Sports & Fitness

An article in Philly.com examines the new drive Nike has taken to make its products relevant for today’s market:

Parker, 51, who became CEO in January 2006, is promoting new products such as basketball uniforms that are tailored rather than baggy… Under Parker’s new marketing structure, teams focus on six main categories: running, soccer, basketball, men’s training, women’s fitness, and sports culture, which the company defines as products for casual wear rather than athletic performance.

The shift came as Nike lost market share to Baltimore-based Under Armour, which sells tight-fitting, sweat-wicking athletic clothes.

Under Armour gained ground by targeting high-school football players year-round, while Nike wooed them only during football season before switching to baseball players, said Charlie Denson, Nike’s brand president.

Nike’s goal is to have 15 percent of the world’s 100 million runners use Nike Plus. By the end of 2007, most of its running shoes will be enabled for the device, a wireless sensor in the sole that connects to the iPod audio player.

Rethinking Nike in the digital age | Inquirer | 03/24/2007

Following their Dynamite Surfing viral video, Saatchi & Saatchi Copenhagen has come up with another gem for surf/skate brand Quicksilver.

via Fubiz

Nike worked with Altitude to re-think golf tees, to better work with their new clubs. Altitude developed 33 interesting concepts - Ryan Vanderbilt picks his top 5 including Spline - a tee that cradles the ball and moves it away from the stem - and Card - a flat design allowing for play on all course environments.

Insight Out: Great, Innovative Stuff for Nike Golf

For the next five weeks Nike Town London has been turned into a cross between the science museum and a trip down memory lane. Not only does the exhibition have a host of interactive exhibits (watch yourself jump as high as Michael Jordan, design your own trainer etc) but they’ve also collaborated with the cream of the UK’s urban artists and other celebrities (Sarah Jessica Parker!) to create customised sneakers within a brief of interpreting ‘air’ . The team at fashion.psfk went down to check out the action.

fashion.psfk : PSFK reviews Nike London’s ‘A Festival of Air’

Surfing’s Golden Age is the first exhibition bringing together two of surfing’s legendary photographers for the first time: LeRoy Grannis and Jeff Divine. Grannis documented the humble beginnings of the sport in the 60’s and Divine picked up the lens and capturing the psychedelic spin of the 70’s.

Featuring over forty large-scale, limited edition photographs focusing on what many consider to be the golden age of surfing—the Sixties and Seventies—both Grannis and Divine artfully capture the purity, soul and lifestyle of a seminal moment in American cultural history.

To September 9, 612 N. Almont Drive, West Hollywood.

Hernando Gomez Looks At How Nike’s Brazilian Soccer Theme Was Applied To The Streets Of Buenos Aires.

In the run up to the World-Wide Germany 2006 soccer championship, the “Barrio de la Boca” district in Buenos Aireswas covered in soccer-art by Nike and BBDO Ad agency. The objective was to generate both a legacy and an authentic contribution to the life of the neighborhood.

In “Barrio Bonito” the spirit of the soccer of district and the art conjugate themselves; with the Nike contribution in terms of the “Joga Bonito” world campaign that world-wide is associated to the pretty game.

“By focusing on the technology, the entertainment and the interactive participation of the people, we made the “Barrio Bonito” district within a district. This district came real because of the joy and the commitment of the inhabitants of “La Boca”. The initiative exceeds the symbolic benefit of the brand and takes it to the point that the Government of the City has noted its tourist value. All this fills to us of much pride”, says Carlos Perez, President of BBDO Argentina.

“We have a global campaign that at it’s very heart is “Joga Bonito” – however this idea in our country generates emotions quite polarizing because it’s associated with the “Brazil soccer”. The challenge was to transfer it to our streets, ensuring local relevance. An idea that does not come in brief became real to make “Barrio Bonito”. An idea that required long working time with Nike as well as with the authorities of the City and the involved artists. “Barrio Bonito” is neither a commercial one, nor a graff, nor nothing similar. We worked with a new concept: the Artvertising”, indicated Nicolas Pimentel, Accounts Director of BBDO Argentina.

Throughout the Garibaldi street between the streets Lamadrid and Quinquela, to areas of “Caminito“, Nike created artvertising:

• First interactive monument: an invitation to be part of the best goal in the history of international soccer: the goal by Maradona against England in México’s World Cup 1986 is demonstrated by six statues of players including Diego Maradona.
• Tevez x Gasparini: The most iconic artist of the district of “La Boca”, Omar Gasparini, who has created sculptures to Maradona, Evita and Gardel, this time turned his hand to Carlos Tevez, hero of the district and the soccer team “Boca Juniors”.
• Art with the Feet: two artists who used their feet in their work, Antonella Semaán and the Spanish Manuel Parreño, created murals that reflected the magic of soccer. The play of Carlos Tevez and Ronaldinho, also two artists of the feet, were painted on muralson Garibaldi Street.
• Murals: The linen cloth is the wall, the brush the ball. This piece is called “Pelotazos”, Tevez, Agüero and Ronaldinho left to printings their pictures on murals in a new test of which they are able to do with the feet.
• Photographic exhibition: Urko Suaya, Alexander Burset, Marks Lopez, Ricardo Alfieri, Martin Sigal and Fabian Laghi portrayed their personal conception of each one of the key values of the game for Nike including ability, joy, honor and equipment.

Now the neighborhood is decorated, tourism has begun: tour guides of BA have started to include the” Barrio Bonito”in their routes of the city.

Click images to enlarge

After spending a year as Global Consumer Planning Director at Nike, Russell Davies has quit to pursue book writing, a nice up of tea and the odd piece of consultancy - or so he says. We ask Russell why he left Nike, what he learned there, how technology is affecting brands and what’s in-store with the advertising industry.

Russell. After just over a year, you’re leaving Nike. Tell us about why you’re making this move - and why now?

I’ve got the chance to do another book, I want to do that properly. I wanted to settle on somewhere to live, and we’ve decided that should be Britain. And there’s never felt like a better time to try all sorts of new things, so I’m going to try and make a living from freelancing, writing and ill-conceived experiments. So if anyone needs some planning…reasonable rates, early bird discounts.

And there may be some more interesting news around the corner sometime. Watch this space.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Independent describes this as probably the best ad that plays on the World Cup. A 3 minute masterpiece from Carslberg beer.

The Indie says:

And this year, Carlsberg has found the magic formula. Granted, its ad still contains a group of big name football players (although you might struggle to call Des Walker “a fantastically handsome global football superstar” ), and involves a kickabout.

But there is a twist: the players are superannuated legends from different generations of England sides, who play together for a pub side called the Old Lion. And their home turf isn’t Barcelona. It’s Barking.

The ad, made by the London agency Saatchi & Saatchi with a healthy chunk of Carlsberg’s £10.5m World Cup advertising budget, has already created a huge buzz.

There will be nearly as much action on the huge screen outside the stadium as on the court itself during this year’s Wimbledon Championship, as fans will be competing for VIP centre court seats.

Robinson’s, the official drink sponsor of Wmbledon, will be running a competition with mobile marketing agency Enpocket asking for people to submit their favourite Wimbledon moments. The stream of photos will be displayed at the entry gates for the tens of thousands of fans passing through the gates.

(Wimbledon Photo Competition)