Friends and family sit at the heart of the latest New Balance ‘Runs In The Family’ campaign fronted by a team of its ambassadors and endorsers as the shoe brand’s latest US marketing message is that family is the one thing that stays constant.
Rolling out through July, ‘Runs In The Family’ is anchored by a series of star-studded biopic spots and spearheaded by a hero commercial starring musician/actor Jaden Smith, NBA champion Kawhi Leonard, Champions League winner Sadio Mané, skater Jamie Foy, Olympic athlete Sydney McLaughlin, World Cup winner Rose Lavelle, tennis sensation Coco Gauff and Cleveland Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor.
With a soundtrack from Jaden Smith’s new ERYS album cut “I”, the 60-second spot follows a family photo album theme and each endorsers is featured showcasing the brand’s 997 and 997H silhouettes.
The core commercial is backed up by a series of individual endorser social videos which tell deeper, more personal stories of the ambassadors and explore what motivates and supports them and what independence means to them.
This setting out to give the athletes an opportunity to tell a story through their voice and lens.
These include Olympian Sydney McLaughlin. When she was 16, McLaughlin competed in the 400m hurdles at the Rio Olympics and last year set an NCAA and SEC record. Now she is training for the US Track and Field Championships and the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
How does she cope with the pressure?
She relies on her close friends and family. Indeed, between training sessions she spends time with her childhood best friend, her coach (2004 Olympic 100m hurdles gold medalist Joanna Hayes) and her mother (herself a former runner).
The commercial was created in harness with LA-based agency and production company Rec League (which opened last year and was founded by former marketers from ESPN and 72andSunny).
Another spot in the series, from Carousel, features Jaden Smith (son of Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith) and focuses on the musician and actor’s creative vision and his inspiration and support.
Supporting the video is a brand/endorser social media conversation.
@jaden https://t.co/JKzcyzHFcX
— New Balance (@newbalance) July 7, 2019
The campaign launches the new 997S Sports Sneaker Range: a new product based on the classic 997 design and developed with design collaborations with the likes of Kith, Comme de Garcon and Bodega, Aime Leon Dore and Concepts.
“We have a lot of exciting, great new relationships with athletes,” said Chris Davis, vice president of global marketing.
“I imagine this is one of the more exciting times we have ever seen as far as visibility and enthusiasm and what the athletes represent and how they help us to tell a New Balance story.”
“As we work with Sydney, Coco, Kawhi, Jaden, the storylines are very much co-authored from a literal and figurative standpoint and we invest in one another and come together with a unique voice,” Davis continued.
“With some of the other brands, that collaboration process isn’t as tight-knit.”
Comment:
Of the course, the underlying message here is about the New Balance ‘family’ and its ‘challenger’ status.
As it battles the behemoth’s of the sportswear industry – Nike and Adidas – the Boston based New Balance positions itself as an independent, family style sneaker company and this campaign sees it project that positioning and share the success of its family with the world.
New Balance seeks athletes and endorsers who are slightly different and less traditional – in terms of character, personality, creativity and approach to the game – to reflect the approach, values and motif of the brand.
“We consider ourselves to be a challenger brand and independently and purposefully contrarian,” Davis said.
“When we are looking for athletes or teams or ambassadors to join the family, being fiercely independent is the first filter.”
New Balance has steadily built a respectable roster of athlete ambassadors and entertainment endorsers in recent years and this campaign showcases just how big the brand’s family actually is.
This campaign sees New Balance tell a unified story about its ambassadors and is a months-long effort to build on a theme that New Balance has already made waves with in its marketing of Leonard during his run to the NBA title with the Toronto Raptors (see case study).
Links:
New Balance
https://www.newbalance.com/basketball
https://www.facebook.com/NewBalanceUK/?brand_redir=14299383245
https://twitter.com/NewBalance
http://pinterest.com/newbalance/
https://www.youtube.com/user/newbalance
https://instagram.com/newbalance
The Rec League
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