The hoodie that talks to the person behind you

How it went

1. 01

   What it sells

   Imagine you're in the supermarket queue. In front of you there's someone in a hoodie, and on the back there's something written for you: that you matter, that you are enough.

   That's what the client sells. Hoodies and tees that say something kind to a stranger. Part of every sale goes to organisations that help people with depression and work on suicide prevention.

   That matters too. Doing something good for others makes us feel good as well. Psychologists call it the warm glow, and here every purchase has it.

2. 02

   The starting point: everything flat

   Monthly spend

   $13.7K

   Monthly sales

   $36.7K

   Return

   2.67x

   When I started, in June 2025, the store was spending about $13,700 a month on Google ads and taking in $36,700. The return was 2.67x, meaning every dollar spent brought back 2.67. It was fine, but always the same, month after month. The client wanted to sell more, without throwing money away.

3. 03

   One angle per message

   Here people don't buy a piece of clothing. They buy a message they recognise themselves in, or one they'd like to hear. So I split the campaigns by message, not by type of product.

   The main angle became "you are enough". Then there's the Pareto rule: out of ten products, two make most of the sales. It was the same here. I took budget away from what wasn't selling and gave it to that 20%.

4. 04

   A year of moments

   A kind message works all year round. But some moments give people one more reason to buy it now. I built the account's calendar around those moments.

   1. All yearThe "you are enough" hoodieFor about a year it was the main product, the always-on base.
   2. AutumnAutumn collectionWhen the collection with leaves printed on the tee came out, I gave it an angle of its own.
   3. OctoberNational Depression and Mental Health Screening MonthIn the US, October is dedicated to depression and mental health. Another moment when the brand's message lands harder.
   4. November – DecemberBlack Friday and ChristmasThe biggest peak of the year, prepared weeks ahead.
   5. FebruaryValentine's DayA peak that didn't exist the year before.
   6. MayMental Health Awareness MonthIn May, together with the client, we decided on a dedicated promo.
   7. SummerThe teesWhen the hoodies stalled, the tees took their place.

   Occasions help, but they don't replace the core message. Most seasonal campaigns returned less than the always-on ones. The usual message, "you are enough", stayed the strongest.

5. 05

   Being ready for Black Friday

   You can't improvise Black Friday. Weeks before, I had everything ready.

   • I added "Black Friday gift" and similar words to the product names, because that's what people type into Google in those days
   • I uploaded the discounts to Google, so the sale price shows before anyone even clicks
   • I put the discount in every ad, with links straight to the products on offer
   • I created ads just for the best-selling hoodie, with a budget of its own

   I made a deliberate choice on tone. With a subject as delicate as mental health, no aggressive urgency and no fear of missing out. The discount was there, but the message stayed kind.

6. 06

   How it went

   Between October and December the store spent about 12 times more a month. Usually, when you spend that much more, the return drops a little. Here the opposite happened: it went up from 2.67x to 3.04x. It means the extra money was reaching people who really wanted to buy a gift.

   Spend Oct – Dec

   $482K

   Sales Oct – Dec

   $1.47M

   Return

   3.04x

   it was 2.67x

   The ads that did best were the ones that show up when someone searches for the best-selling hoodie itself: a return of almost 5x.

7. 07

   Valentine's Day: a gift for someone going through a hard time

   The year before, sales didn't go up in February. For the store, Valentine's Day was just another month.

   Yet the product has everything it takes to be a gift. Valentine's Day isn't only for happy couples. It's also the day when someone who loves a person in difficulty looks for a way to say "I'm here".

   Think of Giulia. Her boyfriend hasn't been well for a few months, and she doesn't really know what to say to him. Flowers last a week. A hoodie that says "you are enough" is something he wears every day, and every time it reminds him that someone loves him.

   Giulia is a made-up example, but there are lots of people like her. My idea was simple: if the store speaks to them with the right message, sales can go up in February even where there was nothing before. So, from mid-January, I got everything ready for them.

   • I added "Valentine's Day gift" to the product names, because that's exactly what people type into Google
   • I changed the photos: couples in matching hoodies, flowers, hugs. That way it's clear at once that it's a gift
   • In the ads I added the discount and a direct link to the gifts page
   • I gave more budget to the best-selling hoodies, and switched off the keywords that brought no sales
8. 08

   Valentine's Day in numbers

   Here's what changed between a normal day in January and the peak days in early February.

   BeforeA normal day in January

   Spend per day

   $3.7K

   2x the spendDuringThe Valentine's peak

   Spend per day

   $7.5K

   Sales per day

   $17.5K

   Return

   2.30x

   vs

   I raised the budget step by step from mid-January, and the offer went live on 1 February.

   In two weeks the store went from spending $3,700 a day to $7,500, double. On the best days it took in $17,500 a day. From 8 February parcels would no longer arrive in time for Valentine's Day, so sales dropped on their own, as expected.

9. 09

   May: Mental Health Awareness Month

   In May, in the US, people talk about mental health more than in any other month. For a brand like this one it's the most natural moment of the year. Together with the client we decided to launch a dedicated promo. The same thinking applies to October, National Depression and Mental Health Screening Month.

   • I added "Mental Health Awareness Month" to the product names
   • I prepared themed images with the month's promo
   • I launched Demand Gen campaigns with dedicated images and videos

   The psychological lever here is belonging. That month, wearing the hoodie means being part of something bigger, together with lots of other people. The Demand Gen campaigns got the brand seen, but in direct sales they stayed below 1x, so I didn't keep them.

10. 10

    The summer of the tees

    For about a year the hoodie was the main product. Then, in summer, the client had logistics problems with the hoodies specifically, and sales dropped overall.

    I paused the hoodie ads: there was no point paying to sell a product that would arrive late. I moved the budget to the tees, which were much stronger in summer, and to the messages that worked best on them.

11. 11

    The store as a whole

    Google Ads is one of the store's channels, not the only one. These are the total sales across all channels, to see the full picture.

    Sales Feb 2025 – Oct 2026

    $18.78M

    Orders fulfilled

    285,076

    2026 sales, year to date

    $9.58M

    +175% on the same period in 2025