Author Emily Booroff, CVO
Most Black Friday playbooks are the same: a bigger number, a louder banner, a countdown clock. Australian fashion and lifestyle e-tailer THE ICONIC has tried a different response to discount fatigue. Instead of a bigger percentage off, it has built a newsroom.
Working with creative agency Emotive, THE ICONIC has rebranded its Black Friday period as "Hack Friday", fronted by creators Two Broke Chicks – Sally McMullen and Alexandra Hourigan, who have a combined following of more than 1.3 million across Instagram and TikTok, according to LBB. The first episode drops on Friday 6 November, so there are no results to report yet. What we can do is look at how the format is built, and which parts of it a UK brand could realistically adapt.
What THE ICONIC has built
The Hack Desk: a 90s-inspired newsdesk installed in THE ICONIC's Sydney office for November.
A weekly shoppable YouTube show with insider access to the retailer's buying, product and sales teams.
An always-on content engine: guest correspondents, deal forecasts, fashion briefings and "breaking news" updates.
A loyalty layer: bonus rewards and free delivery for Front Row members.
A dedicated shoppable hub with episodes, curated edits and cheat sheets.
It runs across YouTube, TikTok, Meta and owned channels, with media partnerships including News Corp, YouTube and Pinterest.
Why a newsdesk works as a content engine
Most Black Friday content behaves like a flyer: seen once, scrolled past. A news format gives people a reason to come back. A weekly show creates appointment viewing, and the deal forecasts, briefings and "breaking news" updates fill the gaps between episodes. The newsdesk frame also does quiet structural work. It tells the audience what kind of content to expect, and it gives the brand a ready-made template for publishing often without every post needing to be a brand-new idea.
Why insider access matters
Audiences can tell when a creator is reading out a press release. Creators sitting down with the buying, product and sales teams is a different proposition: the people who chose the stock explaining why it's worth a look. That ties directly to the strategy set out by Joanna Robinson, THE ICONIC's chief customer and marketing officer – customers "want trusted recommendations, useful advice and an easier way to find what's worth shopping for". Access gives creators something to say that a discount banner can't.
Why the loyalty layer matters
Bonus rewards and free delivery for Front Row members give all that attention somewhere to go. In principle, this is the step that turns someone watching a seasonal show into a member the brand can reach again after November. Whether it does that here is something only the results will show.
What could travel to the UK – and what probably can't
Our view is that the transferable value sits in the structure, not the scale. The components we think could travel:
A named content property. "Hack Friday" gives the period an identity that isn't just a sale. A name signals a format, not a discount.
A recurring slot. One fixed weekly moment through November is more achievable than a constant stream, and builds the habit of coming back.
Creator–insider pairing. Put creators in a room with the people who buy, make or sell the product, rather than handing them a brief.
A shoppable hub. One destination that gathers the episodes, edits and guides, so attention lands somewhere useful.
What likely needs THE ICONIC's scale: a physical set in its Sydney office for a month, a campaign running across YouTube, TikTok, Meta and owned channels, and media partnerships with the likes of News Corp, YouTube and Pinterest. Those amplify the idea. They aren't the idea.
Questions to ask of your own peak plan
If your peak content plan is currently a discount graphic and three boosted posts, what would give someone a reason to come back next week?
If you work with creators, do they have access to anyone who chose the product, or only to the brief?
If someone engages with your peak content, where do they land: a single product page, or somewhere that keeps them in your world?
If you have a loyalty scheme, is it part of the peak story or a footnote?
Could your Black Friday period carry a name of its own?
Hack Friday is an untested bet, and an Australian one. We don't yet know how it will perform. But as a piece of campaign craft, it's a useful prompt for any brand whose peak plan starts and ends with the size of the discount.
If you're finalising your peak content and want a second pair of eyes on the format, drop us a line at hello@social-climbers.com.
