Succeed?
An iconic retailer serving the fashion and style interests of young women for throughout the 1990s, 2000s, and beyond, Claire’s hit a rough patch most recently after emerging from a second bankruptcy, being scooped up by private equity firm Ames Watson as a result.
Now, Claire’s is attempting to make a serious comeback with its first major campaign since the acquisition. The summer campaign, titled “A Girl SMR at Claire’s,” leans heavily into ASMR — and more broadly, all things sensory — in an attempt to welcome Gen Alpha into the fold as “Claire’s Girls.”
“Anchoring the campaign is Claire’s Summer Sensory Shop, a curated lineup of collectibles designed to delight across all five senses. From soft, stretchy slimes and squishies to bright, bejeweled accessories and scent-forward summer staples, every item taps into Gen Alpha’s demand for sensory-stimulating activities and expressive style,” an April 30 press release read.
“In-store, Claire’s Girls can take the experience even further with an ASMR recording station, giving them the chance to create their own ASMR content and immerse themselves in the textures, sounds, and sensations that define the Summer Sensory Shop. Rolling out in select stores across the country, the in-store experience demonstrates Claire’s commitment to being a true playground for girlhood that’s social-first, expressive, and endlessly fun,” it added.
Claire’s is also leaning into creator and brand collaborations, pushing into blind-box culture and the “squishy hunting” subculture, as well as taking interest in connecting YouTubers and other influences notable to Gen Alpha girls with the brand. The retailer is also planning a significant presence at VidCon, as well as integration with the Coverstar platform — perceived as a safe and kid-friendly alternative to TikTok, similarly providing short-form videos — to “meet Claire’s Girls where they already are,” according to media contact Hailey Hauldren of SHADOW.
Among the assortment being promoted as part of the launch are: Bubs sour candies, Dope Slimes, kirafuwa body lotion, a variety of scented lip and butter balms (in a total of 15 scents), blingy initial necklaces and bracelets, summer body mists (in five scents), Amos Peelerz (five flavors at launch) — and a variety of Claire’s private label Pucker Pops, lip balms (on brightly colored metal carabiners), and more.
BrainTrust
Georganne Bender
Principal, KIZER & BENDER Speaking
Allison McCabe
Director Retail Technology, enVista
Cathy Hotka
Principal, Cathy Hotka & Associates
Recent Discussions
Discussion Questions
Do you like what you see from the earliest look at the summer ad campaign from Claire’s? What do you think works, and what’s missing?
Do you believe Claire’s has a good chance of executing a successful retail comeback? What essentials are core to its brand, and how might it elevate or modernize these?
Poll
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A comeback from a deep-seated set of issues will not be driven by a single campaign. Admittedly, Claire’s is on trend here as the products and the marketing that support them are interesting to the younger generation – and they’re trying to create moments to pull people into stores. But what’s being done isn’t unique. The question therefore remains: how is Claire’s differentiating from TikTok Shop, Five Below, and even Target (which is doing well in collectibles)? That’s something that will only be answered over time and with a more holistic reset of the product mix. Nonetheless, this is a good start!
Great idea. The challenge is going to be to get people to enter the mall.
Claire’s strategy is smart to link its physical stores’ multisensory magic with highly social, interactive ASMR experiences.
Consumers tune into ASMR content for its calming and even anesthetizing effect, which contrasts with cortisol-spiking headlines. Younger shoppers still love malls and can afford Claire’s products. Creating user-generated ASMR videos that include those items will amplify brand engagement across social media.
However, will this campaign be sufficient to achieve the high volume of traffic and throughput required to help the brand grow?
Dope Slimes ??
I’ll go ahead and answer the question anyway: Claire’s may or may not make it, but at this point I think we should acknowledge it will essentially be as a new retailer (not quite a ‘start-up’, but only because the infrastructure is already in place): any of the advantages that come from being a legacy retailer have essentailly evaporated at this point …decades after it was anything more than a topic for junior-high school reunions.
You lost me at “squishy hunting subculture.” Seriously. But Claire’s is smart to experiment with new ways to connect with the newest generation of consumers. The ASMR campaign actually sounds like fun.
Claire’s is directionally right in tapping sensory engagement and creator ecosystems that resonate with Gen Alpha. The in store ASMR concept creates experiential differentiation, not just product selling. What feels missing is deeper digital continuity linking in store moments to persistent personalization and community building. A comeback is possible if Claire’s evolves from impulse accessories to an experience led, data aware brand that scales engagement beyond novelty.
It seems like it wasn’t that long ago that there was pretty broad agreement that physical retail had to be ‘experiential’. And now Claire’s is taking that to a pretty literal level. OK. Sounds like a decent start as a differentiator within the mall, but then those pesky details regarding 5R content will also have a role. Right product, Right price…etc. Sounds like the ASMR angle could definitely drive traffic, but then it’s all about conversion. Which is all about 5R content. I hope it works. The mall can use all the help it can get.
An attempt to make a mall visit the next new thing? Perfect demographic for that push. Preteens can be very persistent, especially if the experience is well executed. FOMO is real.
After having coming out from bad phase, this campaign looks good but cosidering the brand image i do feel there is much more needed. Immersive experience to to new gen customer base need to read psychology of Gen Alfha
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A comeback from a deep-seated set of issues will not be driven by a single campaign. Admittedly, Claire’s is on trend here as the products and the marketing that support them are interesting to the younger generation – and they’re trying to create moments to pull people into stores. But what’s being done isn’t unique. The question therefore remains: how is Claire’s differentiating from TikTok Shop, Five Below, and even Target (which is doing well in collectibles)? That’s something that will only be answered over time and with a more holistic reset of the product mix. Nonetheless, this is a good start!
Great idea. The challenge is going to be to get people to enter the mall.
Claire’s strategy is smart to link its physical stores’ multisensory magic with highly social, interactive ASMR experiences.
Consumers tune into ASMR content for its calming and even anesthetizing effect, which contrasts with cortisol-spiking headlines. Younger shoppers still love malls and can afford Claire’s products. Creating user-generated ASMR videos that include those items will amplify brand engagement across social media.
However, will this campaign be sufficient to achieve the high volume of traffic and throughput required to help the brand grow?
I’ll go ahead and answer the question anyway: Claire’s may or may not make it, but at this point I think we should acknowledge it will essentially be as a new retailer (not quite a ‘start-up’, but only because the infrastructure is already in place): any of the advantages that come from being a legacy retailer have essentailly evaporated at this point …decades after it was anything more than a topic for junior-high school reunions.
You lost me at “squishy hunting subculture.” Seriously. But Claire’s is smart to experiment with new ways to connect with the newest generation of consumers. The ASMR campaign actually sounds like fun.
Claire’s is directionally right in tapping sensory engagement and creator ecosystems that resonate with Gen Alpha. The in store ASMR concept creates experiential differentiation, not just product selling. What feels missing is deeper digital continuity linking in store moments to persistent personalization and community building. A comeback is possible if Claire’s evolves from impulse accessories to an experience led, data aware brand that scales engagement beyond novelty.
It seems like it wasn’t that long ago that there was pretty broad agreement that physical retail had to be ‘experiential’. And now Claire’s is taking that to a pretty literal level. OK. Sounds like a decent start as a differentiator within the mall, but then those pesky details regarding 5R content will also have a role. Right product, Right price…etc. Sounds like the ASMR angle could definitely drive traffic, but then it’s all about conversion. Which is all about 5R content. I hope it works. The mall can use all the help it can get.
An attempt to make a mall visit the next new thing? Perfect demographic for that push. Preteens can be very persistent, especially if the experience is well executed. FOMO is real.
After having coming out from bad phase, this campaign looks good but cosidering the brand image i do feel there is much more needed. Immersive experience to to new gen customer base need to read psychology of Gen Alfha