From EVP to employee storytelling: Building Peek & Cloppenburg Romania’s employer brand

Although Peek & Cloppenburg Romania was already a well-known name in fashion retail, the company did not have a dedicated local employer branding strategy until 2023.

Our objective was to develop an employer brand that would reflect the company’s culture, work environment and career opportunities, while making these more visible and relevant to potential candidates.

We also wanted to better understand how candidates in Romania perceived Peek & Cloppenburg Romania as an employer and what might prevent them from considering a career in fashion retail.

Our main objectives were to:

• Develop an Employer Value Proposition (EVP) tailored to the Romanian market.
• Understand local target audiences, their expectations and perceptions of fashion retail.
• Build a consistent employer brand presence across social media.
• Use employee storytelling to communicate real experiences and career opportunities.
• Support recruitment through digital campaigns and career events.

For Peek & Cloppenburg Romania, we developed a local employer branding strategy based on research & insights, employee experiences and consistent communication.

The project started in 2023 with employer brand research conducted specifically in Romania, including employee interviews, focus groups and internal and external employer brand perception analyses.

Based on the findings, we identified Peek & Cloppenburg Romania’s main employer brand differentiators and defined four candidate personas, reflecting the motivations and expectations of its target audiences.

The research also revealed common misconceptions about working in fashion retail, particularly regarding flexibility, work schedules and professional development.

These insights shaped the local EVP and its communication tagline, “Aici po(r)ți să fii tu”, positioning fashion as both a form of self-expression and a career built around what you love. Reflecting all four EVP pillars, the tagline invites people to bring their personalities, contribute to shared success and grow within a company with a longstanding heritage in fashion.

In April 2024, we launched dedicated employer branding pages on Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook.

The communication focused on employee storytelling, using videos and social media content to introduce employees, explain different roles and share real career experiences.

We also developed content addressing common myths about fashion retail, helping candidates better understand the working environment, flexibility and opportunities available within the company.

Organic content was supported by digital campaigns on Meta, Google Ads and TikTok, as well as local recruitment campaigns and participation in career events.

In 2025, we continued developing the content strategy, introducing new formats such as Employee Spotlight, Sharing Memories and Did You Know, alongside existing series like Sharing Stories and Student Life.

The Romanian EVP, “Aici po(r)ți să fii tu”, was integrated into social media communication, recruitment campaigns, career materials and offline events.

To maintain a consistent flow of original content, we organize 3–4 local photo and video shoots every year, involving employees from different stores and roles. We also work closely with Peek & Cloppenburg’s teams across the CEE region, who contribute additional content and employee stories, helping maintain an active and varied social media presence.

We also expanded Peek & Cloppenburg Romania’s offline presence through career fairs and school presentations, giving candidates the chance to meet the team and learn about career opportunities within the company. To support these activities, we developed dedicated branded merchandise, including stickers promoting the company’s Dual Study Program.