These kids are cynical, and often hostile, towards brands in their neighbourhood.
So our challenge was to engage them. And not just talk to those who cared about basketball.
We knew we had a role model in D Rose – someone who had risen out of one of the most violent neighbourhoods in America with sheer effort and commitment.
Now we just had to present him to kids in a way that was authentic and inspiring.
Our objective was to use design to connect his story to their own, and engage hundreds of them with an authentic basketball inspired event.
The Brief
The NBA all-star and adidas athlete Derrick Rose was going to be in London for just one day, and we had exactly 2 hours of his time to turn him into an urban brand icon.
Our target audience? Kids on council estates whose lives and environment mirrored the violent Chicago neighbourhood Derrick Rose himself grew up in.
The problem? While he’s a household name in the US, in the UK no-one has ever heard of him outside of the minority who play or follow basketball.
Our brief? Make these kids care about an athlete and sport they knew little about.
How the final design was conceived
During the 2010 London riots, we saw kids who were unbelievably strong, fast and agile. In another life, they’d be athletes.
So our concept was designed to give an opportunity, and a role model, to a forgotten generation more used to being demonised by the media.
The D Rose Jump Store was their chance to show themselves, and the world, how talented they might be at a game many had never played.
By placing free shoes on 10ft high shelves, we gave them a physical challenge that would be impossible for most people in the UK. But not them.
Indication of how successful the outcome was in the market
Kids started queuing 8 hours before the store even opened, and over 2,500 turned up to watch the action.
The store made D Rose and adidas the vehicle for change in these kids’ lives. A rare position for any brand.
The resulting online film reached 370,000 views in the first 5 days, and was shared by 8% of those who watched it.
We achieved 4 million online impressions, and equivalent earned media value of £2million.
Most importantly, kids in over 30 countries, from Australia to Zimbabwe, begged adidas to open a D Rose Jump Store where they lived.