H&M Is Crushing on New York City

H&M is carrying a torch for New York City.

The Swedish retailer, which operates 33 locations in the five boroughs, this year will unveil four new stores in New York City, including a 34,000-square-foot unit bowing at Hudson Yards on March 15.

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H&M on Monday launched an advertising campaign to celebrate the city that’s been home to its stores for 19 years. The ads, which had a soft launch on Valentine’s Day, are a kiss to New York and New Yorkers, and appear on the retailer’s Times Square and Fifth Avenue screens, social media accounts and dedicated e-mails to H&M’s local customers.

The retailer tapped a variety of New Yorkers from different backgrounds, professions and personal styles, including H&M employees, asking them to comment on the moment they realized that they were truly New Yorkers. Their answers show that even if they were born elsewhere, they embrace the city as their own.

H&M Loves NY appears at the top of the ads, with photos of participants, who complete the thought, “New Yorker Since…” Responses include, first LES apartment, first deli coffee, first Brooklyn sunrise, and first sketch, among others.

“We’re thrilled to be able to celebrate the love we have for the city of New York and our friends and neighbors here,” said Martino Pessina, president of H&M North America. “The four new locations opening in the city this year, including our newest flagship at Hudson Yards, shows our commitment not only to New York City, but to the future of the brand.”

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