Washington Wizards: City Edition Uniform, Cherry Blossom
The 6th Annual Awards
- Best Integrated Campaign
ABOUT THIS ENTRY
The NBA’s launch of the City Edition platform allows franchises to share the stories around the history and heritage that makes each team unique, honoring the inherent bond between court, community and culture. The Washington Wizards 2022-23 season campaign centers around the historical Cherry Blossom trees found throughout the District of Columbia. These City Edition uniforms were a full organization wide integrated marketing campaign extending from online and social, grassroots events, out of home, PR and more.
How does this represent “Excellence in Engagement”?
This campaign sets a standard for excellence in engagement by being fully immersive. The design catered to a fan desire for something different and to celebrate a piece of local history and tradition. The City Edition campaign honored the past while creating something new and forward thinking. No element was left untouched, and the cherry blossom campaign crossed every sector of the business from community giving to retail to advertising and digital content. The work inspires the industry to push the limits of design and engage consumers with boundary pushing, unique campaigns that extend beyond the jersey.
Objective
The Washington Wizards 2022-23 campaign centers around the celebration of D.C.’s unique history with the Cherry trees that line the district and bloom each spring bringing thousands of tourists to visit each year. The planting of cherry trees in Washington, D.C. originated in 1912 as a gift of friendship to the people of the United States from the people of Japan. The goal of the City Edition Cherry Blossom jersey and campaign was to connect with the community through the celebration of the history of the cherry blossoms, and the annual local tradition that is uniquely D.C. The campaign modernized the look of the classic blossoms, bringing them to the next level on uniforms, retail pieces, giveaways, digital graphics, and more.
Strategy & Execution
The Wizards Cherry Blossom City Edition campaign featured a strategic collaboration between the Washington Nationals (MLB) and the Wizards who co-launched their cherry blossom themed uniforms at the same time. This gained added PR attention and widened the celebration and unique element in the District. The campaign was strategically planned out to feature over a year’s worth of activations including launch, a photoshoot with star Kyle Kuzma at the Japanese Embassy, a custom retail collaboration with local artist Chris Pyrate featuring the floral design, content franchises on social media and a unique campaign look that was woven into traditional and digital advertising for the season. The Cherry Blossom City Edition campaign was a full funnel integrated campaign from digital to physical elements both on and off the court.
Organizations
- Monumental Sports & Entertainment
- Washington Wizards
Links
Featured
- Kyle Kuzma
Credits
Ketsia Colimon
Vice President, Strategic Communications
Washington Wizards
Cathy Jerome
Senior Director, Strategic Marketing
Washington Wizards
Chuck Kacsur
Senior Art Director
Monumental Sports & Entertainment
Andrew Temperly
Director, Social Strategy
Washington Wizards
Tania Haneo
Director, Digital Content
Washington Wizards
Joe Proszek
Director, Branded Content
Washington Wizards
Valerie Poma
Manager, Social Media
Washington Wizards
Kara Swirsky
Manager, Communications
Washington Wizards
Matt Voelker
Senior Director, Retail
Monumental Sports & Entertainment
Alex Diamond
Videographer, Productions
Monumental Sports & Entertainment
Paul Turner
Supervising Producer
Monumental Sports & Entertainment
Celebrate in NYC
Join us for the 6th Annual Hashtag Sports Awards™ on the evening of June 6, 2024 as we celebrate finalists and reveal the winners of this year's awards live during the show.
