Canterbury finds mud sticks

The evolution of knitwear giant Canterbury International from rugby label to all-encompassing fashion brand is almost complete.

The brand has undergone something of a resurgence in recent months, launching new womenswear and leisurewear ranges, opening up new high impact concept stores and introducing a host of new fibres into its collections in an attempt to even up its male/female skew.
Keen to continue the momentum, while leveraging the success of its recent debut in a broader market, the Queensland-based brand has now teamed up with advertising agency The Glue Society to launch an unconventional new marketing campaign.
Designed to showcase the label's new autumn/winter range through point of sale advertising, the brand turned to fashion photographer Derek Henderson to shoot models deCanterbury Australasia CEO Howard Goldberg admitted the new campaign was an unusual approach to advertising new clothes but argued the approach allowed Canterbury to present itself as a credible fashion brand.
"The Canterbury brand has been around for over 100 years and we need to build upon its proud rugby and sporting heritage to ensure the range appeals to the ever more fashion-conscious markets throughout Australasia," Goldberg said.
The ads, dubbed "play dirty", were shot in Sydney in December and will be installed in more than 43 Canterbury stores throughout Australia and New Zealand in February.