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ALEX MCKINLEY  ABOUT ME  LINKEDIN



We reminded everyone why they trusted “The Process” in the first place.

Background: Skechers Basketball creates high-performance court shoes that implement the comfort features Skechers is known for. The Ask:Create a campaign for the launch of the JE1, former MVP Joel Embiid’s debut Skechers Basketball signature shoe.
Insight:
Rare abilities stem from rare origins.Strategy: 
Reignite the fear and excitement surrounding Embiid’s game enabled by the SKX JE1.


Warming Up:
 Researched basketball and sneaker fandoms to understand what drives culture. 
Social listening to collect opinions on Skechers and Joel Embiid. 
Interviewed basketball players to understand what features they look for in a shoe.

Tip Off:
There is an extreme dichotomy surrounding Joel Embiid. When he's on the court, he's arguably the most unguardable player in the league. The problem is no one believes he'll even check in.

Embiid has missed nearly 500 games since 2014, and being the face of the Sixers' "Trust the Process" motto-turned-punchline has made him one of the most mocked stars in the league. An MVP, 5x All-Pro, and a gold medal are outshadowed by an inability to show up.
Signing Embiid was a win for Skechers, but it came with baggage that compounded their own. Already perceived as the shoe for eight-year-olds and their grandparents, Skechers has always struggled to earn respect. But in the sneaker community, if a shoe doesn't have a check on the side, it gets written off before it's ever put on.

Embiid grew up a soccer player in Cameroon and didn't pick up basketball until he was 16, learning to control his body with his feet before he ever touched a ball with his hands. What translated immediately was his agility and body control, rare at any size and unheard of at his.
Skechers has always been in the business of taking care of bodies. Multi-blend foam, Goodyear outsoles, construction built around how people actually move. A signature shoe built specifically for Embiid could be the thing that keeps him on the court.
To make a launch surrounded by so much doubt succeed, we had to prove two things: that Embiid is still him, and that Skechers can put out a seriously good shoe. For both, the answer was the same: rare abilities stem from rare origins.


Other players can’t do it like him. Other shoes can’t handle it like us.
Fear the Footwork. Introducing the JE1.




Season Opener.
 


We led with two 30s spots, each highlighting the work both Embiid and Skechers put into their craft.



Filling out the roster.
Before the drop we revealed the shoe and release date with our teaser. Post-launch, we followed up with supporting social content to further the relationship between Joel Embiid and Skechers Basketball.






Want to hear how we drew up this play? 
Let’s talk.

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