Virgio · Eco-nic Fair ’25 · Campaign UI, 2025
Previewing the sale before it started — and driving 50× revenue when it did
For its 2nd anniversary, Virgio ran the Eco-nic Fair ’25 — an “anti-sale” that sold every garment at its exact cost to make, up to 70% off, over three days. That created a paradox: how do you build buzz for a sale while telling shoppers “don’t buy yet”? Our answer was a Preview · Cost-to-make toggle pinned to the top of the whole journey — flip it and every price on the page swaps to its upcoming sale price. It became the most-appreciated part of the fair, which drove 50× revenue over its three days and won Best Brand Campaign of the Year at the e4m RetailEX Awards 2026.
Recognition
The Eco-nic Fair ’25 was named Best Brand Campaign of the Year at the e4m RetailEX Awards — recognition for the whole cost-to-make idea, the toggle that fronted it, and the phased journey that carried it.
The toggle that fronted it became the most-appreciated element of the fair. Built on the Fair Pricing bill widget — the company IP that was the root of the whole event — and sub-brand Amodira rode the same days to 7× revenue.
The number Virgio published on its own post-sale recap — “even when it meant 70% off.”
The pre-buzz paradox
Every big sale wants a runway of anticipation. But the moment you announce one, full-price shopping stalls — everyone waits. The brief was sharper than “promote a sale”: build desire for days, while actively telling people not to buy yet — and do it as a statement, not a countdown banner.
Defined problem
We needed shoppers to anticipate the Eco-nic Fair without collapsing sales on the days before it — communicating exactly what would be available at what price, while the honest message was literally “don’t buy before the sale starts.”
“Telling someone not to buy is easy. Making them excited that they shouldn’t — that was the design problem.”
How might we
The paradox turned into three questions the campaign UI had to answer.
HMWturn “don’t buy yet” into anticipation, not a closed door?
Let shoppers preview the exact sale price now — desire you can see, on a timer.
HMWshow what’s coming at what price, across the whole catalogue?
A single toggle that re-prices every product in place — no separate landing page to maintain.
HMWmake a three-day event feel like an occasion, not a banner?
Stage it in phases — curtain-raiser, pre-sale, sale, a thank-you — each with its own UI shift.
The idea: a price you can preview
Instead of hiding the sale behind a “coming soon” promise, we put it in the shopper’s hands. A Preview · Cost-to-make toggle sat at the top of the journey through every phase. Off, you saw today’s price. Flip it on — the bar turns green — and every price on the page drops to its exact cost-to-make sale price, with a live countdown to Nov 7–9 and one honest line: “Zero margins. Zero markup.”
It only works because Virgio already shows where every rupee goes. The toggle is the Fair Pricing bill widget — the company IP that was the root of the whole event — turned into a campaign mechanic: the same transparency, now letting you watch the margin disappear in real time.
The thing people couldn’t stop touching wasn’t a banner. It was proof you could hold — the sale price, on the real product, before the sale even started.
Staged in four phases
An occasion, not a banner. Each phase changed the UI and reset the countdown, so a returning shopper always knew exactly where they were in the story.
01 · Curtain-raiser
The first signal. Eco-nic branding lands on the PLP with a countdown and the promise — “shop Virgio at its making cost.”
02 · Pre-sale · 3 days
The toggle goes live. Shoppers preview every cost-to-make price while the clock counts down — anticipation without the discount.
03 · Sale · 3 days
Nov 7–9. The preview becomes the price across PLP, PDP and cart — every garment sold at its exact cost to make.
04 · Post-sale
A recap page that thanks the community and tells them how big it got — the bookend that closed the loop.
“The strongest campaign mechanic we had wasn’t a new idea — it was an old one, made honest. Fair Pricing already showed the cost. The fair just let people watch the margin vanish, on a timer, before it was even gone.”