Nike’s ‘1 Reimagined’: Inclusivity & The In Store Experience

All Photography By Gabriela Della Corna. — *All Photography By* *Gabriela Della Corna*.

When I think Nike shoes, the first two shoes that come to mind are the iconic Air Force 1’s and the timeless Air Jordan 1. Since the 1980’s when both these shoes were first released there have been in-numerous versions created and yet still they remain a staple for shoe lovers everywhere. Now it’s 2018 and Nike decided it was time to reimagine both these styles through a female lens and who better to do it than a group of 14 creative females!

Nike’s goal was to take diverse talents and bring to life new versions of the Air Force 1’s and Air Jordan 1’s. After 4 days of collaboration, the final output was a total of 10 new original redesigned sneakers made specifically for female sneaker heads everywhere.

Personally, I love everything from the message Nike is trying to share to the shoes that came to life through this collaboration.

When I first heard Nike was doing this campaign the word “inclusivity” kept ringing in my ears. Why? Because while you may see many rad chicks wearing sick Nike’s around, you might not be aware of the lack of inclusivity there has been for women in sneaker culture. I’m not talking about appreciating women who wear cool sneakers, but I am talking about making more cool sneakers available in female sizes. Sitting at a shoe store trying on little boy shoes isn’t ideal, but is often a work around for many females trying to cop the latest sneaker drop. I believe Nike putting such a large emphasis on the ‘1 Reimagined’ campaign is showing that Nike is not only listening, but also reacting to this growing market of women in sneaker culture.

The In Store Experience

Not only was Nike’s purpose for the ‘1 Reimagined’ campaign strong, but they also elevated the campaign with their true in store experience. Here is how the Nike store in Soho killed it during the release of the 10 redesigned sneakers:

Incredible Sneaker Layout:

Whoever said brick and mortar is dead, is wrong. I have walked into the Nike store located in Soho many times, but the launch of the ‘1 reimagined’ is now my favorite experience in a retail store. Upon entering the store the shoes were all placed on acrylic iridescent boxes coupled by information on that specific shoe. You couldn’t walk past the in store exhibit without wanting to engage and touch the beautifully placed sneakers.

This is how you create intrigue and curiosity right at the front of your store.

Customizable Clothing:

In connection to the ‘1 Reimagined’ launch, Nike had a variety of mannequins lining the floor with extremely unique Nike clothing. So unique you couldn’t get it anywhere else, because the designers were on the scene at the store creating it right there. Talk about personalization. Not only did they provide customers with ideas for the custom clothing, but the cost to customize the clothing was free as long as you bought the pieces you needed for your own creation.

The icing on the cake was that the designers customizing the clothing were literally on the first floor working behind a glass wall and when asked a question about the clothing they would come right out and talk to you.

This is how you cultivate a sense of community.

Exceptional Customer Service:

I’ll admit there are stores you walk into and you would rather not be bothered by the staff asking if you need help, but that is not the case at Nike, Soho. The staff is extremely attentive and if you do need help they will assist you no problem, but that’s not what is special about them. It is how they can organically strike up an authentic conversation about like minded things, such as talking about the current shoes you are wearing or your shared love for Tinker Hatfield.

Ultimately by the end of your time in the store you will have felt like you were just shopping with a large group of your friends and find yourself saying goodbye to each of them as you exit the store.

This is how employees help elevate your brand in store.

Collaboration:

Lastly, a collaboration. A really great collaboration. After purchasing my two pairs of sneakers from the ‘1 Reimagined’ collection – we were invited back to an event the following day at the store in which Olivia, from Bodega Rose would be hosting a “Basketball Plant” workshop.

This workshop was off the chain. Olivia walked us through her process of placing plants in basketballs and then we in turn were able to take home our creations.

This was extremely cool and brought the whole ‘1 Reimagined’ experience to another level. Allowing us the opportunity to have direct access to someone who is currently collaborating with Nike felt very special.

This is how you get people to come back.

In Conclusion:

Nike was able to create a campaign with various touch points that felt very authentic and natural to the audience they were marketing it to. The ‘1 Reimagined’ campaign is a great example of knowing your audience and creating a tailored purchase experience for them. Most importantly this campaign is really only the beginning of brands focusing more on women in sneaker culture.

All photography by: Gabriela Della Corna, Originally Posted on Kworq’s Blog.

Things I Love | Glossier : Moisturizing Moon Mask

Glossier: Moisturizing Moon Mask

When? Skin is feeling like it needs some hydration or overall brightness needs a boost.

How long am I committing? The mask only needs to sink in for 20 minutes and is extremely soothing to the skin while it is setting in.

Why I love it? Instantly after washing off my face, my skin feels extremely soft. My skin can get dry in the summer and after using this mask, my skin stays softer and hydrated longer.

Soothes, conditions, & hydrates.

If you are using any prescription face medication, you will find that your face can get dried out easily. If that is the case, then using this mask will give your skin the moisture it needs.

A review by 'glossierlover' reads:

"FACE IS AS SMOOTH AS A BABIES BUTT"

& I have to say this is a pretty accurate description of how smooth your skin will be after using the Glossier - moisturizing moon mask.

Another Glossier Blog: The Glossier Showroom // pics from my phone

Read Another Blog: The Best Thing I've Seen Lately: Skate Kitchen

My First NYC Apartment // Picture Room Tour

I am moving out of my first and only Apt in NYC so far. In honor of the good times and the bad times, I decided to take some pics to remember my first creative space in NYC. This is my NYC bedroom picture tour.

Cassie-Lavo-Air-Max-Ultra-Nike-NYC-Producer-10

Cassie-Lavo-Converse-Comme-Des-NYC-Producer-01

Cassie-Lavo-Nike-Air-Force-1-Mids-Women-NYC-Producer-01

This has been my favorite place in NYC. I am going to miss it. On to the next thing.

Subway Writes: June 15, 2017 | Goals

I was lucky enough to make it on a train with air conditioning, so I'm currently appreciating the cool breeze.

Train: Q Train, Commute: Evening commute home, Current Song: 8Teen by Khalid

Today I've been thinking a lot about success. Not personal success as much as brand success and the importance of setting goals. When working in Advertising as an Assistant Media Planner, I first understood the importance of goals.

Setting goals means your team knows what they are working towards. It gives the work you are doing purpose. It's the only way you can measure success. Without goals you cannot measure how your preforming, because you don't know what your meant to measure. Sure you got 10,000 views on your video, but do you know why? What were you trying to accomplish? Brand recognition? Were you showing off a new product? If so did you have it drive to a product page? And if you did, please tell me you had it tagged correctly - so you can understand if that video actually drove people to purchase. Without goals you will miss out on valuable data and insights that could uncover a problem with what your doing or even validate all your hard work.

While goals are so important I've found that on many of the projects I've worked on there isn't any clear defined goals. Why? I don't have a good answer. I believe it has to do with a variety of things.

1. I've worked on a lot of smaller projects where brands are just starting out and figuring out what it is they are exactly trying to accomplish. The thing is - those brands should still have a goal. May it be a goal for their first campaign or overall brand.

2. The person in charge has forgotten or doesn’t know that goals are important. They are clouded by other things and have lost sight of what they are actually hoping to accomplish.

3. The brand has never had a proper goal, so no one working on the brand has seen the value of testing, analyzing, and optimizing.

4. Someone in charge manages to convince everyone below them that the brand has goals, but there really isn't any.

So what's my approach to working with brands or companies that don't have a goal? Well I'll be the first to say, it's hard. It's hard to do mundane tasks when you don't understand how they fit into the overall goal your brand or company is trying to accomplish. If you don't have a goal you can't do your best. Knowledge is power. And knowing what your working towards allows you to better explore all the different avenues to get there.

So if you're ever working somewhere and you are wondering what is your trying to accomplish, don't just keep working. Don't just be. Do. Ask questions to better understand what your business does and how you fit into the equation. Once you can establish a goal or many goals, you will be able to find so much more satisfaction in what your doing. Or maybe you won't. Maybe you'll realize your doing the wrong things and working for the wrong company.

When I was working as an Assistant Media Planner and I discovered we didn't have a Creative Department anymore, I started to question. At the end of the day what is my company trying to accomplish? And do I want to do that? I didn't. So...what did I want to do? I wanted to write, direct, and produce content. So I quit that path and took a production internship. Less than three years later I am a Producer - I'm still hustling, but I am moving in the right direction. Question everything, so you can make educated decisions and kill it at life and business.

Well.. I guess this did end up being about personal goals. The point is you and your company should always have goals. It allows you to have direction, create purpose, increase understanding, and do the best job possible.

You can't play soccer without goals. That's all.

- This was written by Me: Cassie Lavo, a content creator and producer living in NYC. I am always writing on the train. Sometimes it is rapping over a beat and other times it is just about the random thoughts I have running around in my head.

Let me know if you have any questions. I would love to hear from you.

Other Reads on Goals:

Interviewing Interns

I produced a series called Intern Confidential for mtvU. This series involved me interviewing interns about their previous and current internship experiences.

Previous to this series, I hadn't interviewed people younger than myself. In the past I had interviewed celebrities, musicians, athletes, or thought leaders in a specific subject. I can now say that my favorite interviews were these intimate sets with a college student and our small crew.

*Cassie Lavo interviews intern Nico during a shoot for Intern Confidential.*

Why?

1. These young professionals rarely have the chance share their insights, ideas, and thoughts openly. They are often told to listen and learn, rather than share. My interviews were an open forum about them.

2. They haven't done a million interviews where they were asked similar questions over and over again. This was a new exciting experience for them and that energy was apparent.

3. I was really relaxed. I knew I didn’t know where the conversation was going to go, but I was excited to keep it casual and let it flow naturally.

4. We had so much in common. They were eager to learn, ask questions, and find their way. As a writer/producer my hustle hasn't slowed down. While I am now more experienced, I still have so much to learn, so many mistakes to make, so much time before I feel successful.

5. They had so much to teach me. I am now 26 years old. Most people would tell me I am young. I am. But the amount of things that have changed since I was in college is immense. I honestly don't think I would have had any idea to what extent, if it wasn't for these interns.

More about Intern Confidential

IMDB: Intern Confidential

*Cassie Lavo interviews intern Amira during a shoot for Intern Confidential.*

As a writer/producer, who relies heavily on research and data to help justify much of what I create - I felt it was important to better understand what and why these millennials watch what they do.

Data can tell you that many of these young professionals are on Youtube - spending countless hours learning new things, watching funny videos, and discovering their new favorite creator. But you can only begin to understand what is that they really watch and why they watch it, when you talk to them. Their motivations for what they watch can not be simply pulled from numbers. Data does not automatically transfer into making good content. Data should be used to influence your decisions, but if you are trying to reach an audience you need to truly understand them. Talk to them. Empathize with them. This young audience can feel the difference and they are seeking out the content that truly speaks to them.

With that in mind, I will continue to create work I think goes beyond a catchy title and eye grabbing visuals. I will continue to follow my gut, do my due diligence on the topic, and ultimately attempt to be an original voice in this overly statured world of content.

My interviews with these interns inspired me to keep following my own dreams. Thank you young professionals. You're all going to do great.

My Work Space AKA My Bedroom

When I first moved to NYC, I slept on my brothers bedroom floor on an air mattress that well...deflated every night. It was only a few weeks before my brother, my best friend, and I snagged the apartment down the hall. The two bedroom apartment down the hall. That was in 2013 and I still currently live in the same upper east apartment now, almost 4 years later.

3 people in a 2 bedroom apartment isn't bad, but if you don't have a room to go into to get shit done - you forget the feeling of completely unwinding. The feeling of having a space that is all your own. YOU FORGET IT, because you don't have it.

During the couple years I shared a room, I rarely thought about how I needed my own room. Of course when asked I would respond saying "I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE MY OWN ROOM", but it wasn't constantly running through my mind. It wasn't because, life happens. You have work, you have fun, and you have other adult things you have to do.

*Favorites in this photo: My chair: from when I was 14, My Jean Jacket: It's really soft somehow, and my NIKE AIR MAX SHOES: Thank you Nike and Tinker Hatfield for making these.*

Recently... I got my own room. My own space to think and be creative. I have never appreciated it more than I do now.

Sometimes you need to lose something in order to remember how important it is to you. I'm Cassie Lavo and right now, I am sitting at that desk writing this post. This is my space. My space to unwind. My space to create.