Executives at Hanes, the North Carolina-based company owned by Sara Lee Hosiery, wanted some attention. Not for themselves mind you, but for their product – stockings, pantyhose – you know, basic nylons. They needed some spark, some sizzle, some, well, great legs.

So they began a search for the perfect corporate spokesperson, someone who epitomized the strength, beauty and energy of their product, according to Joan Persic, vice president of sales at Sara Lee Hosiery. Hanes, a newly acquired division of Sara Lee, had used celebrities for specific brand launches before, including actress Fran Drescher and model Vendela. This time, however, it needed a woman well-known enough to appeal to its middle-American consumer base and someone, of course, whose legs would sell a lot of stockings. Research from focus groups turned up one name again and again: singer Tina Turner. So Turner launched what became the most dramatic sales phenomenon in the company’s history.

Joan Persic joined the company last January, just in time to kick off Sara Lee’s sponsorship of the Tina Turner North American “Wildest Dreams” tour. The 55-city, 71-show tour ran from May through August, during which time hosiery sales increased as the tour progressed.

“Tina has put a lot of excitement into what might otherwise be perceived as a mundane product,” says Persic. Persic and her staff put some sheer energy into the planning of a sales promotion that had never before been tried in their industry. The highly collaborative and elaborate campaign included radio promotions and in-store events: best legs contests, Tina Turner trivia contests and sing-alongs, preconcert parties, concert ticket giveaways and gift certificates. In several cities, Sara Lee coordinated hospitality receptions and meet-and-greet photo opportunities. As part of her role as spokesperson, Turner even performed her hit song “Missing You” in a television commercial for Hanes’ Resilience brand.

Even Turner’s pal Oprah Winfrey got in on the act with her own “Runnin’ Wild With Tina” promotion. After watching the singer rehearse for an appearance on her show, Winfrey invited viewers to share their wildest dreams and tell how they triumphed over obstacles in their lives. Chosen viewers then had those dreams fulfilled on Winfrey’s show.

Overall, the tour presented a unique challenge for Sara Lee’s 200-plus national sales force. As Persic explains, “We were asking salespeople to sell something more ephemeral than a product.” In doing so, salespeople were given the task of selling Hanes hosiery via the Tina Turner image, which they accomplished to great success with unique, self-styled promotions. For example, in New York, Macy’s customers entered a singing contest for free tickets. The promotion boosted hosiery sales 42 percent that day. The best singer received a free pass to Turner’s concert at Radio City Music Hall. In the Midwest, the Dayton Hudson department store chain ran another promotion with their Frango mint brand. Customers who purchased boxes of candy with a Tina Turner insignia grabbed a chance at gift certificates for souvenirs, like a Tina Turner denim jacket or director’s chair. And in most geographic areas, either Turner or members of her band made at least one personal appearance at a local department store.

“In this business, it’s easy to become stale after selling the same brand for a long time,” notes Persic. “But Tina threw everyone a curve and inspired the entire sales staff. This particular promotion not only gave each of our customers and salespeople a chance to individualize their own territory and city, it really made everyone think out of the box. From this, the entire group learned how to remarket a product, which created a lot more innovation – and volume – in our sales. Plus, the synergies of all the promotions really enabled everyone within Sara Lee to feel a part of this tour. In the end, it gave everyone a lot more confidence in the brand.”

Currently, the Hanes brand controls nearly 70 percent of the sheer hosiery market share in department and better specialty stores. What gives it a leg up in the very technically driven hosiery industry is the constant improvement of its product. Hanes, says Persic, “shares a dual image of being both very mainstream and very premium; mainstream in its mass appeal, premium in its innovativeness when it comes to advances in fiber, sheerness and durability.”

Hosiery sales within Sara Lee are broken down along two lines: mainstream and premium. Mainstream sales come from the so-called “mass and channel” chains, like drug stores, which sell Sara Lee’s L’eggs brand. Premium sales come from such better department stores as Macy’s and Dillard’s (part of Federated Inc. and Sara Lee’s largest customer) and distribution among specialty retailers. Department and specialty stores also carry designer brands, including DKNY and Donna Karan, which are Sara Lee licensees.

Since Persic joined Sara Lee, her mission has been focused on simplifying the way the company does business. “I could see that the average salesperson’s job had become too complex,” she explains.

Historically, sales territories had been divided up geographically, which meant that each salesperson handled a variety of retail accounts in a particular area of the country. The complex part, says Persic, “is that stores like Macy’s and Dillard’s have different sales and marketing strategies. And they may sell different brands, which gives someone that much more to learn and remember about the product line and their customers’ individual needs.” Add to that the administrative and clerical duties that come with a big territory and equally big client list, and even the most seasoned salesperson can become overburdened wearing too many hats. So much so, Persic says, that the client relationship can suffer.

But Persic has changed all that. She has divided Sara Lee’s sales territories according to its customers. In other words, Dillard’s is now seen as a distinct client rather than a store in the Texas or South Florida regional territory. Most important, salespeople can now focus their efforts on fewer clients. New administrative hires have relieved the sales staff of many of its more bureaucratic duties. The reorganization, Persic says, has allowed her staff to do what they do best: act as the eyes and ears of their clients. As a result, she adds, “There have been notable changes in our client relationships. Customers now recognize us as a valuable resource.”

Persic oversees a three-tiered sales structure with five direct reports: three regional vice presidents – East, West and Central – who manage 14 national field sales managers and 67 account executives who deal exclusively with retail buyers; one field service director who oversees 10 national managers and 200 salespeople who ensure that the Hanes brand is being merchandised correctly at the retail level; and one director of sales planning and administration who, with a staff of six administrators, acts as the operational support arm for Sara Lee sales.

If Persic has been able to rally her troops with relative ease, it’s because she’s had plenty of practice. The Pennsylvania native has spent 21 years in retail sales, both in department chain and better specialty stores. Persic started on the customer side, first with a department store in Pittsburgh and then as a trainee and buyer at May Company. Her various retail jobs across the country have included stints as vice president of merchandising at both Nieman Marcus and Marshall Fields. And prior to Sara Lee, she spent five years on the wholesale end with Vanity Fair and Eileen West, both upscale intimate apparel companies.

Having been on both the customer and wholesale sides of the business, Persic says, “The two are very compatible in terms of their ultimate goals. It’s a balancing act that works best when the seller understands that what works for the customer also works for them.” Asked about her personal successes, Persic says that, rather than a particular sale, her most memorable career highlight has been her continuing transition into the selling end of the business. For example, she describes her first six months at Sara Lee as time spent “getting into the groove.”

A major part of that groove has meant maintaining the same sales high that Persic’s sales staff enjoyed with the Tina Turner promotion. Again, Persic’s strategy: simplify, this time through motivation. “Everyone wants to strive and at the same time be stretched beyond their usual limits,” she explains, “so you need to set high goals and goals that are specific to a person’s own territory. You also need to set goals that are within a person’s grasp and garner the appropriate rewards.”

Persic’s staff receives a salary that is, in large part, based on a bonus. The motivation cycle is also simple. The greater the motivation, the bigger the bonus.

The way Persic looks at it, Tina Turner has undoubtedly boosted the long-term creativity and, therefore, “high” within Sara Lee’s sales ranks. And there’s no doubt that innovations within the Hanes brand will continue to give her staff the edge in a competitive industry. Of course, the other motivating factor at Sara Lee, and within the hosiery industry overall, is its egalitarian attitude toward advancement.

Part of this attitude is obvious. Hosiery, along with the retail industry in general, is female-dominated. But as Persic points out, “Sales is becoming more and more genderless because it is a numbers business. Also, it’s become a different world, one where it’s commonplace for women to infiltrate middle and upper-middle management. The one caveat is the highest levels of management. But my advice to women is this: Top management is our last breakthrough, but don’t try to be like a man to get there. Just be yourself. We’ve already proven that’s all it takes.”