5 Brand Experiences To Inspire A Return To The High Street
We’re apparently living in the ‘experience economy’. A 20 year old idea that suggests we’ve moved away from wanting material goods and would rather be spending our money creating memories or just doing ‘things’. But with Lockdown 2 coming to a city near you, the only notable experience we’ve had in the past year has been enduring Houseparty quizzes while drinking alone in your home.
It’s been just as grim for runners, with events cancelled or postponed until 2021. For us, all we’ve had to look forward to is the delivery driver dropping off hastily bought running shoes and virtual races that we stupidly signed up to back when we were going to ‘get in shape’ at the start lockdown. With 2021 on the horizon, and physical shopping potentially returning (assuming Jeff Bezos hasn’t become an omnipotent overlord), it’ll be interesting to see how brands attract customers back. With that, we’ve taken a look at the very best running brand activations/experiences, as a hopeful sign of things to come.
Nike: Reactland
Nike are pioneers when it comes to experiential campaigns. They often join forces with the crème de la crème of agencies, such as R/GA or Unit9 to create some iconic activations. But Nike Reactland was the brainchild of Wieden + Kennedy Shanghai. Product trials, particularly with shoes, are usually very droll. Asking a staff member for 1 or 2 sizes before pacing up and down, thumbing the end of the shoe to see if it fits and checking yourself out in a smartly angled mirror. But this was turned on its head for the release of the Nike Reacts.
Reactland was an immersive experience where shoppers could run on a treadmill and become the “heroes of a game”. Players ran through an 8-bit environment that nodded to the shoes characteristics (soft, light, and bouncy) and using a hand controller to jump, they had to get as far as they could along the level. The further they got, the higher up the leaderboard they went. Players left the experience with a customised 10-second video of themselves running through "Reactland" to share on social media.
New Balance: The Runaway Pub
New Balance opted for a different kind of experience for their runners with the opening of The Runaway pub. Where you could trade miles for pints. On joining the Strava challenge, runners received a Runaway Card, which they could add to the wallet on their phone. The card then automatically filled up with the miles they've run, and could be used to exchange miles for pints in the pub.
Nike: Unlimited Stadium
Back to Nike again and back to 2017 with the launch of the LunarEpic running shoe. The Unlimited Stadium was the world’s first full-size (200m) LED running track, taking over an entire city block. The track itself was shaped like the LunarEpic in a figure of eight, and was lined with huge LED screens, where up to 30 runners could compete or train in a virtual race against themselves, the same way you might against a ghost car in Gran Turismo or Need For Speed.
ASICS: An Eternal Run
ASICS opted to showcase their new GLIDERIDE shoes in a slightly different way. These shoes were developed with GLIDESOLE™ technology which according to ASICS, conserves energy more than any of their previous shoes. So to launch the product, they created a race like no other at the glorious Bonneville Salt Flats. Inviting professional athletes from all over the world, the goal was simply to run as far as possible. No finish line, no competition. During the race, analysts observed each of the runners on large interactive screens. The athletes were allowed to drop below their pace three times before they would be called back by the race director.
Nike: House of Go
Nike again, but this time they created an experience built for social media. In fact, I dread to think how many times the word ‘grammable’ was uttered by marketing people during the inception of this idea. Nike’s House of Go was a sensorial masterpiece that showcased the technology of their React foam. The House itself was filled with ball pits, slippery slides and a bounce room, along with an oversized treadmill where customers could trial the product. A beautiful experience and perhaps the best example of the 5, for creating a shareable moment that builds hype and jealousy.
