Puma: Here's To The After Hours Athlete

Puma have recently released an amazing marketing campaign for their lifestyle range: Here's to the After Hours Athlete, aimed at the young adult. The TV and print advertising talks to the demographic it is aiming perfectly from every detail- from the 'bar light' style font down to the language used to communicate to the consumer. Below is the copy used alongside the campaign, it talks about night time activities as sport and brings up the problems that the After Hours Athlete may experience, and Puma is the solution to these problems. It talks directly and in the tone of voice that the consumer would use, with a humorous reference to 'cock blocks'!

'Backspin on a work table under bad light. A kiss of the 8 ball a bank of the 6. Double ball on a single throw, three pints in. Picking up a spare on the final frame. Singing on key, off key and losing keys. Steady hands. Blurry eyes. Bars. Billiards. Basements. Bacon sandwiches with extra hot sauce. Surviving buzzkills, third wheels cock blocks and cabs in the ring. Flashlights drawn by dawn. 

These are the problems of the after hours athlete. 

When last call calls, don't answer. 

The night too is for sport, and they are the champions.'- The After Hour's Athlete copy

The first time I was exposed to this campaign was the print advert shown below. I have to say that although I remembered it (as at the time I was on the look out for any trainer marketing campaigns!), it did not make a huge impact on me. It was after I saw the video advert that really won me over, and suddenly the print campaign was a lot more effective too. I love the darkness and the bar light font, and I think that the symbols of 'After Hours' sporting activities is light hearted! We just wish we had come up with this idea!

Trainers As Art

Whilst flicking through magazines to find relevant adverts I noticed that trainers are often presented as works of art. This is probably because they are considered as Street Wear, and with the rise of Graffiti and Street Art in cities, the two seem to tie together harmoniously, especially when brightly coloured shoes are involved! Please see below for some good examples that competitors have currently released:

Gola: Classics With a Twist

DG

Sneaker Freaker Issue 1

Nike x Dizzee Rascal: Tongue In Cheek: Air Max 90's

Nike

Art & Sole Featuring Nike

Nike Burger by Olle Hemmendorf

Paper Nike

Onitsuka Tiger

Converse

Trainers and Visual Merchandising

During our visit at Manchester, we visited shoe stores such as Size? and Office that stocked New Balance trainers, and too be honest, we were disappointed with their in store presence. We found that in all stores that stocked New Balance, the most that was available were four styles- all of which browns and blacks- definitely aimed for males only. The shoes were always displayed below hip level, and the only branded point of sale was a wooden block with the New Balance printed on. To be honest, this made the brand merge into the background with its bolder competitors stood out. This is because they displayed bright coloured designs, were at higher levels and often had tags or point of sale items that were eye catching and attention grabbing. Visual Merchandising in a store that stocks your competitor is extremely important, New Balance cannot continue to fade into the background at let its competitors have all the glory.

We found this You Tube video of Adidas' new interactive shop wall, which really stood out to us as an innovative visual merchandising feature that would certainly grab the attention of the consumer and the media.

The wall is ridiculously clever, with features such as online reviews available as well as basic information. This would be crazily expensive however, and although I do think that it is very clever and very cool, would it really be suitable for a tier 2 high street environment?


In terms of practicality, it is not very practical at all. Only one person could use the wall at a time, and it does seem a bit long winded with the need to use the interactive tablet to actually pay for the shoes, and the fact that you do not see the physical product until the purchase has been made. For a PR stunt however, as Adidas has done with this, it is a very effective and memorable feature.


Below are some images of Visual Merchandising that we found in Berlin. These are all more affordable but still interesting!


Doc Martins created mood boards to be hung above their shoes. These were effective as they show the consumer which celebrities have been wearing the brand, and what looks good with the shoes, which can help to aid the purchasing decision. 

Doc Martins also covered a wall in hanging boots

Converse's display was more simple with the shoes laid out on a table in the middle of the room. The space between each shoe helps the consumer to appreciate each design.

Doc Martins invaded other space in the store subtly, this glass jar containing one shoe was found by the stairs, the consumer is constantly reminded of the brand throughout the shop.

BK: Simply placing shoes in the street created a heightened sense of street style with this brand. The consumer can not easily pass the shop without looking at some product.

Converse at Bread and Butter, Berlin, reflected their American brand personality by creating this US flag out of converse boots. Very artistic and simple!

3D glasses were used by a clothes store for an interactive window display. The consumer had to wear the 3D glasses hanging outside the window, to see the display properly. This was very fun and a great talking point.

Arrow released sucker pad arrows onto the street. We walked past them completely covering a store window as seen in the image, then we went into a shop and as we left, the arrows had dispersed to different places across the road, within an hour, the arrows had popped up in a variety of places, spreading the brand awareness.

Out of Your Box! Sneaker Box's Musical Trainer

'Sneaker Box, Out of Your Sneaker Box' claims that this 80's inspired trainer can actually play songs off of CD' that can be inserted into the soles! I have no idea how this works, but these could not get any more 80's if they tried!!

Cardboard Shoe Box Trainer: Adidas

Adidas has made the most of its shoe box's for visual merchandising with this 'Think Outside The Box' point of sale!

Metal Nike

Artist Gabriel Dishaw, has created these trainers for Nike. He made use of scrap metal and spare computer parts to create these sculptures. The 5lbs. “Junk Dunks,” are made of random everyday parts like sheets of metal, gears, wires and circuit boards, it took him over a month to produce the shoes, the shoe box, the label, the diagram and the shoe tags! Cant say these would be particularly comfortable, but a beautiful piece of Visual Merchandising. 

See more images at www.trendland.net

Adidas Stop Motion Viral Video

I love this video from Adidas! The stop motion is really effective, the jumpyness of the pictures makes it seem young, light hearted and fun. I think that it is really clever how they have created shapes such as the clouds and the rain using the trainers. It includes activites such as surfing that the consumer will be interested in, and the whole video is very cheery, upbeat and definitely aimed at the Tier 2 fashion conscious consumer.

The Firm: Film

When talking to Si's flat mates about what makes them make purchasing decisions, 19 year old Tobi came up with a very interesting answer. Tobias is our BIG Adidas fan. He said that he did not read magazines and did not feel that TV adverts made him go and buy something, although he would remember a cool advert for years.


Tobias said that for trend information, he gets his inspiration from films. He has recently seen Warner Brother's "The Firm" set in the 1980's. He said that from this, he has noticed that Adidas has started to focus more on their Trimm Trab style, and he currently loves the 80's chunky, colourful trainer vibe. Below are images of Adidas' Trimm Trabs, the soles are thicker, the colours more old school than fluroescent and have a definite nostalgia of when we were young.

"I love them because they are retro without being predictably retro.  They are old but not old enough that everyone is wearing them as 'retro' is in. I don't like to be the same as everyone else with my shoes, I like to stand out. I get bored of things when everyone starts to get them, and I think that 80's retro is something that could really hit off."

Adidas Football vs Fast

After asking our Opinion Former examples of their favourite adverts, Si came up with this Adidas football boot campaign, launched over the World Cup period. A long and very expensive advert, it seems the Tier 2 male consumer is most influenced by Television adverts as Si quotes:

"us guys waste a lot of time watching anything on TV really, so this is where we are most likely to see things". 

Si said that he liked this advert because:

"it combines fast cars, fame, footballers (all boys are interested in footballers and once aspired to be one as their dream job). This is enough to get any guys attention!" 

Si even commented on the appropriateness of this adverts timing in relation to the World Cup:


 "watching the World Cup just makes you want to go play football with the guys on a sunny afternoon. This advert is timed so perfectly that it convinced me to go and buy some of the shoes while I was in the football mood."


... After this short and sweet analysis it would seem that the Tier 2 male consumer is quite simply pleased!! However, as New Balance do not endorse anyone, and do not want TV adverts, a campaign on this level would not be appropriate. However, this has definitely helped us to analyse how the consumer thinks and responds to a direct sports advert, from a top competitor.


Caroline

Adverts Si Likes

We asked Si what his favourite adverts are, and this was his response:


'If we're talking about shoe adverts there's a K-Swiss one from a couple of years ago that's a good one, with the man dancing. I'm not really sure why I like it but I think it's because from a photography side the lighting's really good and the shots are really clear and precise.

This Adidas football quest advert in conjunction with the 2010 World Cup is really good in terms of attracting men. It's got football, fast cars, famous people...all stuff that is going to appeal to a lot of men.

I also really like the new Adidas advert which I saw for the first time this week. Again it's got football, celebrities and girls...very good for appealing to men. I also like the fact that it's showing lots of different aspects of Adidas with the football, dancing, biking, skating and just normal wear.

All of these adverts I've seen on the TV, which I think is the best way to reach men, or anyone my kind of age I guess...but obviously if a company cannot afford TV advertising I would say that the next best thing would be online because most students and young people spend a lot of time on the internet.

Adidas Birmingham Limited Edition

Our focus group with the Tier 2 consumer revealed that the boys (all friends) had found this particular limited edition exciting. Only 200 pairs of the trainer were made and each pair sold for £250. They are real collectables that any sneaker freak would love to get their hands on. Although none of the boys managed to get a pair, they were all aware of this edition, and it did make them go onto the Adidas website as a result, so brand awareness was also heightened as the consumer was reminded about the brand through this media buzz. The boys all agreed that if a limited edition is appealing enough, and in short enough supply, then it will generate word of mouth promotion and great PR. Something that New Balance could really do with...

Puma Love Kimberly Walsh

Puma have recently adopted ex Girls Aloud star Kimberly Walsh as 'the face' of the brand. I think that this has been done in order to make their lifestyle ranges more appealing to the female market along with the launch of the 'after hours athlete' campaign. As Cheryl Cole's supposed best friend from the brand, and a fun, girly, healthy woman, many a teenage girl also admires her, making this collaboration seem like a very positive idea for Puma.


New Balance however prides itself on 'endorsing no one' as you never know what could go wrong when working with a celebrity, and with the media being so fickle, Kimberly could well be out of favour with the masses in a few months time anyway...

Converse Loves Marimekko

Converse have collaborated with Marimekko, who are celebrating their 60th birthday this year. Marimekko is a textile design company renowned for its original prints and colours. This collaboration has turned all american converse sneakers into super cute, feminine pumps.

Adidas: Love for the Game Competition on Facebook

Adidas are giving away 2x2 exclusive court side tickets including pre game hospitality to one of the NBA Games (London, March 2011). All the contestant will need to do to win tickets is write a poem describing your passion for the game (Including Adidas Originals, Superstar, NBA and Vanilla Ice Cream as key words while describing their love for basketball!) The two most passionate and creative entries will win. Easy!

This simple campaign will get people 'liking' Adidas on Facebook, as well as solidifies Adidas' ethos and personality.

Facebook and Twitter Shoes

Gerry Mckay, a Glasgow based designer has mocked up these amazing concept trainers, collaborating Adidas with the social networking sites Facebook and Twitter. "Facebook as a brand is increasingly on the rise and I thought it would be interesting to see what it would look like if Adidas also released a limited edition Facebook Superstar, so I worked on my own design of the shoe and this is what I came up with", said Mckay. Facebook and Twitter as a fashion brand is just waiting to happen, and this collaboration would be perfect.

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Nike: Free Yourself

This short video shows a variety of ordinary people in their Nike trainers doing impressive sporting tricks. This portrays the message that Nike is for the best of the best, and can help you achieve your goals.

"Run. Jump. Skip. Pass. Train. Toss. Ride. Flip. Nobody Does it like you do. Whatever you're after or wherever you're going. Nike will take you there Free your stride. Free your style. Free yourself."

 -Nike

Nike and Robert Rodriguez begin Kobe's Marketing Push Towards 2011 All-Star Game in L.A.

This advert strongly portrays the brands ethos of being the best, winning and "just doing it".

The campaign involves American University football team the Oregon Ducks, who have been built on marketing themselves and making itself appeal to the new generation of athletics. Athletes want exposure, flash gear and the best, which Oregon can offer with the help of Phil Knight, Nike's Chairman. Nike designs and sponsors all of the University's athletics team gear.

This is a great opportunity for Nike because it gets people talking about the brand along with the school. Nike is a brand that has built itself up as a symbol of success, with University recruits comes wins, with wins comes championshops. Nike donates a lot of money to the school for new facilities, stadiums and school buildings, and students feel like they are part of the Nike family.

. With recruits come wins. With wins come championships. This is no secret to Nike and I am surprised other sporting goods companies have not done the same. Nike donates a lot of money to the school for new facilities, stadiums, and school buildings. Students feel like they are part of the Nike family as well. 

This gives Nike the opportunity to test new materials as well as generate an estimated 24,000 students into fans of the brand for life.

Diesel x Adidas 2011

"The heritage of the two brands will come together, applying our spirit on Adidas classic kicks"

 Renzo Rosso (Founder)

After their successful denim collaboration in 2008 Diesel and Adidas Originals thought it was time to put their thinking caps on and create a limited capsule trainers collection. The limited edition collaboration is enough to make any sneaker freak rush down to Diesel with these new understated designs. Although subtle, there are srtill undertones of Diesel's cheeky nature with streaks of bright colour present. In the Nottingham store, these take over the window display, with collaboration information, which I have seen stop many consumer in their tracks over this last week alone.