You might have noticed it.

The rise in gone-by pop groups announcing comeback tours.

The remakes of cinema classics breaking the box-office for a second (or even third) time.

The unmistakable stench of the late 20th century is everywhere, often disguised under topical Gen-Z banners like “Girly Pop” and “Recession Core”.

Don’t be fooled. From new age troll dolls to rebranded flip phones, we’ve seen it all before.

Nostalgia sells. Especially in times of global instability. After all, what better cure for the daily existential crisis you experience while reading the news than being reminded of a simpler, happier time? Even one you weren’t old enough to actually experience?

As with all trends, marketers across the globe are catching on and cashing in.

Many of the biggest marketing sensations of the past 12 months have effectively capitalised on the public’s desire for this time gone by.

There’s the return of classic brand mascots like Grimace selling viral milkshakes; Influencers being traded out for old school rock stars to sell sparkling water; Television ads becoming literal time machines

All designed to distract us from the relentless manure hurricane that is the “current state of affairs”.

Oh, and to sell us something, of course.

In 2024, when the ITIS shopping centre tasked us with developing a multi-channel brand campaign to celebrate 40 years of operation, we were met with an interesting challenge.

For decades, ITIS had become increasingly embroiled in aggressive political discourse. Namely, it had become a catch-all for the issue of immigration in Finland.

East Helsinki has the highest population density of immigrants and refugees in the country. Whilst ITIS had proudly accepted and served this community from the very beginning, bad actors soon began to point to the shopping centre as a symbol of rampant decline in the wake of multiculturalism.

40 years later, ITIS had a problem. Many of the ageing locals who had once proudly frequented the shopping centre had abandoned it. Some felt alienated by the growing global community, others felt unsafe due to the onslaught of negative press that had begun to target the area.

Our job was to win these locals back.

Through a series of empathy workshops, we connected with our target demographic on an emotional level; gaining a deeper understanding of their fears, desires and motivators. Quickly, we realised that nostalgia was the single most powerful tool we had at our disposal.

‘Nothing New Under the Sun. Except Everything.’ was a campaign steeped in references to the ITIS of their childhoods. The hero video featured old television adverts projected against the walls of the new space and a sample of the poppy 80s ‘Itäkeskukseen’ jingle.

In the build up to the launch, we even revived their iconic sun mascot: power washing it into the streets of the city and proudly announcing: “We’re back”.

The campaign was a smash. Sales and visitor numbers saw an immediate and substantial spike, with scores of first-hand customer feedback thanking the operators for bringing back the iconic ITIS that they grew up with.

Regarding the success of the campaign, Head of Marketing, Johanna Tolppola, said: “the launch campaign not only exceeded expectations – it broke records”.

This truly was the comeback of the year and a testament to the power of looking back. Nostalgia had won the public over and turned one of the most challenging retail brands in the country on its head.