GemLife Explore
The adventure continues
Project Overview
GemLife has always led the way in providing the finest over 50s resort living. In fact, providing parking for residents’ caravans and motorhomes was one of the original things that made GemLife stand out from the rest. Countless residents moved into their GemLife resort and brought their motorhome, campervan or caravan with them.
But how often were these capital-intensive, high-value, assets actually getting used? The answer, as it turned out after a resident survey, was only occasionally – and for some owners, just once a year. So, the idea of having a fleet of GemLife ‘timeshare’ motorhomes, that residents could hire for up to three weeks at a time, was born. And we were asked to bring the idea to life.
Project Brief
The idea was less of a brief and more of an update ‘hey, this is what we’re thinking of doing next to add more value to our offering.’ We were equal parts impressed and excited, the possibilities were enormous. We couldn’t wait to come up with an identity and campaign to demonstrate the benefits to both current residents and, more importantly, to potential future residents, too.
Design Challenge
We really wanted to champion of the over 50’s age bracket. This is their time, but no one sees them the way they see themselves, or talks to them in a way that resonates with them.
They don’t see themselves as old, or boring at all. Plain white motorhomes just weren’t going to be good enough.
We commissioned illustrator Owen Gatley to capture the diversity and beauty of Australia’s natural environment and create scenes to 3D wrap all the GemLife Explorers in.
XPLR01 was wrapped in the Daintree Rainforest illustration. The other motorhomes in the GemLife Explore fleet were then wrapped in other iconic Australian landscapes: from Victoria’s stunning Great Ocean Road, the Hunter Valley in New South Wales, Queensland’s Glasshouse Mountains, and the majestic Nitmiluk National Park in the Northern Territory.
The illustration-wrapped motorhomes are vivid, bright and vibrant, with an eye-catching energy – just like their occupants, young at heart, rich in time and eager to ‘Explore’ more of Australia.
Innovation
The idea felt almost like a whole new, more ‘mobile’ GemLife, that deserved its own identity – and so Explore by GemLife was born. The Motorhomes on order were specced up and then upgraded to include all the mod-cons. But they still looked like ‘your ordinary average bright white motorhome’ and we knew they were so much more than that. Each GemLife Explorer was the very embodiment of the spirit of adventure – they needed to look the part with their own personality and identity. They also needed to be ‘mobile billboards’ for the parent brand, to be eye catching and inspire a curiosity and much broader awareness of GemLife.
Effectiveness
What began as space-saving, capital-saving initiative has become so much more. Theola took the initiative to turn these top-of-the-line ‘Explorers’ into mobile billboards for GemLife, eye-catchingly wrapped in bespoke panoramic illustrations of some of Australia’s most famous landscapes.
Everywhere the fleet of GemLife Explorers goes, from scenic stops to caravan and leisure parks, like-minded travellers come over and ask about them. This opens up the opportunity to discover the GemLife brand through the people who live and breathe the benefits every day - ‘Explorers’ who are enthusiastic, optimistic and vibrant advocates for both the brand, and the ‘whole new life’ that it offers.
GemLife now has ten over 50s resorts across three Australian states, and demand continues to far outstrip supply.
