Project brief: Supporting the introduction of Cole Haan’s spring 2010 products, VSA created a catalogue, print ads and wild postings around New York City, as well as a microsite to support the campaign and attract a new audience to Cole Haan.

Approach: We worked with Cole Haan to shape and develop a brand concept and product story to drive all aspects of the Cole Haan spring 2010 marketing campaign. We provided strategic and visual consultation from early campaign development discussions through design implementation. Our team consisted of a creative director and two senior designers, as well as a project manager and strategist. We worked collaboratively with Cole Haan on an ongoing basis for six months, meeting each week to track progress and confront new challenges. The concept began with “A Day in the Life” and evolved to “The Inspired Life,” using real people in Cole Haan’s target audience to speak directly to their desired consumers. We recommended The Selby as a creative partner to bring the campaign to life, and led the charge in strategy, design, content development, production and implementation. Cole Haan had a limited media budget, thus we focused our outdoor campaign to the New York metro region, targeting tastemakers and trendsetters, supporting our local marketing effort with a national ad campaign in print magazines, a product catalogue, a microsite and banner ads.

Effectiveness: “The Inspired Life” campaign was a depiction of ideas from interesting individuals, captured by the photography of Todd Selby. The campaign ran in Vogue, New York, InStyle, GQ and Men’s Health. Living an inspired life is the ultimate individual sport. Following the catalogue launch, sales went up significantly.

This campaign effectively repositioned the perception of Cole Haan.