Still Essential
Essential workers might not be the hot button issue at this stage of the pandemic, but Nike is keeping them in focus.
In 2020, it seemed like every piece of advertising and branded content was about essential workers. British Gas’s ‘Go Pro’ approach was one of the most popular, showing how services were running at the early stages of lockdown, from call centres to engineers ‘helping every way we can’.
And rightly so — when people are out on the front lines making life just a little easier for everyone else, they deserve recognition, and these kinds of ads serve as both a celebration of that hard work, and a reassurance that companies are keeping their workers, and customers safe.
In 2021, these ads have largely disappeared. For many, life is slowly returning to some kind of normal, and therefore many more people are going into their workplaces than just those deemed essential in 2020.
For Nike, these workers are getting a celebration too. The new “Ask our athletes” campaign by BMB celebrates those working in Nike’s UK stores, many of whom are sports enthusiasts and athletes themselves, like Confidence.
International sprinter Confidence is the first of these features Nike store athletes, followed by gym fanatic Sasha, while spots on basketball player Danny, regular exerciser Ede, Taekwondo athlete and sneaker expert Harley, weightlifter Kirsty and soccer player Ben will be released throughout the summer. These ads seek to show the diverse range of expertise available in Nike’s stores, as more consumers return to them across the UK this month.
“This is the first time we have turned the lens inwards” Ben Hutchings, Nike marketing director explains, “Our store athletes are integral to the business but they are also amazing humans, with incredible talents and passion.
“We wanted to work with BMB to draw out that humanity and show that coming to a Nike store means more than just getting served a shoe in the right size; you get personal experience, passion and genuine love of sport too.”
“Nike stores aren’t staffed by your average retail worker, they’re staffed by athletes — people who love sport and love the brand, and have extensive knowledge of both. We wanted to showcase how their passion influences and informs the experience for every customer.” Matt Lever, BMB Chief Creative Officer.
This partnership and its focus on life stories within the Nike stores seems set to be a popular one. Retail employees are continuing to have a difficult time, especially as lockdown measures ease — many companies have kept some social distancing and mask mandate rules in place, much to the outrage of an extremely vocal minority, prompting harassment of retail staff, and even assaults.
Reminding consumers that retail employees are knowledgable human beings, and celebrating their achievements in and out of work, is something that many other retail giants should be considering in 2021.
