Reebok Pacific brand director Arnna Johnstone details the brand's newly launched Not Your Princess campaign and how this was executed during COVID.
Not Your Princess was inspired by a 2001 campaign, how has Reebok brought this into 2020?
As the brand continues to champion our ‘women’s first’ ethos, we’re excited to share that Reebok Pacific has united with Australian artists Jaguar Jonze, Becca Hatch and Tarah Jane Scott on our powerful new campaign; Not Your Princess; an unapologetic showcase of female strength and confidence.
Not Your Princess celebrates the relaunch of Reebok’s iconic Princess franchise, a classic women’s silhouette.
The concept for the campaign was developed as an homage to Reebok’s 2001 “It’s A Woman’s World”.
The 2001 campaign was bold and daring, the campaign mocked established gender roles and was led rapper Missy Elliot, Tennis phenomenon Venus Williams and WNBA Star Jennifer Azzi.
Much has changed in the twenty years since the original campaign and Reebok has continued to champion women’s voices, however, we can’t get complacent as we still have a way to go.
The fight for female empowerment and gender equality continues to highlight the need for the next level of social change.
We wanted to amplify the same call for action from the heritage campaign by urging women in Pacific to confidently embrace their dreams and defy stereotypes.
We’ve partnered with these talented young women whom embody the progressive nature of our call to action, unapologetic in their unique identities and emerging leaders in their chosen industries.
Did Reebok encounter any challenges when creating the campaign? How did you overcome them?
As to be expected, producing a campaign amidst a global pandemic is sure to bring about a number of challenges and obstacles.
Our internal team and our warehouse are based in Melbourne and due to reduced capacity, we experienced some delays in logistics.
We also anticipated the possibility of some misalignments when producing the campaign virtually, with key stakeholders operating out of separate locations.
We were able to overcome this by aligning with the creative team at Culture Machine (CM) to fully understand the brief and allow the talented women at (CM) to absorb the direction and make it their own.
With our PR agency Electric Collective being our eyes and ears on the ground in Sydney, the shoot was directed via whatsap, which in itself was a truly unique experience.
How has the business seen the representation of women change/evolve from 2001 to 2020?
The 2001 campaign was seen as bold; a daring and courageous mockery of the solid gender stereotypes and ways of thinking that had been instilled for decades before.
To hear the phrase “It’s a man’s world” in 2001 wouldn’t raise an eyebrow.
The campaign shook a conservative generation for its audacity to push on the boundaries that was then the representation of women.
Since the original campaign launch, Reebok has seen the perception of women’s potential, ability and capability transformed.
Boundaries have continued to be redefined and replaced with a wave of strength and perseverance that would drive change over the next two decades.
In 2020 Reebok has welcomed and embraced a new generation of trailblazers and change-makers who don’t need to be told their place, but rightfully take their seat at the front as equals and deconstruct any stereotype thrown their way.
What has the response been to the campaign so far?
The campaign has been exceedingly well received nationally, achieving 97 media impressions through print features with national newspapers, as well as significant traction among digital and social media.
In the first week, the campaign secured 130 total features comprising of 9 print, 30 digital and 91 social media clips.