In 2022, adidas marked the 50 year anniversary of their Stan Smith shoe. To celebrate the iconic brand, the company launched a new sneaker made from recycled materials, aligning with their vision to only use recycled plastic in its products by 2024. 

When Propiar, a small agency based in Ljubljana, Slovenia, was approached to launch the new shoe in their local market, there was one key hurdle to overcome: consumer trust.

The team, led by Nina Tomazin Bolcar, Anja Petrovčič and Julija Csipö, was tasked with positioning the brand as paving the way to sustainability and not using the product as another marketing tactic or attempt at greenwashing. “According to our desk research, not only do sneakers significantly contribute to carbon footprint when manufactured, but also when consumers dispose of them,” the team said in their Gold Quill submission.

It's estimated that more than 85% of sneakers are sent to a landfill or incinerated, releasing harmful chemicals to the environment, when they’ve reached the end of their lifespan. 

Source: Propiar Gold Quill submission materials

How could Propiar convince Slovenian consumers that adidas can, in fact, be genuinely eco-minded?

Identifying Target Audiences

Propiar set out to define their key audiences, starting with Gen Z, the target group for adidas’s communication efforts. Because this demographic is more prone to call for transparency, social responsibility and sustainability, Propiar knew they had to focus on the future versus brand history and heritage. The main message would be that adidas has declared war on plastic waste.

Beyond Gen Z, Propiar also focused on the following audiences:

• Eco-friendly consumers for whom the environmentally focused message would resonate
• Consumers lacking environmental awareness but interested in fashion and style, encouraging them to start recycling and lead a more sustainable way of life
• Instagram users, as the platform has become crucial for sales, as well as a trusted resource for news while trust in traditional outlets decline

Source: Propiar Gold Quill submission materials

Propiar also researched local consumers’ opinions on useless shoes, or those that could not be sold second-hand or given to charity. They found that major stores like H&M and Zara collected useless textiles for recycling, but no such program existed for footwear. This would become key in helping enact behavior change.

Hitting the Ground Running

Armed with demographic data and local consumer research, Propiar identified an opportunity for footwear upcycling. The agency connected with adidas partner stores and installed containers for shoe collection across 16 shops in Slovenia. To motivate those with little environmental awareness, a 20% discount was offered on the new Stan Smith model.

In an effort to build further trust with consumers through this effort, Propiar partnered with Preoblikovalnica, a non-governmental organization that gives new life to waste through upcycling and has a positive reputation among Slovenian consumers.

In the digital realm, Propiar partnered with six influencers to communicate news of the campaign. The influencers were familiar with ecological topics and had a wide variety of audiences. Each created a DIY video where they focused on making a new product from waste material (straws, bottles, cans, etc.), and then invited their followers to bring old shoes to the collection spots across the 16 stores. During this time, the influencers also shared video of participating in the shoe collection process. Coverage in traditional media outlets (print, web, radio) was also leveraged to share news of the campaign.

Source: Propiar Gold Quill submission materials

Leaving a Lasting Impression

Propiar wanted to leave a lasting impression on the need for greater waste management. To achieve this, all collected shoes were moved to an exhibit at Aleja, a modern Slovenian shopping center. The installation promoted the message that discarded items could become valuable again.

Source: Propiar Gold Quill submission materials

In June 2021, with the help of Preoblikovalnica and influencers, Propiar erected a sculpture from the collected shoes in the shape of the adidas Originals logo, spread between two balconies on the upper floor of the shopping center. After two weeks, the shoes were handed over to Preoblikovalnica for processing, where they were turned into a new product, two cushions for wooden armchairs.

Source: Propiar Gold Quill submission materials

At the campaign’s end, Propiar was successful in achieving all objectives:

Campaign Objective	Result
Provide consumers with a waste-reducing mechanism and encourage 200 individuals during the first month of the activation to bring used shoes to adidas partner stores for upcycling.	Provided consumers with a mechanism for collecting shoes throughout Slovenia, engaging 254 individuals during the process.
Reach a minimum of 1 million users through digital activation and influencer engagement.	Reached 1,006,126 users through social networks.
Ensure at least 20 pieces of neutral or positive media coverage with a total reach of 3 million.	Received placement in 32 media publications with a total reach of 5.5 million.

The team carried out the campaign in eight weeks, with a modest budget and team of three. Given the success of the campaign and consumer response, Propiar plans to continue the shoe collection initiative and implement it as an annual activity.

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